Indonesia
Indonesia is shaped by many cultures, thousands islands, different ethnics. It is the most interesting country with the beautiful landscapes. Politically Indonesia is a presidential, constitutional republic with an elected legislature. It has 34 provinces, of which five have special status. The country’s capital, Jakarta, is the world’s second-most populous urban area. Indonesia shares land borders with Papua New Guinea, East Timor, and the eastern part of Malaysia, as well as maritime borders with Singapore, Vietnam, Thailand, the Philippines, Australia, Palau, and India (Andaman and Nicobar Islands). Despite its large population and densely populated regions, Indonesia has vast areas of wilderness that support one of the world’s highest levels of biodiversity.
The Indonesian archipelago has been a valuable region for trade since at least the 7th century when Srivijaya and later Majapahit traded with entities from mainland China and the Indian subcontinent. Local rulers gradually absorbed foreign influences from the early centuries, and Hindu and Buddhist kingdoms flourished. Sunni traders and Sufi scholars brought Islam, while Christianity was brought mostly through European explorers. Although sometimes interrupted by the Portuguese, French and British, the Dutch were the foremost colonial power for much of their 350-year presence in the archipelago. The concept of “Indonesia” as a nation-state emerged in the early 20th century, culminating later in the proclamation of Indonesian Independence in 1945. However, it was not until 1949 that the Dutch recognized Indonesia’s sovereignty following an armed and diplomatic conflict between the two.
Geographically, there are five biggest islands among other thousands small islands. Sumatera, Java (including Bali), Borneo (Kalimanatan), Celebes (Sulawesi) and The West Papua (Irian Jaya) are more visible than others. Java island is the most populated island with the capital city ‘Jakarta’ within. Sumatera, Borneo, Celebes and The West Papua where the mining (Coal, Nickel, Gold, etc.), Plantation (Copra, Palm Oil tree, Forestry, etc.)
