Southeast Maluku Regency () is a

regency In a monarchy, a regent () is a person appointed to govern a state because the actual monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge their powers and duties, or the throne is vacant and a new monarch has not yet been dete ...

of Maluku,

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

. It is coincident with the Kei Islands, except that the city of Tual, although within the Kei Islands geographically and the seat of the Regency's administration, is since 17 July 2007 technically independent of the Regency. The land area of the Regency is 1,031.01 km², while the sea area administered by the Regency was 3,181 km²; it had a population of 96,442 at the 2010 Census;Biro Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2011. this increased to 121,511 at the 2020 Census,Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2021. and the official estimate as at mid 2023 was 129,034.Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 28 February 2024, ''Kabupaten Maluku Tenggara Dalam Angka 2024'' (Katalog-BPS 1102001.8102)

History

The Regency as originally created included all the southern island groups within

Maluku (province) Maluku is located in Eastern Indonesia and geographically located in West-Melanesia, between Sulawesi and Western New Guinea, and comprises the central and southern regions of the Maluku Islands. It is directly adjacent to North Maluku, Southw ...

from Wetar Island in the west to the Aru Islands in the east. On 4 October 1999 the western part of this regency was split off to create the West Southeast Maluku Regency (which has subsequently been divided between the

Southwest Maluku Regency Southwest Maluku Regency (; ) is a regency of Maluku Province, Indonesia. Geographically it forms the most eastern portion of the Lesser Sunda Islands, although it has never been administratively included with them, and politically has always com ...

and the

Tanimbar Islands Regency Tanimbar Islands Regency () is a regency of Maluku province, Indonesia, consisting primarily of the Tanimbar Islands. The Regency covers a land area of 10,102 km2, and it had a population of 105,341 at the 2010 CensusBiro Pusat Statistik, J ...

). On 18 December 2003 the Aru Islands were split off to form their own Regency, and on 17 July 2007 the City of Tual was split off to become an independent city.

Geography

The two principal islands of the Regency are Kei Besar (''Greater Kei'') in the east and the slightly smaller (excluding those parts of the island now in Tual City) but more densely populated Kei Kecil (''Lesser Kei'') in the west. The capital is located at Langgur on Kei Kecil.

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The third-largest island in the group, Dullah, on which the city of Tual is located, is no longer within the Regency. Kei Besar is long, thin and mountainous. Kei Besar's topography varies between 500 and 800 metres above sea level, and differs from the islands to the west by having a

karst Karst () is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble carbonate rocks such as limestone and Dolomite (rock), dolomite. It is characterized by features like poljes above and drainage systems with sinkholes and caves underground. Ther ...

formation in the middle of it. Kei Kecil (also called Nuhuroa) is more low-lying, not exceeding about 100 metres above sea level, and contains much swampland; the regency's nominal capital, Langgur, is situated in the north-east of the island, just across a tiny channel from Tual on Dullah Island, and effectively forms a suburb of the City of Tual. About 50 smaller, forest-covered coral islands lie of the west coast of Kei Kecil; about 33 are part of Kei Kecil District, including Ngaf, Ohoitir, Ohouwa, Nai, Warhu, Hoat and Tangwain; about 16 are part of Kei Kecil Barat District, including Lik, Tarwa, Waha, Warbal, Manir, Ur, Witir, Nuhuta and (further south) Tanimbar Kei. Further groups of islands which lie more to the west (but geographically part of the Kei Islands) form part of Tual City - including the Tayando-Tam group of 27 islands and (even more to the west) the Kur group of 9 islands.

Administrative Districts

At the time of the 2010 Census the regency was divided into six

districts A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions ...

(''kecamatan''), but by 2016 five additional districts had been created by the division of the existing districts. These are tabulated below with their land and sea areas and their populations at the 2010 CensusBiro Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2011. and the 2020 Census,Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2021. together with the official estimates as at mid 2023.Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 28 February 2024, ''Kabupaten Maluku Tenggara Dalam Angka 2024'' (Katalog-BPS 1102001.8102) The table also includes the locations of the district administrative centres, the number of

administrative village A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban village ...

s in each district (a total of 185 rural ''desa'' and 6 urban ''kelurahan''), and its postal code. Notes: (a) includes 33 offshore islands. The town of Langgur (the Regency's nominal capital) comprises more than half the population of this district. (b) includes 16 offshore islands. (c) includes 2 offshore islands. (d) the 2010 population of Hoat Sorbay and Manyeuw Districts were included in the figure for Kei Kecil District, from which they were split off. (e) the 2010 population of Kei Kecil Timur Selatan District was included in the figure for Kei Kecil Timur District, from which it was split off.
(f) includes 10 offshore islands. (g) includes 3 offshore islands. (h) includes 8 offshore islands. (i) the 2010 population of Kei Besar Utara Barat District was included in the figure for Kei Besar District, from which it was split off. (j) the 2010 population of Kei Besar Selatan Barat District was included in the figure for Kei Besar Selatan District, from which it was split off.

Transport

A small airport named Dumatubun Airport is located at Langgur in Kei Kecil District. However this was replaced for civilian use in 2014 by a new Karel Sadsuitubun Airport, much to the south in Kei Kecil Island, and Dumatubun Airport is now used only for the Indonesian Air Force.

Climate

Langgur, the seat of the regency has a

tropical rainforest climate A tropical rainforest climate or equatorial climate is a tropical climate sub-type usually found within 10 to 15 degrees latitude of the equator. There are some other areas at higher latitudes, such as the coast of southeast Florida, United States ...

(Af) with moderate rainfall from July to October and heavy to very heavy rainfall from November to June.

Riots

On 6 October and 12 November 2022, there were

riots A riot or mob violence is a form of civil disorder commonly characterized by a group lashing out in a violent public disturbance against authority, property, or people. Riots typically involve destruction of property, public or private. The p ...

between the Elat village and Bombai village. The second riot that occurred on 12 November killed two people and injured dozens of civilians and two policemen.

References

External links

{{Maluku Regencies of Maluku (province)