Halmahera
Geography
Location	South East Asia
Coordinates	0°36′N, 127°52′E
Archipelago	Maluku Islands
Area	17780 km²
Highest point	Mount Gamkonora (1635m)
Administration
Indonesia
Demographics
Population	162728 (as of 1995)
Density	9. The Maluku Islands (also known as the Moluccas, Moluccan Islands, the Spice Islands or simply Maluku) are an Archipelago Mount Gamkonora is the highest peak of Halmahera island Indonesia. The Republic of Indonesia ( (Republik Indonesia is a Country in Southeast Asia. 15/km²

Halmahera (also Jilolo or Gilolo) is the largest island in the Maluku Islands. An island (ˈaɪlənd or isle (/ˈaɪl/ is any piece of land that is completely surrounded by water in two dimensions above high tide and isolated from other significant The Maluku Islands (also known as the Moluccas, Moluccan Islands, the Spice Islands or simply Maluku) are an Archipelago It is part of the North Maluku province of Indonesia. North Maluku ( Maluku Utara) is a province of Indonesia. It covers the northern part of the Maluku Islands, which are split between it and The Republic of Indonesia ( (Republik Indonesia is a Country in Southeast Asia.

Halmahera has a land area of 17,780 km² (6,865 sq mi) and a population in 1995 of 162,728. About half of its inhabitants are Muslim and about half are Christian. A Muslim (مسلم pronounced Muslim, not Muzlim) is an adherent of the Religion Christianity ( Greek Χριστιανισμός from the word Xριστός ( Christ)is a monotheistic Religion centered on the life and teachings

History

A native of Halmahera island.

Sparsely-populated Halmahera's fortunes have long been closely tied to those of the smaller islands of Ternate and Tidore, both off its west coast. Ternate is an island and town in the Maluku Islands (Moluccas of eastern Indonesia, located off the west coast of the larger island of Halmahera. Tidore is an island in the Maluku Islands of eastern Indonesia, just west of the larger island of Halmahera. These islands were both the sites of major kingdoms in the era before Dutch East India Company colonized the entire archipelago. The Dutch East India Company ( Vereenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie or VOC in old-spelling Dutch, literally "United East Indian See Colony and Colonization for examples of colonialism which do not refer to Western colonialism

During World War II, Halmahera was the site of a Japanese military base at Kao Bay. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Japan topics.

In 1999 and 2000 Halmahera was the site of violence between Christians and Muslims that began as a purely ethnic dispute between residents of (mainly Christian) Kao and (entirely Muslim) Malifut sub-districts and then took on a religious nature as it spread through much of the North Moluccas. A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth A Muslim (مسلم pronounced Muslim, not Muzlim) is an adherent of the Religion Thousands of people on Halmahera were killed in the fighting between religious militias, including groups like Laskar Jihad and FPI (the Islamic Defenders' Front) who arrived from Java in large numbers. In June 2000, about five hundred people were killed when a ferry carrying refugees from the fighting on Halmahera sank off the northeast tip of Sulawesi island. See also Merchant ship A ferry is a form of transport usually a Boat or Ship, used to carry (or ferry) passengers and According to the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, a refugee is a person who owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race Sulawesi (formerly known as Celebes, ˈsɛlɛbiz is one of the four larger Sunda Islands of Indonesia and is situated between Borneo and the Conspiracy theories about this event abound. A touching memorial to this tragedy can be found in Duma village in North Halmahera district.

Today, much transportation to the rest of Indonesia is through connections on the provincial capital, Ternate island; although Tobelo, the largest town on Halmahera, also has direct ferry and cargo sea links to Surabaya and Manado. Ternate is an island and town in the Maluku Islands (Moluccas of eastern Indonesia, located off the west coast of the larger island of Halmahera. Tobelo (pop 10000 is the largest town on the eastern Indonesian island of Halmahera. Surabaya (formerly spelled as Soerabaja) is Indonesia 's second-largest city, and the capital of the province of East Java. Manado is the capital of the North Sulawesi province of Indonesia.

Particularly since the inauguration of the first ever directly elected Bupati (Regent or District Head), Tobelo is undergoing rapid development and is aiming at rivaling Ternate's historical dominance. Tobelo has the advantage of expansion potential, being surrounded by flat land. Ternate is limited by its size, being a small island which can be driven around in 45 minutes. Also, the provincial government has plans to move the provincial capital to Sofifi, a small village on the Halmahera coast opposite Tidore island. Sofifi is the planned capital of the Indonesian province of North Maluku. Tidore is an island in the Maluku Islands of eastern Indonesia, just west of the larger island of Halmahera.

North Maluku province consists of 8 districts, 6 of which include a part of Halmahera island. They are: North Halmahera, West Halmahera, East Halmahera, Central Halmahera, South Hamahera, Ternate Municipality, Tidore City and Islands and Sula Islands. The Maluku Islands (also known as the Moluccas, Moluccan Islands, the Spice Islands or simply Maluku) are an Archipelago Only Ternate Municipality and Sula Islands do not include any part of Halmahera.

Geology

Dukono is an active volcano at the north end of the island. Dukono is located at the northernmost of the Halmahera island

Mining on Halmahera

A rig crew looking for minerals.

Halmahera is the site of several mining projects. Mining is the extraction of valuable Minerals or other geological materials from the earth usually (but not always from an Ore body Australian corporation Newcrest Mining is the majority owner of two gold mines on the island. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. Newcrest Mining Limited ( engages in the exploration development Mining and sale of Gold and Gold-copper concentrate. Gold (ˈɡoʊld is a Chemical element with the symbol Au (from its Latin name aurum) and Atomic number 79 The Gosowong mine was an open-pit cyanide-leach mine that operated from June 1999 to May 2002, and is now closed. Open-pit mining, also known as opencast mining and open-cut mining and strip mining, refers to a method of extracting rock or Minerals Gold cyanidation (also known as the cyanide process or the MacArthur-Forrest process) is a metallurgical technique for extracting Gold from low-grade The Toguraci mine began operation in February 2004. This latter mine has been the subject of conflict between local residents and the mining company. The mine is located in a forested area that, according to local residents, is protected under Indonesian law. ^[1] In January 2004 then-president Megawati issued an amendment to the forestry law that, according to Newcrest, ensures that its operations are within the law. Diah Permata Megawati Setiawati Soekarnoputri (born January 23, 1947) was President of Indonesia from July 2001 to October 20, ^[2]

A Weda Bay nickel camp site at Tanjung Ulie cape on Halmahera island.

In 2003 and 2004, there were intermittent protests at the Toguraci site by residents seeking to stop the Newcrest mine. Until late 2003, security at the mine was provided by members of the Indonesian military, who were paid by Newcrest Mining's local subsidiary. In October 2003, they were replaced by a private security force; one person was killed and several others injured by these security forces during a protest in January 2004. Further protests and an occupation of the mine site occurred in May and June 2004.

Weda Bay Minerals is engaged in developing a nickel and cobalt mine on the island. Nickel (ˈnɪkəl is a metallic Chemical element with the symbol Ni and Atomic number 28 Cobalt (ˈkoʊbɒlt is a hard lustrous silver-grey Metal, a Chemical element with symbol Co. The single-purpose corporation, focused only on developing this mine, is a joint venture of two Australian mining companies, and is traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange in Canada. A joint venture (often abbreviated JV) is an entity formed between two or more parties to undertake economic activity together Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page The project is still in an exploratory phase; the corporation expects the mine to last for at least twenty-five years after it opens.

References