Yogyakarta

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Yogyakarta (also Jogjakarta or Jogja) is a city and province on the island of Java, Indonesia. It is the only province in Indonesia that is still formally governed by a precolonial Sultanate, the Sultanate of Ngayogyakarta Hadiningrat. The city is known as a center of classical Javanese fine art and culture such as batik, ballet, drama, music, poetry and puppet shows. It is also famous as a center for Indonesian higher education. The official name of the Yogyakarta province is Special Region of Yogyakarta (Indonesian: Daerah Istimewa Yogyakarta, or DIY). The city of Yogyakarta is the capital of the province.

1 Geography
2 History
3 The city
4 Arts and culture
5 Education
6 Transportation
7 Health Facilities
8 References
9 External links

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Geography

Yogyakarta is located in south-central Java. It is surrounded by the province of Central Java (Jawa Tengah) and the Indian Ocean in the south. The city is located at Template:Coor dm. The population of DIY in 2003 was approximately 3,000,000.

The province of Yogyakarta has a total area of 3,185.80 sq kilometres. It is subdivided into four regencies (kabupaten) and one city (previously it was called kotamadya, now it is called kota), as follows:

Kota Yogyakarta (32.5 sq kilometres)
Kabupaten Sleman (574.82 sq kilometres)
Kabupaten Bantul (506.86 sq kilometres)
Kabupaten Gunung Kidul (1,485.36 sq kilometres)
Kabupaten Kulon Progo (586.27 sq kilometres)

Yogyakarta has the second-smallest area of the provinces in Indonesia, after the Jakarta Capital Region. However it has, with adjacent areas in Central Java, some of the most concentrated population densities [ that is population per square kilometre ] of Java.

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History

The Yogyakarta Sultanate, formally the Sultanate of Ngayogyakarta Hadiningrat, was formed in 1755 when the existing Sultanate of Mataram was divided by the Dutch East India Company (VOC) in two under the Treaty of Giyanti. This treaty states that the Sultanate of Mataram was to be divided into the Sultanate of Ngayogyakarta Hadiningrat with Yogyakarta as the capital and Mangkubumi who became Sultan Hamengkubuwono I the sultan and the Sultanate of Surakarta Hadiningrat with Surakarta as the capital and Pakubuwono III who was the ruler of the Sultanate of Mataram as the sultan. The Sultan Hamengkubuwono I spent the next 37 years building the new capital, with the Kraton as the centrepiece and the court at Surakarta as the blueprint. By the time he died in 1792, his territory exceeded Surakarta's.

The ruler Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono IX (April 12, 1912 - 1988) held a degree from the Dutch Leiden University, and held for a time the largely ceremonial position of Vice-President of Indonesia, in recognition of his status, as well as Minister of Finance and Minister of Defense.

In support of Indonesia declaring independence from the Dutch and Japanese occupation, in September 5, 1945, Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono IX of Yogya and Sri Paku Alam VIII in Yogya declared their palaces to be part of the Republic of Indonesia. In return for this unfailing support, a law was passed in 1950, in which Yogyakarta was granted the status of province Daerah Istimewa (Special Region Province), with special status in Indonesia that recognizes the power of the Sultan in contemporary domestic affairs. Hence Sultan Hamengkubuwono IX was appointed as the governor for life. During the Indonesian war of independence against the Dutch after World War II (1945-1950), the capital of the newly-declared Indonesian republic was temporarily moved to Yogyakarta when the Dutch reoccupied Jakarta from January 1946 until August 1950.

