Kategori: Opinion Column

2008_06_07_TJP Islamist parties try to be less Islamist-c

“Cognizant of its credential deficit in both Islamic politics and democracy, successive governments have felt compelled to demonstrate sympathetic gesture to the Muslim communities, sometimes stronger than actually believed.

With abundant Islam credentials in hand, never at any time did Wahid need to prove that he was pro-Islam. So much so that he could afford to demonstrate the opposite. Instead of calling for jihad against the enemies of Islam, Wahid did almost the extreme opposite.”

Heryanto, Ariel (2008) “Islamist parties try to be less Islamist”, The Jakarta Post, 07/06/2008.

See also: “When governments try to look more Islamic”

keywords: Gus Dur, Islamization, Jakarta Post, PKS, political parties, UMNO

2008_06_06_TJP When governments try to look more Islamic-c

“The Indonesian Constitution stipulates freedom of expression, but to date such freedom can only take refuge on the Internet.

Today, the Internet is the only public space where hundreds of thousands of Indonesians can and have actually declared themselves to be religiously ‘liberal’, ‘atheist’ or ‘agnostic’ in their profiles on cyber social networking sites such as Facebook.”

Heryanto, Ariel (2008) “When governments try to look more Islamic”, The Jakarta Post, 06/06/2008.

See also “Islamist parties try to be less Islamist”

keywords: government, ICMI, Indonesia, Islam, Jakarta Post, Soeharto

2008_05_21_TJP Questioning the relevance of nat’l awakening today-c

Heryanto, Ariel (2008) “Questioning the relevance of nat’l awakening today“, The Jakarta Post, 21/05/2008.

keywords: Boedi Oetomo, Jakarta Post, nationalism, Pramoedya Ananta Toer, Sarekat Dagang Islamiyah

2006_07_18_TEMPO No Such thing as an Original Citizen-c

Heryanto, Ariel (2006) “No Such Thing as an Original Citizen”, Tempo, 6(46/July).

keywords: authenticity, citizenship, colonialism, ethnic Chinese, nativism, Tempo

2005_10_17_UniNews State Terrorism-c

Heryanto, Ariel (2005) “State Terrorism”, UniNews (The University of Melbourne), 17/10/2005.

keywords: Indonesia, New Order, political violence, state terrorism, UniNews

Examining problems that confront Indonesia today, respected commentators speak of militarism, democratization, human rights, corruption, economic liberalization, employment, management of religious and ethnic diversity, women’s participation, and globalization.

In the 1950s most men (and a few women) of letters were usually active in political parties. Many took positions in the government. . . Politicians of that period not only took a great interest in culture and arts, many (including the first president and members of his state cabinet) produced intellectual analyses or artistic works at some time during their career development.

Heryanto, Ariel (2004) “A Tale of Two Crises”, Latitudes, 43 (Aug): 52-55.

keywords: culture, economic crisis, Latitudes, post-authoritarian, post-colonial

2001_02_Vol1_LATITUDES Remembering and Dismembering Indonesia-c

“Today this inability to recognize the constructedness of social identities is responsible, to a considerable extent, for the widespread violence that threatens to dismember the nation.”

Heryanto, Ariel (2001) “Remembering and Dismembering Indonesia”, Latitudes, 1 (Feb): 10-15.

keywords: construct, ethnicity, identity politics, Latitudes, nationality, New Order, violence

1999_11_02_THE NATION Mass Media-ting East Timor-c

Heryanto, Ariel (1999) “Mass Media-ting East Timor”, The Nation, 2 November 1999: A5.

keywords: Australia-Indonesia, East Timor, independence, mass media, The Nation

1999_02_16 TJP Race Means Different Things in RI and S’pore-c

“The Indonesian government legislates some blatantly racist policies. Officials make racist-sounding statements. But they fall short of effectiveness in actual practice. Life for most ordinary Indonesians is generally less racialised and more hybridised than that in Malaysia and Singapore. Compared to their neighbours, Indonesians are generally more independent of governmental patron- age and intervention. In Malaysia and Singapore, it takes a strong government’s top-down measures to create and maintain racial integration for the sake of long-term national resilience. In Indonesia, it takes a top-down measure to provoke widespread racial violence for the short- term political agenda of rival groups in the elite vying to fill the state power vacuum in times of crisis, such as now.”

Heryanto, Ariel (1999) “Race Means Different Things in RI and S’pore”, The Jakarta Post, 16 February 1999: 1.

Also appeared as “Indonesia’s Different Language of Race”, The Straits Times, 25 February 1999: 32.

keywords: ethnic harmony, Jakarta Post, political culture, racial discrimination, Straits Times

The smiles were interpreted as if they were a well calculated gesture, a part of a larger strategy on the part of the suspect and his captors to achieve political gains (for instance, for the police to appear humane in public, and for the suspect to avoid heavy sentencing). Cultures have no objective reasoning outside themselves.

Heryanto, Ariel (2002) “Politically Incorrect Smiles: Bali Incident”, UniNews (The University of Melbourne), 16-30/12: 5.

Previously appeared in The Jakarta Post, 25 November 2002,

2002_11_15_TJP Politically incorrect smiles_ Bali incident-c

keywords: Amrozi, Australia, cultural, Jakarta Post, language, smile, Bali bomb