Indonesia [vid_title]

Due October 24, 2022 (Monday) 12:00 noon

Deadlines
Research
Video outline
Script
Video draft
Final Video
Submission [Oct 24, 2022]

Timeline
Finalize issues to discuss + Distribution of tasks + Outline [Wednesday - October 12]
Research about the chosen problem [Sunday - October 17]
Final Script [Tuesday - October 18]
Recordings and Visuals [Thursday - October 20]
Editing [Friday to Sunday - October 21 to October 23]
Submission [Monday - October 24]

Guidelines

● 5-6 minutes in length

● Identify contemporary issues and challenges (political, economic, and social)
○ The video should identify clear, focused, multiple contemporary issues and challenges,
instead of being about one issue only.
○ coherence
● Discuss these issues and challenges
○ The discussion should be based on factual information taken from a variety of credible
sources
○ A balanced perspective on these issues should be offered, instead of relying only on
your own opinions or that of official government propaganda.
● Critically examine these issues and challenges
○ Our primary interest in analyzing these issues and challenges is to understand why
these issues have emerged and are important, why they are challenging to address,
and how they provide us with meaningful insights about what is actually happening in
the Southeast Asian country assigned to you.
○ It is not our task yet to identify solutions for these issues and challenges. Analytic
tools that can be used to systematically examine contemporary issues and challenges
include those that we will be covering in our discussions up to Week 5 of the term,
such as situating these issues within the history of the country, especially the history
 of state-building, and contextualizing these issues within the relevant features of the
state and state-society relations in the country.

Other important guidelines to remember are as follows:

1. While groups may begin research on the assigned country and that country’s contemporary
issues upon reading these guidelines, I suggest that you wait until the completion of our
discussions on states and societies in Southeast Asia (Week 5) before you finalize your
“script” for the video. These discussions are intended to help provide you with an analytic
framework through which you can meaningfully examine issues and challenges in your
assigned country, and should therefore inform the analysis that you undertake in the video.
2. Use a coherent mix of various strategies to make your video interesting: on-camera and off-
camera narration, images, video clips, on-screen text for key facts/ideas/insights, and other
visual tools to illustrate key points. Do not rely on just one strategy. When using images and
video clips from other materials, make sure that you appropriately identify and cite the source.
3. It is not necessary for all group members to appear in the video. Who will actually appear or be
heard in the video (whether one, some, or all) will depend on your own chosen style of
presentation and your allocation of tasks for group members.
4. Include end-credits to your video through which you identify your references and the sources
of images and video clips used in the video.
5. The goal of the prescribed time limit (5-6 minutes) is to prevent the tendency to overload
videos with too much information, and to promote your ability to be highly selective of
information that is presented based on relevance and usefulness in conveying important
insights. The time limit will not be strictly enforced. However, if your video goes significantly
over six minutes, part of the assessment of your work will be based on whether the extra time
was really necessary to convey a deep understanding of the country and its current issues and
challenges, or whether there were portions of the video that could have been omitted in order
to conform to the prescribed time limit.
6. Submitted videos are presumed to be products of group effort, and will merit, in general, the
same grade for all group members. The peer evaluation (to be discussed later in these
guidelines) will be the primary means through which variation in grades within the group may
occur based on peer-reported individual contributions to the group project. Exceptions to the
same-grade policy may be made in extreme cases where a group member has no or very
minimal contribution. These cases should be immediately reported to me through email, so
that there is sufficient time for me to discuss and validate concerns with all group members,
after which an adjustment in the grade of the concerned group member may be effected.

Meeting 1 Agenda
Brief run through of video guidelines
Brainstorming
Topic
Content
Video concept
Outline
Distribution of Tasks
Distribution of Tasks
● Voice over - Euni and Iscia
● Visual inputs - Luis, Karyl, Samuel
● Research - Everyone

Researched Content
● Recommended sources:
○ Dayley and Neher’s (2013) Southeast Asia in the New International Era
○ SarDesai’s (2010) Southeast Asia: Past & Present
○ Kingsbury’s (2017) Politics in Contemporary Southeast Asia.

