Bachelor thesis | South and Southeast Asian Studies (BA)
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During the 39th World Veg(etari)an festival, which was held in Jakarta in 2010, the International Vegetarian Union manager John Davis said that Indonesia’s vegetarians were ‘one of the biggest...Show moreDuring the 39th World Veg(etari)an festival, which was held in Jakarta in 2010, the International Vegetarian Union manager John Davis said that Indonesia’s vegetarians were ‘one of the biggest vegetarian societies in the world’. Vegetarian and vegan restaurants are mushrooming in the cities, the Indonesian Vegetarian Society and the Vegan Society of Indonesia have a solid base of members, and the number of individual practitioners of the lifestyle appears to be big as well. Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Theosophy all have contributed in some way to the development of vegism in Indonesia, as well as the foundation and spread of the Vegetarian Society via Australia from England, originally focussing on animal-rights. Indonesia is also interesting to analyse for this matter as its traditional diet seems to be well-suited for veg(etari)ans, as it consists of tofu, tempe, jackfruit, many vegetables and fruits, and originally (almost) no dairy products. This thesis analyses the social movement of vegetarianism and veganism as present in Indonesia, focussing on the origins, the organised forms of vegism, as well as zooming in on the individual practitioners, by depending on a (self-)conducted questionnaire, analysing demographics, reasons, the practices and the process.Show less
