Ibu Kota Baru for a new Indonesia. An Analysis of the Project of the New Indonesian Capital through Government Tweets Student: Giulia Frigo Student Number: s2110857 Supervisor: Dr David Henley Second Reader: Dr Rizal Shidiq i Research Master in Asian Studies Words: 30724 Faculty of Humanities Date: April 28, 2020 Declaration I hereby declare that the content of this thesis is my original work, it has been written by me, and it has not been submitted for any degree at university previously. I have acknowledged all the sources of information used for the thesis. Giulia Frigo 28.04.2020 ii Acknowledgements First and foremost, I sincerely thank my supervisor, Dr David Henley, for giving me a huge boost in writing this thesis and for the time he devoted to me. Thank you for keeping me feeling motivated and engaged. I am also grateful to Dr Florian Schneider, for helpful suggestions and clarifications about the methodology to use. Thank you to Leiden University and all the staff I had the pleasure to meet and learn from during this two-year Master. It has been an intense and rewarding experience. Finally, I would like to thank my friends, close and distant, who contributed to serenity during the research and writing process and shared their insights and opinions about my thesis. Last but not least, I sincerely thank Sebastiano, who always supported me and stood by my side in the good and bad times. Thank you to my family, especially to my mum and dad, who have always been with me. Cover Photos: courtesy of Adrian Pranata (Jakarta, on the top) and Chris Abney (area covered with green-leafed plant, on the bottom), both retrieved from Unsplash High-Resolution Photo. Joko Widodo (on the centre), retrieved from Joko Widodo personal Twitter account iii Table of Contents Declaration ......................................................................................................................................................... ii Acknowledgements ........................................................................................................................................... iii Table of Contents .............................................................................................................................................. iv Abstract ............................................................................................................................................................. vi List of Figures ................................................................................................................................................... viii List of Tables ...................................................................................................................................................... ix 1. Introduction .................................................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Background of the study and initial communication ................................................................................. 1 1.2 An envisioned smart and green development .......................................................................................... 2 1.2.1 Research question ............................................................................................................................. 3 1.3 Purpose and significance of the study ....................................................................................................... 4 1.4 Limitations................................................................................................................................................. 6 1.5 Organization of the study .......................................................................................................................... 7 2. Concepts and Methodology............................................................................................................................ 8 2.1 Theoretical framework ............................................................................................................................. 8 2.2 What is Twitter? ....................................................................................................................................... 9 2.2.1 Political communication on Twitter ............................................................................................... 10 2.3 Methodology ......................................................................................................................................... 11 2.3.1 Twitter analysis ............................................................................................................................... 12 2.3.2 Twitter account of “@BappenasRI” and “@Jokowi” .......................................................................... 15 3. Jakarta: Results............................................................................................................................................. 17 3.1 Undesirable features that Jakarta possess according to official communication ................................ 17 3.2 Unsustainable Jakarta ............................................................................................................................ 17 4. Features promoted for Ibu Kota Baru: Results ............................................................................................ 21 4.1 Results ................................................................................................................................................... 21 4.2 Sustainable ............................................................................................................................................ 23 4.3 Smart ...................................................................................................................................................... 24 4.4 Green ..................................................................................................................................................... 25 4.5 Regional equality .................................................................................................................................... 26 4.6 Economic development ......................................................................................................................... 26 4.7 Inclusive ................................................................................................................................................. 27 4.8 Safe location ........................................................................................................................................... 28 4.9 National identity ..................................................................................................................................... 29 4.10 Beautiful ............................................................................................................................................... 30 4.11 Modern ................................................................................................................................................ 30 iv 4.12 International ........................................................................................................................................ 30 4.13 Innovation ............................................................................................................................................ 31 4.14 Defence and security ........................................................................................................................... 31 4.15 Efficient ................................................................................................................................................ 31 4.16 Model ................................................................................................................................................... 32 4.17 Interconnected features ...................................................................................................................... 32 5. Cities mentioned: Results ............................................................................................................................ 35 5.1 Models for Ibu Kota baru ....................................................................................................................... 35 5.2 Models for Jakarta ................................................................................................................................. 37 5.3 Brasilia................................................................................................................................................... 38 6. Analysis and Interpretation ......................................................................................................................... 42 6.1 Indonesia Maju ...................................................................................................................................... 42 6.2 Modern capital cities ............................................................................................................................. 44 6.3 Sustainability: a vague and overused concept ...................................................................................... 46 6.4 Smart systems ........................................................................................................................................ 47 6.5 Internationalism