Proposed Problems to Discuss (with short description)

Struggle for DEMOCRATIZATION

POLITICAL
The Politics of Crisis-President Soeharto and the New Order
● The New Order regime predicated its legitimacy on its ability to meet the ambitions of
an expanding middle class and working class as well as to consistently raise the
standard of living for the majority of Indonesians. However, there were growing
concerns within Indonesia about the slow pace of political liberalization even before
the start of the economic crisis.
Problem of democracy
● Since anyone can become a part of the government then it would create new problems
like corruption, and etc.
Corruption
● This issue is still prevalent in the Indonesian government system; the government
lacks commitment to implementing anti-corruption laws and programs in the
country.

ECONOMIC
Indonesia's Economic Crisis
● The quick decline in exchange rates in other Southeast Asian nations like Thailand,
South Korea, and Malaysia is, of course, the background to the significant issues that
have surfaced inside Indonesia's banking and finance system. The term "Asian
economic crisis" or "Asian financial meltdown" has been used to describe these
events in the Australian media. These portrayals, however, are somewhat inaccurate
because the crisis has not at all afflicted all of Asia and because the consequences
have varied widely across the continent.
Inflation of currency(rupiah)
 ● Since The Government has a small capacity to print bills, they focused mainly on
getting 100-rupiah banknotes. Printing 100-rupiah banknotes was easier than printing
several small-denomination ones. Also, the rising activity of counterfeiting caused
hyperinflation in the Indonesian money.
○ Led to unemployment, food shortages

SOCIAL
Job Losses, Unemployment and Underemployment
● Employment has been severely impacted by the loss of Indonesia's currency and the
resulting vulnerability of the private sector to huge amounts of unpayable foreign
debt, particularly in urban regions. Construction was the area that was most directly
impacted because a large portion of short-term foreign borrowing had been allocated
to city development and infrastructure projects. The previous few years have seen
strong employment growth in Indonesia, but the positions in the areas of new growth
have been the most vulnerable to shifting economic conditions.
Food Shortages
● Since the increasing inflation of rupiah there has been an increase in food shortages
aside from this there has also been drought which cost farms to fall and increase
food shortages even more throughout Indonesia.
Religious Gaps and Intolerance
● There is a rise of religious intolerance in Indonesia. According to Arman (2022), the
country is becoming increasingly inhospitable for members of religious minorities.
Press Freedom
● Censorship
● Weaponizing the 2008 Law on Electronic Information and Transactions against
journalists
● Criminalizing criticism against the government thru a 2020 directive
Threats to Academic Freedom
● Political indoctrination
● Repression towards those who openly discusses relevant social issues

Problems (outline)

● Democratization
○ intolerance in the Indonesian society
■ discrimination against minority groups (LGBT Community, religious
minorities, ethnic minorities)
■ Academic Freedom
■ Freedom of the Press
■ Religious Freedom
 ● Corruption
○ hinders the democratization process in Indonesia
○ cartel parties
● Hunger, poverty and inflation (economic)
○ Can be related to corruption as transition

Research/Script
Reminders:
- Analytical tool: Historical tracing
- Put your sources below

Democratization

Outline

Corruption

Corruption is a global problem that affects many countries, including Indonesia. It is

recognized to be the source of socioeconomic concerns such as poverty, unemployment, food
insecurity, and a lack of access to various services, among other things. Despite the fact that
Indonesia is ranked as the 96th least corrupt nation in the 2021 Corruption Perceptions
Index, this is an ongoing issue that continues to plague the country.

