Politics

Indonesia’s political parties have lost control over the national budgeting process, as members of parliament prioritise their constituencies – and themselves.

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

Asylum seekers stuck in Indonesia 

Performance groups negotiate between Islam and Sundanese tradition

OzAsia festival illuminates the world of Indonesian performance and its social concerns 

Orang-orang di Rengat dan arsip-arsip di Belanda, kedua-duanya tahu adanya pembantaian di bulan Januari 1949. Lalu, mengapa masyarakat umum Belanda tidak tahu itu?

The people of Rengat, the Dutch archives and Dutch authorities have always known about the massacre of January 1949. Why then is the Dutch public not aware?  

Dutch paratroopers massacred hundreds, perhaps thousands, in a Sumatran town during the Indonesian Revolution, yet nobody outside Rengat seems to know.

Pasukan payung Belanda membunuhratusan, bahkan mungkin ribuan orang di Rengat, sebuah kota Sumatra, pada masa Revolusi Nasional Indonesia, tapi kelihatannya orang-orang di luar Rengat tidak tahu itu. 

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

The slaughter of Indonesians by young nationalists has been hidden by romantic narratives of the independence struggle

Yogyakartan Salafi youth are turning to social media to promote their faith 

Book Review: Imam Samudra’s Revenge, by Angus McIntyre

Standing up in the name of truth and justice

The Indonesian way of confronting the past underestimates the importance of truth and justice

Indonesia’s struggle to create a culture of reading

How UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage program transformed the batik neighbourhood of Laweyan

When visitors take pictures of Indonesia, they tend to photograph Indonesia’s cultural heritage. They also often exclude people or represent them as bound by history and relics of a past era.