China is a rising power, something that has become increasingly evident in the South China Sea dispute in the past decade. In 2009, China for the first time officially and unilaterally declared...Show moreChina is a rising power, something that has become increasingly evident in the South China Sea dispute in the past decade. In 2009, China for the first time officially and unilaterally declared sovereignty over a large part of the South China Sea (SCS). At that time, both the biggest and smallest states of the region, Indonesia and Singapore, did not belong to the so-called ‘claimant states’. However, the increased tension in the SCS as a consequence of China’s maritime expansion leads to both states being affected by this dispute. Therefore, this thesis aims to examine the question ‘’How and why have Indonesia and Singapore responded to the increased Chinese assertiveness in the South China Sea, despite both initially not being claimant states?’’ Outlining the developments in the South China Sea and looking at the dimensions of economic relations and domestic political factors, this thesis will try to explain the responses of Indonesia and Singapore to an increasingly assertive China in the South China Sea in the past decade. What could be concluded is that while Singapore and, to a greater extent, Indonesia are economically increasingly dependent on China, which could lead to turning a blind eye to China’s behaviour in the SCS, the two Southeast Asian states have instead increasingly criticized China in the past decade in order to go against its growing assertive behaviour. This response comes out of dynamics in domestic politics that does not allow the two states to behave submissively.Show less
Research master thesis | Asian Studies (research) (MA)
open access
On the 17th of April 2019, Indonesia held the general elections. The President Joko Widodo (“Jokowi”) won 55,5% of the vote, beating the former general Prabowo Subianto representing Gerindra Party...Show moreOn the 17th of April 2019, Indonesia held the general elections. The President Joko Widodo (“Jokowi”) won 55,5% of the vote, beating the former general Prabowo Subianto representing Gerindra Party for the second time, the first in 2014. Less than two weeks after the victory, the re-elected President announced its intention to relocate the nation's capital from Jakarta, located in Java island, to a greenfield site on the island of Kalimantan. In this thesis, I use Twitter communication emanating from the Indonesian Ministry of National Development Planning and the office of the President to dissect the official rationale for this historic initiative and to investigate on the political and ideological discourse surrounding it. What is the Indonesian government trying to achieve through this project? What ideals and political priorities does it reflect? Is there consistency in the official discourse? My analysis is both quantitative and qualitative; it is quantitative because I used large numbers of tweets to measure the frequency which a variety of terms is used to describe both the desirable characteristics of the new capital, and the undesirable aspects of the old one. It is partly qualitative because I investigated and critically reflected on the results found on Twitter to understand better the motifs behind the decision of moving the capital, and be able to answer my research questions. The results show that Jakarta has been abandoned because it does not represent the Indonesian aspirations of modernity, reflected on the smart, sustainable and green imaginaries that the new capital will promote. Indeed, the tweet analysis revealed that these three elements are the most desirable features for the new capital of Indonesia and are the emblem of the type of modernity and progress that the Indonesian government is aspiring to. This is confirmed by the fact that the mentions to smart, green and sustainable are not clear nor justified. These terms appear to be used as buzzwords, almost as if it they were interchangeable. In conclusion, I argue that these features are all instrumental for expressing modernity and progress (Maju). This is the real objective of the government. “The city of dreams”, as I renamed it, imagines a flawless and perfect city, symbol of the progress of the whole country; the truth is that it is only a symbol, and the country will not progress in smartness, greenness, sustainability and equality if not through real policies and measures that tackle the local problems. Besides these attributes, the government claimed that the new capital would bring to more regional equality and economic growth. In this regard, the Indonesian government has also tweeted about Brasilia and its similarities with the new Indonesian capital, praising the design and the outcome of the project; like Brasilia, the new capital is seen as a means to cope with ongoing economic imbalance among the different regions of Indonesia. Although regional equality is, of course, an issue that the government needs to tackle, the increase of GDP outside Java will not benefit the whole population unless there is a real will to tackle inequality not only geographically but also across income groups. Besides, it is essential to remember that the gap between the rich and the poor in Jakarta is substantial and moving the capital will not represent a solution to this problem. Furthermore, the comparison with Brasilia was fundamental to notice a crucial vii paradox in the project of Ibu Kota Baru: by promoting a modern and futuristic capital, Ibu Kota Baru implicitly indicates a refusal of existing conditions of Indonesia, just as like Brasilia did. To conclude, it is important to mention that this thesis is about ideology. In essence, it does not seek to analyse the hidden personal interests and oligarchic business strategies on the project of the capital, although this has been briefly pointed out. The ultimate aim is to dissect the official rhetoric and rationale that surround this project to find the political ideals and desirable features that the project reflects, and inconsistencies in the discourse.Show less
