Candra Malik, Yogyakarta – National flags flew at half staff, schools sent students home early and shops along bustling Jalan Malioboro closed down on Monday as the people of Yogyakarta turned their attention to a special legislative session meant to send a message of protest to the central government.
Tens of thousands of people observed an open plenary session of the provincial government held specially for legislators to express their support, through a verbal vote known as an acclaim, of the sultan's automatic appointment as governor. Legislators from the Democratic Party, however, did not attend the session.
The crowd packed Jalan Malioboro, the city's main commercial street, and filled the 500-meter-wide Northern Square of the palace.
Yogyakarta Police chief Sr. Comr. Atang Heriadi estimated the crowd at 33,000. He said 1,800 officers had been deployed to safeguard the rally.
Yogyakarta exists as a special province in which the sultan sits as the governor, an elected position in the rest of Indonesia. But the central government sparked fierce controversy this month when it proposed elections for governor rather than automatically granting the sultan the post.
Monday's plenary session of the Provincial Legislative Council (DPRD) was the largest and fiercest show of support yet for keeping Sultan Hamengkubuwono X and Paku Alam IX, the leader of the Paku Alam princedom of Yogyakarta, in place as governor and deputy governor, respectively.
Paul Zulkarnaen, chairman of Jalan Malioboro's merchants' association, said all traders and street vendors had decided to close shop and join the rally.
Ujun Junaedi, chairman of the association of traditional traders at Beringharjo Market, on the southern end of Jalan Malioboro, said his group also stood behind the traditional ruler. "We're willing to close the market on Monday for the sake of showing support to the sultan," he said.
University students, high school students and teachers, along with others from all walks of life, swelled the ranks, many of them donning the traditional Javanese costumes or simply dressing to draw attention.
Street ornaments made of young palm leaves, known as Janur Kuning, were also ubiquitous as symbols of local resistance to Jakarta's move.
The only contingent notably absent from the display was the local Democratic bloc, which skipped the session. The Democrats are the ruling party of the central government.
Time and again, protestors broke out in choruses of "Jogja Istimewa" ("Special Yogyakarta"), a song composed by local artist Marzuki Mohammad.
The city's flag flew at the top of its mast in the courtyard of the legislature. A large banner played a pun on President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's popular acronym SBY, dubbing him the "Source of Disaster for Yogyakarta."
Marzuki's song consists mostly of quotes from the late Sultan Hamengkubuwono IX, who early on declared his and his region's support for the Indonesian republic in 1945. It also incorporates words from respected education pioneer Ki Hajar Dewantara and from Sukarno and Mohammad Hatta, founding fathers of the republic.
Yogyakartans have already lashed out at the central government, printing special Yogyakarta passports, posters and stickers, and carrying sharpened bamboo sticks – a symbol of resistance.