Kotabaru Regency

The regency got its name from Kotabaru town, which is the administrative center of the regency. The town was previously a village that grew because of coal mining around 1873 and 1881. The coal mines were mostly owned by nobles of small kingdoms in the islands such as Pagatan and Kusan. The village grows into a town and called Kotta Baroe, which literally means "new town". Throughout 20th century until today, the region became commonly known as Kotabaru.[7]

In the region of what's now the regency, there were several petty kingdoms and sultanates which were closely tied to Sultanate of Banjar. It is estimated that these kingdoms came into existence around after 1786, following foundation Kusan and Pagatan Kingdom in the island of Laut by Prince Amir from Kingdom of Kayutangi [8] Both kingdoms were later on became subject to Kayutangi and obliged to pay tributaries. On 1840, Kusan and Pagatan entered a personal union after fourth king of Kusan, Jaya Sumitra, gave the kingdom to Arung Abdul Karim who was the king of Pagatan and assuming control over the entire island of Laut. On 1881, son of Jaya Sumitra, Prince Husin Kusuma took the title of fourth king of Laut Island. Husin Kusuma soon died in 1900 when taking a hajj and was succeeded by Prince Aminullah who would become the last king of Laut.[8][9]

In 1905, Dutch East Indies government declared the end of small kingdoms existence in the island following the defeat of Banjar Sultanate after Banjarmasin War. The region was then directly ruled by colonial government instead of getting through local kings and officials.[8][9] In 1942, the region was occupied by Empire of Japan following World War II.

In the aftermath of the war and Indonesian National Revolution, returning Dutch proposed a puppet state of Southeast Borneo Federation in the region. This was opposed and conflicts erupted in the region, known as Kalimantan Physical Revolution. On 1 September 1945, Committee for Assisting Republic Indonesian (BPRI, Badan Pembantu Republik Indonesia) was formed in town of Pagatan and spread its branch to Laut island. On 6 December 1945, students and Republican militia declared a motion declaring the region part of Indonesian Republic. On 7 February 1946, a battle broke out between Republican militia and Dutch soldiers that tried to land in beach of Laut island around village of Kampung Baru.[10][11]

Following the return of Dutch authority, several demonstrations were held in town of Pagatan and Kotabaru and Indonesian flag was hoisted in a wet market in Pagatan in October 1949.[6] Southeast Borneo Federation were eventually dissolved by its own parliament and joined Indonesian Republic following transfer of sovereignty.[9][12]

The regency on its own came into existence in 1953, which made of administrative divisions in Laut Island, Southern Tanah Bumbu, Northern Tanah Bumbu, and Pasir Residency. However, Pasir Residency was cut off from the regency after division of Kalimantan into several provinces.[6] Following fall of Suharto and rapid decentralization it follows, there has been demand from mainland districts to seceded from the regency and form their own.[13] Tanah Bumbu region was split off from the rest of Kotabaru Regency on 25 February 2003 and made into a separate regency, while the rest of the mainland districts also demanded separation. This process was caused by dissatisfaction from the regency government on Laut Island where the island is more developed than the mainland Kalimantan parts.[13][14] This is however as of 2021 has not been materialized.[13]

Kotabaru has a tropical rainforest climate (Af) with heavy rainfall year-round.

At the time of the 2010 Census, Kotabaru Regency was divided into twenty districts (kecamatan), but an additional district (Pulau Laut Tanjung Selayar) was added subsequently from part of Pulau Laut Barat District, and then in 2020 a further district (Pulau Laut Sigam) was added from part of Pulau Laut Utara District (which includes the administrative capital, Kotabaru town).
The districts are listed below with their areas and their populations at the 2010 Census[16] and the 2020 Census,[17] together with the official estimates as at mid 2021.[18] The table also includes the locations of the district administrative centres, the number of administrative villages (rural desa and urban kelurahan) in each district, the number of (named) islands in each district, and its post code.

It is a second-level administrative division equivalent to a city. As a regency, it is headed by a regent who is elected democratically. Head of districts are appointed directly by the regent with the recommendation of the regency secretary. Executive power lies with the regent and vice regent while legislative function is exercised by the regency's parliament.[19][20][21]

There are total 221 kindergartens, 267 elementary schools, 77 junior high schools, and 34 senior high schools. In addition, there are seven vocational high schools and three higher education institutions.[27] All higher education institutions in the regency are private, which are Paris Barantai Teaching College, Kotabaru Polytech, and Darul Ulum Tarbiyah College. All of them are located in North Laut Island district around town of Kotabaru.[28] The regency has a public library owned by regency government, which also located in town of Kotabaru.[29] School participation rate in the regency was 98.86%.[27]

There's one hospital in the regency, 18 polyclinics, 66 puskesmas, and 12 pharmacies in the regency. The only hospital in the regency, Prince Jaya Sumitra Regional Hospital, is a public hospital owned and managed by the regency government. It is located in North Laut Island district in Kotabaru town, and classified as C-class hospital by Ministry of Health.[30][27]

There are total 1,205 kilometers of road in the regency.[27] Angkots are abundand in the town of Kotabaru as means to get around and regulated by regency government, divided into five fixed routes as of 2009.[31] On 2020, the regency government allowed taxi and travel services from rural villages to run their service in the town. This decision was met with protest from drivers and owners from angkots in town due to fear of being outcompeted.[32] Main port of the regency is Stagen Port, located in North Laut Island district and considered a regional hub.[33][34] The regency is served by Gusti Syamsir Alam Airport.[35]

There are 693 mosques in the regency, 25 churches, 8 Balinese temple, and 7 Chinese Buddhist temple.[27]