The people of Indonesia & their culture, politics, economy and environment - Inside Indonesia: The peoples and cultures of Indonesia

Fall of Suharto

A temple to populist nationalism

Sukarno’s gravesite is very popular but there is much irony in the way his memory is celebrated

Esai: Mencari identitas, memetik I.N.D.O.N.E.S.I.A

Essay: Redefining Indonesia

Almost twenty years after reformasi, journalist and novelist Leila S. Chudori ponders on the successes and failures of this historic period for Indonesia

Review: A life beyond boundaries

Benedict Anderson’s memoir showcases a broad-minded approach to the world and Indonesia

Remembering May 1998

Almost sixteen years on, Jakarta's first ethnic Chinese governor joins in efforts to keep the memory of the events of May 1998 from fading

Review: Suharto’s guardians and reluctant reformers

A new publication tells the story of the first graduates of the joint Indonesian Armed Forces Military Academy

Review: Lieutenant General Djaja Suparman tells his story

Editor’s note: For Indonesia-watchers the activities of the military and its leaders remain largely opaque and perhaps even menacing. In recent years the steady stream of memoirs and biographies by and about military leaders has, in some cases, assuaged some of this mystery and in others, added to the intrigue. As the public and judicial gaze has increasingly turned to the actions of military leaders with connections to the New Order, the memoir has been engaged by some as a form of testimony in an effort to ‘clear their name’. Whatever the motivation, with each new addition to this genre, we are offered new insights into the fractious and often treacherous ‘interior’ world of the Indonesian Armed Forces. Suparman holds the line but reveals some new insights into the transition of power after the fall of the New Order

Not just another disaster

Papuan claims of genocide deserve to be taken seriously

Through a building darkly

The story of the Teochiu Huikuan building in Medan provides insights into Chinese Indonesians’ history of dispossession

Never Indonesian enough

State discrimination against the Chinese is a form of cultural violence

Learning from Malaysia's mistakes

Chinese Indonesians must re-enter politics in order to fully exercise their citizenship

Game of chance

Chinese Indonesians play asylum roulette in the United States

The tragedy of May 1998

Glodok: A photo essay

Chinese Indonesians ten years after reformasi

Chinese Indonesians reflect on their place in the new Indonesia

A new artistic order?

The arts scene has changed radically since 1998, but some of the old uncertainties remain

Personality cults

Foreign news coverage needs to focus on Indonesia’s people, not just its leaders

Ten years of hoping and waiting

A photo essay about families of the disappeared

When is a public holiday not a holiday?

The 100 year anniversary of Indonesia’s ‘National Awakening’ fails to inspire

Oey Hay Djoen (1929-2008)

Policy drift

Ten years after Suharto, the economy is not recovering fast enough

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Lontar Modern Indonesia

A selection of stories from the Indonesian classics and modern writers, periodically published free for Inside Indonesia readers, courtesy of Lontar.