Buru

Buru is a heavily forested Indonesian island and belongs to the archipelago of the Moluccas.

Geography

To the east lie the neighboring islands of Seram and Ambon, the dividing strait called Manipastraße ( Selat Manipa ). To the southeast, the small island located Ambalau ( Ambelau ). Buru is 8473 km ² and is inhabited by about 124,000 people.

Buru is divided into two administrative districts ( kabupaten ) of the province of Maluku: Buru with capital Namlea in the northeast of the island and Südburu ( Buru Selatan ), with its capital Namrole on the south coast. The highest peak is Gunung Kaplamada with 2729 m altitude in the west of the island.

Population and Economy

The aborigines settled today only in the interior, live on the coast Sulanesen, Arabs and Chinese. Major industries are the cultivation of sugar cane, spices and coconut trees.

History

The island was first mentioned in 1365, from 1658 began the Dutch colonial period, the name was " Boeroe " written. 1915 Buru was assigned within the administration of the Dutch East Indies the Afdeeling (Department) Ambonia and formed the Onderafdeeling ( subdivision ) B. The island was joined by ships of the Dutch KPM with Ambon, Makassar, Ternate and Sanana.

At the beginning of President Suharto's " New Order " in the late 1960s and 1970s served as a prison island of Buru, were serving on the thousands of political prisoners, prison sentences, including Pramoedya Ananta Toer, the writer.