The World Health Organisation has estimated that smoking kills approximately 7 million people per year worldwide (WHO, 2017: 70). The relationship between smoking tobacco and death has been proven,...Show moreThe World Health Organisation has estimated that smoking kills approximately 7 million people per year worldwide (WHO, 2017: 70). The relationship between smoking tobacco and death has been proven, and widely accepted for decades. Notwithstanding the detrimental effects on public health, this unhealthy habit may also have some positive effects: oiling social contacts, easing the nerves, and heighten concentration (Knol in Colombijn et al., 2001: 49). However, whereas concentration and relaxation may be obtained through other means, a cure for death is yet to be found. As such, it is clear that we shall approach the act of smoking in this thesis as unwanted behaviour. Thankfully, owning to big scale awareness campaigns, and an ongoing global increase in taxation rates, daily smoking rates in most OECD countries have significantly decreased over the past few decades, with currently an average rate of 18% of daily smokers, compared to 26% daily smokers in 2000 (OECD, 2017). In some parts of Asia however, smoking remains a growth market and big transnational tobacco corporations (TTCs) still seems to have their claws firmly set in a number of nations (Parkinson, 2015). In terms of male smoking prevalence, Indonesia is by far the world’s worst performer with a national male smoking prevalence of 76.2%, leaving other bad examples, like Russia (59.0%), and China (47.6%) far behind (WHO, 2015). When accounting for the significantly lower female smoking rates (3.6%) Indonesia’s average smoking prevalence is still one of the highest in the world, preceded only by Russia, and a mere handful of countries in the Balkan region and the Pacific Ocean (Ibid.). This apparent vulnerability to the unhealthy habbit has not gone unnoticed by big tobacco, illustrated by the recent takeovers of Indonesian tobacco companies by global market leaders like Philip Morris International (PMI) and the British American Tobacco Company (BAT). Another factor contributing to the alarming severity of Indonesia’s smoking addiction are its demographic projections. Indonesia is currently sitting on a large demographic dividend, and the population is projected to grow with another 70 million by 2050 (Kohler, Behrman & Arianto, 2015: 4). Seeing that most beginner smokers are children or young adolescents, it is paramount that this surplus of human capital is protected in a country were smoking regulations are still below par (Parkinson, 2015). An alarming study found that between 2001 and 2010, the number of children (10-14) who smoked, rose by 80 percent and the number of children (5-9), who started smoking, quadrupled (Rosser, 2015: 69). A more recent study, by the Indonesian Ministry of Health, showed that between 2013 and 2018, smoking prevalence among children (10-18) increased from 7.2% to 9.1% (Ministry of Health, 2018: 72), and the 2015 Global School-based Student Health Survey calculated an even more alarming number for the age group 13-17 at 13.60% smoking prevalence (WHO, 2015: 5). A slightly less pronounced, though, still alarming increase in young smokers. In order to explain the uphill battle which Indonesia seems to be fighting in the face of such a major public health crisis, I will compare Indonesia’s performance with one of its Southeast Asian neighbours boasting far lower numbers in terms of smoking prevalence, namely Thailand. In 2018, Thailand solidified its position as the leader in tobacco restrictions, when it became the first Asian country to require a standardized packaging for all cigarettes. The new legislation requires all cigarette products to be sold in drab brown coloured packs, free of any logos or brand images, with 85 percent pictorial health warnings on both sides of the pack (Southeast Asia Tobacco Control Alliance, 2018). It has been suggested by Thai specialists, like Duncan McCargo, that Thailand’s successes in tobacco control could serve as a case study for other developing nations (Chantornvong & McCargo, 2001: 48; Parkinson, 2015: 3). And indeed, in contrast to Indonesia, were men still puff away freely in almost any given location whether it be in a restaurant, air-conditioned coffeehouse, or school, Thailand seems well able to keep smoking outside of most public places, with heavy fines (a penalty fee for smoking in prohibited areas amounts to THB 5.000, although at the time of writing, the previous fee of THB 2000 is still in use), a number of awareness campaigns, and a national ban on advertisement. Don’t walk and smoke It is already past 2:00 a.m. when we exit the big 24/7 supermarket with a new drab coloured pack of cigarettes. Bangkok, the city that never sleeps, seems to have fallen into a bit of a slumber around the usually bustling street of Ekkamai. Located close to Sukkumvit road, most of the activity in this part of one of the richer districts in Bangkok seems to shut its eye’s around 1:00 a.m. The party continues further north up the street, where Soi Ekkamai meets Thong Lor on a small strip that forms a bridge between Bangkok’s wealthy sons and daughters of media tycoons, business moguls, and the handful of foreign tourists who dared venture outside the backpackers capital that is Khaosan road. Sand, who I regard as an example of emancipated female Bangkokians, looks at the fresh merchandise in my hand. We both light one up. As I am about to head into the direction of my apartment she stops me. “Ee, mai dai! (cannot)” She says. I ask her what seems to be the problem. “It’s just not polite”. She looks at the few people still hanging around the supermarket. Seconds after we light the cigarettes two people exiting the supermarket cross our path, making Sand throw an apologetic look into their direction.Show less
