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FOCUS: Starting
From Kilometre Zero
by Andreas Harsono, The Star Newspaper
“What kind of tree is it?” I asked him instead, pointing to one of
the gigantic trees that line up along the street. “ Morai tree. It is more
than 300 years old,” answered Liyan Ramli.
The tree, called Manila tamarind in English, was impressive.
Its trunk was almost as big as a small wooden hut. I
estimated that its diameter was to be more than two meters2m.
In English its name in English is Manila tamarind. In
Latin it is Tamarindus indicus . A row of gigantic Manila
tamarind trees lined the street and I learnt from a pedicab
driver, Liyan Ramli that the trees, called Morai locally,
are over 300 years old.
Indeed, Weh Island is still beautiful. The Sabang administration
preserves not only old trees but also two protected wildlife
areas: Weh Island Marine Park (2,600ha) and Iboih recreation
park (1,300ha). The Marine Park has coral gardens, while
the Iboih park is located on the west coast of Weh Island
and consists of beach and tropical lowland forests. Sabang
also has a little volcano, a waterfall and a cave complex
inhabited by birds, bats and snakes, which Adi Negoro
unfortunately did not visit.
Singapore port was bigger than Sabang during Adi Negoro’s
trip but the difference is an extreme contrast today.
Although the Singapore port was already bigger in Adi
Negoro’s day, today the contrast between the two
is extreme. Singapore has become one of the world’s
busiest and most modern seaports while Sabang’s
harbour ironically has became smaller and even less equipped
than itsit was in 1926. circumstance. Singapore now has
a population of four million while Sabang has only 22,000.
Sabang Mayor Sofyan Haroen told me that during the Dutch
period, Sabang had 2,700m meters of docking areas. Now
it has only 572m. meters “It means we moved back
100 years,” Sofyan said.
“In old photographs, we could see up to 60 ships anchored in Sabang Bay,” said
Husaini, the speaker of the Sabang Parliament, lamenting that under Indonesian
rule the Sabang harbour had became more and more neglected. President The Suharto
government closed the free port in 1985 on because of “smuggling” grounds
despite protests from the people in of Sabang. Under President Abdurrahman Wahid,
it was reopened it three years ago.
But I visited this little town not only because of its
natural beauty or its Singapore correlation. Sabang plays
a very significant role in the psyche of Indonesia’s
220 million population. Sabang is located in Indonesia’s
westernmost tip and the name “Sabang” itself
is mentioned in a national song, Dari Sabang Sampai Merauke,
whose lyrics mainly says thatdescribe how Indonesia does
exists in the many islands that span from (dari) Sabang
to (sampai) Merauke. Sabang is in the west. Merauke,
a small town in Papua, is in the east. Every school student
knows how to sing that song.
The phrase term “Sabang-Merauke” becomes
more frequently cited nowadays as many Indonesia’s
different ethnic groups have been rebelling against Jakarta.
The rebellions, including the one in Aceh and another
one in Papua, started decades ago but they gained bigger
momentum with after the fall of Suharto in May 1998.
Aceh’s rebellion is apparently the most serious
threat after since Indonesia had lost East Timor in a
UN-sponsored referendum in September 1999. President
Megawati Sukarnoputri, who succeeded Wahid, declared
Aceh under martial law on May 19 this year. Hers was
a popular decision in Indonesia where nationalism was
on the rise.
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