The current ruler of Yogyakarta is his son, Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono X, who holds a law degree from Universitas Gadjah Mada. Upon the elder sultan's death, the position of governor, according to the agreement with Indonesia, was to pass to his heir. However, the central government insisted on an election. In 1998, Sultan Hamengkubuwono X was elected as governor by the provincial house of representatives (DPRD) of Yogyakarta, defying the will of the central government. He remains the only governor in Java without a military background: "I may be a sultan," he has been quoted in Asia Week as saying, "but is it not possible for me to also be a democrat?" [1] However, so many sides have a negative opinion about the position of Sultan in ruling DIY as a governor. First, it degrades him from being the holy, infallible and revered Sultan, as governor deals with politics and social matters that may not be all things for all people. Secondly, unconsciously it will revert back to the old system of feudalism when automatically a Sultan hold an administrative power in the system of republic (as a governor) without any election.

See also List of Governors of Yogyakarta See also Yogyakarta Sultanate

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The city

At Yogyakarta's center is the kraton, or Sultan's palace. Surrounding the kraton is a densely-populated residential neighborhood that occupies land that was formerly the Sultan's sole domain; evidence of this former use remains in the form of old walls and the ruined "Water Castle" (tamansari), built in 1758 as a pleasure garden. No longer used by the sultan, the garden had been largely abandoned,and was used for housing by palace employees and descendants. Reconstruction efforts began in 2004, and an effort to renew the neighborhood around the kraton has begun. The site is a developing tourist attraction.

While the city sprawls in all directions from the kraton, the core of the modern city is to the north, site of a few buildings with distinctive Dutch colonial-era architecture, and the contemporary commercial district.

Jalan Malioboro, with rows of sidewalk vendors and nearby market and malls, is the primary shopping street for tourists in the city, while Jalan Solo, further north, is a shopping district more frequented by locals.

At the southern end of Malioboro, on the east side is the large local market of Beringharjo, not far from Fort Vredeburg a restored Dutch fort.

The city is devided into 14 districs(kecamatan). 1. Gondokusuman 2. Jetis 3. Tegalrejo 4. Umbulharjo 5. Kotagede 6. Mergangsan 7. Ngampilan 8. Danurejan 9. Kraton 10. Wirobrajan 11. Pakualaman 12. Mantrijeron 13. Gedongtengen 14. Gondomanan

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Arts and culture

Yogyakarta is known for its silver work, leather puppets used for shadow plays (wayang kulit), and a unique style of making batik dyed fabric. It is also known for its vivid contemporary art scene.

Yogyakarta has signed a sister city agreement with Kyoto, Japan, and a sister state agreement with California, United States.

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Education

The site of several major universities, Yogyakarta is widely recognized as an educational city. The north of the province is home to Gadjah Mada University, one of the oldest and most prestigious univerisities in Indonesia. Other famous universities in Yogyakarta are Indonesian Institute of the Arts - Yogyakarta, Universitas Negeri Yogyakarta, Universitas Islam Indonesia, Universitas Sanata Dharma, Univesitas Pembangunan Nasional "Veteran" Yogyakarta, Univesitas Muhammadiyah Yogyakarta, Universitas Atma Jaya Yogyakarta, and Universitas Kristen Duta Wacana.

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Transportation

Yogyakarta's airport is Adisucipto International Airport. The city is located on one of the two major railway lines across Java between Jakarta/Bandung and Surabaya. It has two passenger railway stations, Tugu is the major intercity station. The other is Lempuyangan.

The city has an extensive system of public city buses, and is a major destination for inter-city buses to elsewhere on Java or Bali, as well as taxis, andong, and becak. Motorbikes are by far the most commonly-used personal transportation, but an increasing number of residents own automobiles.

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Health Facilities

There are several hospitals in Yogyakarta. The biggest ones are Dr. Sardjito Hospital, Bethesda Hospital Yogyakarta, and Panti Rapih Hospital.

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References

Department of Tourism, Post and Telecommunication Regional Office For Yogyakarta Special Region. (1997) Guide To Yogyakarta. Yogyakarta: Department of Tourism, Post and Telecommunication.
Ricklefs, M.C. (2001) A history of modern Indonesia since c.1200 (3rd ed.). Stanford: Stanford University Press. pp. 126-139, 269-271. IBN 0-8047-4480-7

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