Bachelor thesis | South and Southeast Asian Studies (BA)
open access
2018-08-31T00:00:00Z
The year 2018 marks the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Suharto regime. likewise, it marks the reawakening of customary rights (adat) in Indonesian politics. In this thesis, I aim to place two...Show moreThe year 2018 marks the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Suharto regime. likewise, it marks the reawakening of customary rights (adat) in Indonesian politics. In this thesis, I aim to place two of Indonesia's main seafaring communities, namely: the Orang Suku Laut and the Sama Bajau, in the debate surrounding this revival of tradition in Indonesian politics. In the first chapter, I analyse how the history of the Sama and the Orang Laut have positioned these communities in the Indonesian society, and whether or not stereotypes surrounding their communities have made it more difficult for them to profit from the recognition of customary rights. In chapter 2, I draw parallels between the Sama and the Orang Laut in the ways that their nomadic lifestyle has resulted in intangible forms of culture, making it harder for them to assert claims over territory. In this chapter I also show how their distinct cultural and religious identity contribute to their marginal status Indonesia. In the last chapter, I argue that Indonesia's sea nomads partial inability to participate in the reassertion of customary rights is rooted in a multitude of factors, including: the hegemony of environmental motives surrounding customary rights' advocacy groups, the difficulty of claiming ownership over land, and civil rights under the pressure of statelessness, and the difficulty of affirming sea-based and coastal territory in land disputes under the hegemony of regional developmentalism. I stress the difference between their respective territories, which presents each community with a distinct adversary in their struggle for the recognition of customary land rights.Show less
Abstract: In Asia skin tone and whitening techniques were desirable and well described throughout the history. Indonesia is not an exception. The traces of whitening methods, portraits of ideal...Show moreAbstract: In Asia skin tone and whitening techniques were desirable and well described throughout the history. Indonesia is not an exception. The traces of whitening methods, portraits of ideal woman could be found in Indonesian literary works, legends as early as in ninth century as well as in modern literature and women’s magazines. Given the obsession of being white priority, the number of TV advertisements for skin-lightening products flooded the market and the need for them is intensely growing. The Indonesian beauty market is one of the fastest-growing beauty markets in Asia. Indonesian women follow the trend of being white shown in TV ads, but what can the content of these ads teach us about the reasons why people want to be whiter, or about the advertisers’ assumptions about those reasons, is still not well researched. This current study will try to contribute to the scientific knowledge in this field. The aim of this study is to investigate the possible ways of explaining the desire for whiteness by looking at the various positive associations which whiteness has for Indonesians. These positive associations include genetic excellence, hygiene and health, wealth and status, race, cosmopolitanism, the power of looks - “lookism” (discrimination or prejudice on the grounds of a person’s appearance), culture, social conformism, tradition (old cultural ideas in written and oral literature), modernity and try to trace them in four selected (two local brands and two international ones) contemporary TV whitening advertisements in Indonesia. The majority of these positive associations have their roots in antiquity and are not products of colonialism or modernity. Nevertheless, most of the TV skin whitening commercials in Indonesia (here, based on four examined ones) are constructed around modern ways of reasoning.Show less
In this thesis I will research how young Indonesians express their identities or how they create new identities in the period from the 1990s until today and I will examine this through forms of...Show moreIn this thesis I will research how young Indonesians express their identities or how they create new identities in the period from the 1990s until today and I will examine this through forms of Indonesian popular music. Popular music is an important site of cultural struggle and can reveal much about class, gender and other social divisions. That is why I want to zoom in on these social divisions by dividing them in class, religion and gender, to see how each of them relates to popular music and identity formation. I choose to focus on class, religion and gender because these have undergone drastic and interesting transformations during the period I want to examine, allowing people to reconsider their place or someone else’s in the social ladder, as a religious person or as a woman or man in society. Popular music and the way people consume it can reveal a lot about people’s thoughts and conceptions on class, religion and gender in contemporary Indonesia. The period from the 1990s until the present knew for example a remarkable growth of the Indonesian middle class who adopted a consumerist lifestyle and wanted to set themselves apart from the lower class, using popular music among other things. Concerning religion, I will focus on the developments of Islam in Indonesia, the religion of roughly 90% of the country's population. The fall of Suharto has been a significant turning-point for religious expression, because for much of the New Order, Islam was marginalized especially in the political sphere and Islamic organizations were restricted. After 1998, Indonesian Muslims could express themselves more freely, leading to an amplified process of Islamization which includes the creation of new