One of the first occurrences of corruption in Indonesian history can be traced back to
President Suharto's authoritarian New Order regime from 1965 to 1998. His rule was notable
for its rapid and sustained economic expansion, but it was also notorious for its corrupt
nature. During this period, Suharto resembled the patrimonial power of pre-colonial rulers
by seizing complete control of the country's vast resources, military, and political and
economic structures. (Indonesia Investments, 2017). He was heavily accused of being corrupt
during his regime, as were his subordinates and children who benefited from his schemes.
His authoritarian tendencies have undoubtedly given him the privilege of acquiring the
country's money and resources, thus resulting in corruption. Even after Suharto's regime, the
issue persists; in fact, it has become more dispersed in the country, despite the presence of
several movements and laws campaigning for its abolition. As power became more
decentralized, local governors and commanding officers enjoyed the same benefits as those
in higher government positions, including access to and acquisition of people's taxes
(Indonesia Investments, 2017). Several administrations, including the Yudhoyono and Widodo
administrations, have failed to address this problem throughout the years, as they too have
been accused of being corrupt. Now that corruption is embedded in the Indonesian
government system, determining how to overcome this issue is quite challenging,
considering how difficult it is to trust government officials who claim they would solve this
issue, as many who have said this in the past have failed to fulfill their promise.

Cartel parties or party cartelization is one of the reasons why corruption continues to
persist over time. It is said to occur when political parties, regardless of political affiliation,
are willing to share executive power with all other parties (Slater, 2018). Similar to Western
Europe, this power-sharing arrangement is a common strategy used by government officials,
especially presidents, in Indonesia. Richard S. Katz and Peter Mair introduced the concept of
cartelisation, which was derived from cartel practices in economic markets. It is used to
describe the existence of power-sharing political parties in Europe in the 1970s, which cam
also be used to describe Indonesian politics. (Karim and Hamil, 2022). According to an article
written by Dan Slater (2018), Indonesia's experience with democratic power-sharing suggests
that presidents perceive coalitions as a source of power and resources rather than a drain, as
current and previous presidents made efforts to forge alliances across different parties.
Nowadays, party cartelization in the country of Indonesia has become less prevalent,
however, it has not been completely eliminated. Since current President Joko Widodo
engages in cartelization politics in his presidency, it is possible that this type of political
strategy will resurface much stronger in the coming years as corruption continues and
government leaders form new alliances for financial and political gain.

According to a report on the UN General Assembly Special Session on Corruption, the

"Indonesian government fails to prove its anti-corruption commitment.” Transparency
International Indonesia, a non-profit organization known for its anti-corruption advocacy,
found numerous flaws in the statements made by the Representative of the Government of
Indonesia during the meeting with different member states. It was reported that the
Corruption Eradication Commission is not a government priority, proving the
administration’s negligence and lack of commitment to implementing such policies in the
country. Furthermore, as shown in Transparency International's 2021 report, the Indonesian
government has not yet accomplished high-level commitments discussed in international
forums. This includes the G20 Anti-Corruption Working Group (2012-2018), the
Anti-Corruption Summit (2016), and the International Anti-Corruption Conference (2018)
(Transparency International Indonesia, 2021). With this in mind, member states strongly
advise the country to strengthen its political commitments, both globally and locally, and to
increase its efforts to fight against corruption, encouraging greater participation from
officials and representatives in various government bodies. Based on this information, it is
evident that Indonesia is experiencing difficulties eliminating the issue in the country
because anti-corruption laws are not strictly enforced. If the government does not take
proactive measures, this will inevitably lead to more problems in the near future.
 Cartel parties and flawed anti-corruption policies. These are just a few of the factors
that contribute to the prevalence of corruption in Indonesia. With its existence, the issue will
only spread and worsen over time, causing long-term problems in the country.

