Social Media Sins
Indonesia has about 70 million active social media users, spending an average of over five hours online daily through computers...
Fuel for Thought
Florence Sihombing (26), a postgraduate law student at the prestigious Gadjah Mada University, on August 27 drove her white Honda...
In Vino Nonsense
The jailing of an Indonesian man in the US earlier this month for selling millions of dollars of fake wine...
All For One and One For All
The only thing to expect in the short-term from Joko Widodo’s election as Indonesia’s seventh president is uncertainty, largely because...
Casting for Sex & Money
There’s no shortage of women eager to become Indonesia’s next top celebrity. One conman took advantage of this hunger for...
Embracing the Spirit of Ramadhan
The Muslim fasting month of Ramadhan is now in full swing. For recently arrived non-Muslim expatriates in Indonesia, it can...
All Over Bar the Cheating’
After a tense election campaign marred by relentless lies and smears, the fate of Indonesia is now in the hands...
Everything to Lose
As Indonesia’s most important presidential election ever nears its climax, there has been no end of deception aimed at swaying...
The Kangaroo & the Komodo
?Australians remain wary of Indonesia,? declared a headline on the eve of Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott?s recent meeting with...
Ghostbuster Busted
Of all the silly programs on Indonesian TV, one of the most idiotic was Pemburu Hantu (Ghost Hunters), which involved...
Unlucky Charms
It is widely believed in Indonesia that daggers, polished stones and fabrics can be imbued with magical powers that will...
Car Theft Hoaxes
“There’s a new method of car theft,” a colleague breathlessly told me last week. “Thieves throw an egg at your...
In Sickness and in Wealth
Indonesia aims to implement a system of universal healthcare by 2019, but that won?t stop the country?s richest citizens from...
Money Politics
Vote buying is risky business, especially for candidates who fail to get elected and cannot repay their debts. Yet the...
God Help Us
With religion being compulsory in Indonesia, the country is fertile ground for scammers seeking easy money under the guise of...
Phantom Pregnancies
Getting married and having children are essential rites of passage in Indonesia. So great is the pressure to produce progeny,...
Meet Dennise Rao
Meet Dennise Rao, one of the administrative, creative and inspirational forces at Jakarta International School. When did you come to...
Stealing Democracy from the People
I first experienced an Indonesian election in May 1997. I was staggering home drunk from Blok M, South Jakarta, at...
Cheating on the Buses
This year marks the 10th anniversary of the Transjakarta busway: a public transport system beset by financial scams. Even before...
Physicians’ Heal Thyself
From pointless prescriptions to counterfeit medicines, the treatment of illnesses in Indonesia can be a minefield. A few weeks ago,...
Big Phishing in a Big Pond
As the world’s second biggest source of cyber attacks, Indonesia is prone to phishing, which occurs when a scammer or...