Islamic political parties, the rise of radical Islam and the expression of religious identities in public that could not be expressed before, particularly extremist ones. Moreover, in the 21st century Muslim pop culture has flourished immensely and popular music has helped in the process of articulating religious identity. Finally, issues of gender, including for example femininity, masculinity and the role of women in the family have become a more prominent subject of discussions and debates in the past two decades. Women's rights groups and opinions about feminism have more political support than before, but so has (conservative) Islam. This leads to diverse opinions about popular female artists who are regarded as a role model to some and an actor of immorality to others. Popular music is a strong medium to spur debates about gender and to introduce new images of how young men and women can, or should, dress and behave. Consequently, this makes young Indonesians rethink and possibly reshape their gender identities.Show less
Climate change is becoming an increasingly important topic on the international stage and is one of today’s top priorities on the global agenda. Indonesia is of importance in any discussion about...Show moreClimate change is becoming an increasingly important topic on the international stage and is one of today’s top priorities on the global agenda. Indonesia is of importance in any discussion about climate change because of two reasons: (1) Indonesia is a country extremely vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, and (2) Indonesia contributes significantly to the problems of climate change. Therefore, it is perhaps not surprising that the Indonesian government has played an important role in the international debate on climate change. This thesis analyzes Indonesia’s contribution in the movement towards international cooperation to combat climate change.Show less
In this thesis I will analyze the representation of modernity in the commercials of Garuda Indonesia and Malaysia Airlines between 2013 and the first half of 2015. Their commercials give an exalted...Show moreIn this thesis I will analyze the representation of modernity in the commercials of Garuda Indonesia and Malaysia Airlines between 2013 and the first half of 2015. Their commercials give an exalted perspective on the nations they represent. I will focus on what Malaysian- and Indonesian modernity looks like, how these two national ‘modernities’ overlap or differ, and hopefully this can tell us something about Southeast Asian modernity in general.Show less
The main aim of this thesis is to identify the main environment in which clientelism thrives in Indonesia. The environments selected were urban and rural divisions, poverty and economically...Show moreThe main aim of this thesis is to identify the main environment in which clientelism thrives in Indonesia. The environments selected were urban and rural divisions, poverty and economically undiversified areas. Throughout the literature read on this topic, many authors point to these three factors as determinants of clientelism. With the help of Ward Berenschot, from the Royal Institute for Southeast Asian and Caribbean Studies (KITLV), and his Expert Survey on Clientelism in Indonesia, I was able to statistically support whether certain environments favour clientelism compared to others. The key findings from this thesis was that in Indonesia, based on statistical evidence, there is one of the three factors which increases the likeliness of clientelistic practices to take place. Both urban and rural divisions and poverty did not have positive findings statistically. There was no significant correlation to suggest that these factors played a large role in the determining of political clientelism in Indonesia. The only factor which did yield positive results was the economic environment of the region. The pattern, as the thesis will demonstrate, tended to be that the more economically diversified a region, the less clientelistic practices it had. The reasons as to why centre around the fact that economic diversity is healthy for a region, as it does not allow for a single actor to set the informal rules and practices. Despite quantitative analysis, this thesis also discusses the effects clientelism holds over Indonesian political life. Through the combination of quantitative and qualitative sources, this thesis effectively compares and contrasts literature to statistical findings. Therefore, I effectively can come up with independent opinions that are derived from these two sets of sources, and am able to support and contribute to authors which blame economic practices for clientelism.Show less
Bachelor thesis | South and Southeast Asian Studies (BA)
closed access
The Hindu-Muslims relations are different in India and on Bali. The reason why this is, is the fact that ideologies in these areas when it comes to Hindus and Muslims dealing with each other differ...Show moreThe Hindu-Muslims relations are different in India and on Bali. The reason why this is, is the fact that ideologies in these areas when it comes to Hindus and Muslims dealing with each other differ. While in India the difference between the two groups are empathized and the inequality between the two religious groups is clear, on Bali it is the similarities between Hindus and Muslims that are stressed and there is no clear inequality between the two religious groups. Why the ideologies are different can be accounted for by the history of the two areas. In India, there was a time when Muslims invaded the country and ruled over them for more than three hundred years. It assumed by the Hindus in India that the Muslims in their country are descendants from the invaders and because of it they are enemies. On Bali, Muslims and Hindus have learned to live in harmony. They feel like they belong to one group. The economy on the island is dependent on an harmonious relationship between the two religious groups.Show less