-> transition to inflation, poverty, and hunger

Inflation cause poverty and hunger (economic)

One of the issues aside from the problems stated before is about poverty, hunger, and
inflation in indonesia. Over the past years, Indonesia has had a stable growth of economy, but
ever since a financial crisis came in 1997, poverty has taken place again. This poverty causes
a huge gap between the people of Indonesia which also causes inflation of rupiah and as well
as hunger to many people (Studies, 2021). Although the government tried to help create a
variety of urban alleviation programs to lessen the impact of poverty, it doesn't change much
since people in the urban areas are reduced while not in the rural areas (Project, 2019). As
said, rural areas are far more in deep poverty than people in urban areas, since most of the
people in Indonesia are living there and since agriculture is their main source of everyday
income. With that being said, poverty seems to be one of the problems that these local
people have since they earn quite little in farming, they also need essential products on hand
to be able to produce the goods to be later sold. Another reason why rural people are poorer is
because all people that live there are poor also and most middle to high class people are
living far from them so they can't escape from poverty. And because of poverty, this can also
lead to hunger. People who are poor tend to suffer from hunger as well which causes more
people to be sick from chronic hunger. (Philipp, 2020) But over these past years, we can see
that the country has been improving its growth outlook for the future. Since the Indonesian
government has shown its commitment to fiscal reforms to increase investment, economic
growth is expected to increase in the next few years.

(Causes of corruption in Indonesia,)

According to all available information based on the report of their community in their area,
corruption is still spreading and negatively affecting everyone living in their country and the
social sphere in Indonesia. This is because corruption in Indonesia and the country's public
administration consumes significant resources. Despite their anti-corruption initiatives,
which include building an important anti-corruption tool in the anti-corruption agency and
leading to the conviction of several high-ranking public officials, institutional capacities are
still insufficient, weak legal standards, and weak regulation that encourages corruption. and
the most important global governance action in the country of Indonesia reflects this.
References
Anti-Corruption Resource Centre. (2012 August 7). Causes of corruption in indonesia.
Retrieved October 18, 2022 from,
https://www.u4.no/publications/causes-of-corruption-in-indonesia

CPI Transparency. (n.d). Corruption perceptions index. Retrieved October 17, 2022, from
https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2021?gclid=CjwKCAjw-rOaBhA9EiwAUkLV4jwqrlg
LyMemPOgjuRcftzCXxvUMaQ1QQ2xAQDBgoa4yM4nbCTYoPBoCCR4QAvD_BwE

Indonesia Investments. (2017, June 23). Corruption in indonesia. Retrieved October 17, 2022,
from https://www.indonesia-investments.com/business/risks/corruption/item235

Karim, Z. A., & Hamil, J. H. (2022, June 30). Cartlisation in indonesian politics during the
jokowi era. JATI-Journal of Southeast Asian Studies, 27(1), 45–65. doi:
https://doi.org/10.22452/jati.vol276no1.3

Luc Hoffman Institute. (2021, October 14). Tackling corruption in the indonesian natural resources
sector. Retrieved October 17, 2022, from
https://luchoffmanninstitute.org/natural-resources-corruption-inIrecy International
Indonesia. (2021, June 4). Indonesian government fails to prove its anti-corruption
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https://ti.or.id/indonesian-government-fails-to-prove-its-anti-corruption-commitmen
t-among-the-member-states/

Project, B. (2019, August 21). Poverty in Indonesia. The Borgen Project. Retrieved October 18,
2022, from https://borgenproject.org/poverty-indonesia/

Philipp, J. (2020, June 25). The State of Hunger in Indonesia. The Borgen Project. Retrieved
October 18, 2022, from https://borgenproject.org/hunger-in-indonesia/

Slater, D. (2018). Party cartelisation, indonesian-style. Retrieved October 19, 2022, from
https://www.eastasiaforum.org/2018/03/14/party-cartelisation-indonesian-style/

Studies, C. F. I. P. (2021, February 28). Newsletter February 2021 | Addressing a Nutritional Health and
Poverty Crisis in Indonesia. CIPS Website 2022. Retrieved October 18, 2022,
fromhttps://www.cips-indonesia.org/post/newsletter-february-2021-addressing-a-nut
ritional-health-and-poverty-crisis-in-indonesia