Three must-read books a mirror on Jakarta's past and present

Ignatius Haryanto, Contributor, Jakarta

It's nice to take a trip back in time from our Jakarta to the Batavia of yesteryear.

Personally, I do not agree with glorifying the past, because it seems to me that we are also saying that everything about Jakarta today is decadent and negative -- and progress counts for nothing.

However, as we commemorate the city's 476th anniversary on Sunday, it's hard to decide whether we have much to be proud about when spiraling crime, pollution, ridiculous "development" ideas and horrendous traffic define Jakarta today.

Books can be our window into the past, and also a mirror to put contemporary Jakarta in perspective. There are many books on the capital, from historical tomes, glossy photo works and anthropological explorations of local communities. Today, there is even Jakarta Undercover -- Sex 'n the city, the wildly successful exploration of the seamier side of life in the capital (everybody is reading it but nobody wants to admit it).

Among the hundreds of books written on Jakarta, here are three books which I consider to be the definitive works in understanding the capital, its history and the future.

* Historical Sites in Jakarta by Adolf Heuken SJ (Cipta Loka Caraka, 1985). In English.

Twenty-two years after it was first published, this is still the work to read on heritage sites around the city, with beautiful explanations and an excellent selection of illustrations. Like any engaging history book, it reads well and provides valuable nuggets of information.

Few of us probably know that Portuguese was once the language in old Batavia, or that Balinese was also commonly spoken. Heuken shows how Jakarta has always been a melting pot, drawing ships from around the world whose occupants shared their culture with the Betawi people. It's little wonder that our remarkable city can have a Hindu statue by a Dutch church and a mosque -- and even a Chinese temple with Islamic-influenced architecture.

An interesting story, and with particular relevance today, is about Jl. Medan Merdeka, where the National Monument now stands in its own park. Although deer may romp through its grounds now, and are said to be stressed by the chaos going on around them, Heuken tells how it was once the place to bathe water buffaloes.

Different governors have had different priorities for the city (Daendels, for instance, used the park as a military training ground) but it would seem that our present "leader" is putting animals before the needs of the people.

* The Kapitan Cina of Batavia 1837-1942 by Mona Lohanda (Djambatan, Jakarta, 1994). In English.

A story about people who have made this city, with Lohanda focusing on the Chinese community and a captain who left his imprint on the city. Lohanda uses him as the starting point to discuss the Chinese community's presence in the archipelago since the 17th century.

She writes that most Chinese-Indonesians are descended from Hokkein natives of southern China, and their culture mixed with the local Betawi culture. She notes that the influence is apparent in the Betawi dialect.

Profil Orang Betawi: Asal Muasal, Kebudayaan dan Adat Istiadatnya (Profiles of the Betawi: Origins, Culture and Customs) by Ridwan Saidi. (Gunara Kata, Jakarta 2001)

An interesting work about the native Jakarta community by Saidi, himself a Betawi. He criticizes the theory of Lance Castle that the Betawi are descended from slaves brought to Jakarta from the 17th to 18th centuries.

Saidi challenges Castle's widely accepted view by stating that the Betawi people were already recognized before the 16th century. He notes that at least 15,000 people were living in the city when the Dutch first arrived in the 17th century.

The author also examines different Betawi enclaves in the city, such as Tanah Abang, Kebayoran and Gambir, and devotes chapters to Betawi culture, famous figures such as composer Ismail Marzuki and comedian-singer Benyamin Suaeb as well as the food specialties and arts of the people.

Not surprisingly, considering the condition of the city today, with all its assorted problems, these books remain my selection of the best on Jakarta. They also show us that the city is losing much of its soul, as its beautiful historical buildings are leveled to make way for shopping malls and office buildings.

The writer is a journalist and Jakarta citizen.