Independence Heroes Honoured: Jakarta, West Java

By Barrie | June 21st, 2007 | No Comments

Men in traditional Betawi koko shirts and batik pants and women wearing kebaya blouses gathered in their dozens at the Karet Bivak Public Cemetery in Central Jakarta on Tuesday morning. The mourners appeared not to care about the drizzle that had been showering the earth from the night before. The scent of fresh wet soil blended with the smell of flowers in the damp air.

The group gathered around a large mausoleum, the stone at its head indicating it was the resting place of Muhammad Husni Thamrin and dead members of his family.

The ceremony started soon after the arrival of Governor Sutiyoso, who led the mourners in paying homage to MH Thamrin, a native Betawi (Jakarta local).

“I make this visit every year to encourage the young generation to respect and know about our national heroes, because a big country is one that respects its heroes,” he said.

Many people may not know who MH Thamrin is, despite one the city’s main roads being named after him.

MH Thamrin was born in Sawah Besar, Central Jakarta, on Feb.16, 1894. At the age of 25, he began service as a councilor for the city of Batavia, as Dutch-era Jakarta was known.

The Ciliwung Canal was one of Thamrin’s early achievements, having been suggested as a necessary development to the Dutch colonial administration.

He also proposed a motion in 1939 to change the name of Nederland Indische to Indonesia, but had the motion rejected by the Dutch government.

Accused of being a spy for approaching Japanese forces, an ailing Thamrin was placed under house arrest by the Dutch on Jan. 6, 1941.

Thamrin died on Jan. 11, 1941, at the age of 47.

Besides paying homage to Thamrin, Sutiyoso also visited the grave of Prince Jayakarta in the compound of As-Salafiyah Mosque on Jl. Jatinegara Kaum, East Jakarta. A similar ceremony was also held at the Prince’s family mausoleum at the mosque.

As-Salafiyah Mosque was built by the prince in 1620 while he camped in East Jakarta. The camp, named Jatinegara, meaning negara yang sejati (the real nation), was set up in direct challenge to Dutch rule.

Governor Sutiyoso said he had long idolized the heroism of Jayakarta.

“I have been learning about him since I was a military commander,” said Sutiyoso, who was head of the military in Jakarta from 1996 to 1997.

He added that his interest in Jayakarta was the reason he was willing to play the prince in an upcoming traditional Javanese ketoprak play on June 29 at Gedung Kesenian Jakarta.

Prince Jayakarta, otherwise known as Prince Akhmad Jaketra, was a son of Prince Sungerasa Jayawikarta of Banten and lived between 1619 and 1640. Modern-day Jakarta was then a province of the Kingdom of Banten.

Source: Jakarta Post