Recent scholarship continues to shed light on the 1965-66 anti-communist massacres in Indonesia, ... more Recent scholarship continues to shed light on the 1965-66 anti-communist massacres in Indonesia, as well as its effect on Cold War politics around the globe. John Roosa’s Buried Histories: The Anti-Communist Massacres of 1965-66 in Indonesia (2020) is his third book on the subject, and explains, through rigorous case studies, some of the variation in the scope of the killings due to the role of the military and militias. Vincent Bevins’ The Jakarta Method: Washington’s Anticommunist Crusade and the Mass Murder Program that Shaped Our World (2020) argues that the Indonesian case became a “playbook” for other right-leaning forces to crush communism in Latin America and elsewhere, and has left a legacy of legitimized violence from which many have not yet recovered.
Many factors contributed to the timing, in August 1999, of the referendum in Timor-Leste that led... more Many factors contributed to the timing, in August 1999, of the referendum in Timor-Leste that led to the country’s independence; among them: Suharto’s abdication, Indonesia’s vulnerability to pressure after the East Asian economic crisis, Indonesia’s confidence that it will prevail using its usual methods of intimidation and manipulation, and, of course, the political and armed struggle of who supported and died for independence in Timor-Leste. Another element was the solidarity networks that emerged among activists from various countries who exerted internal pressure on their governments to force them to change their policy towards Indonesia. This article examines the East Timor Action Network, founded in 1991 in the United States, and its lobbying and internal pressure strategy. Building on Sikkink and Keck’s model of principle-based issue networks and their ability to exert domestic pressure for international results, this article shows how the Network successfully lobbied for ch...
Situations: Cultural Studies in the Asian Context, 2019
The documentary Passabe (James Leong and Lynn Lee, 2006) portrays former militia members who retu... more The documentary Passabe (James Leong and Lynn Lee, 2006) portrays former militia members who returned to Timor-Leste following the August 1999 referendum and the process by which reconciliation took place. Recent studies have questioned the nature of reconciliation, however, and argued that in many post-conflict regions the situation is best described by "negative peace." This article examines the situation in Passabe shown in the film and describes the spiritual elements of lisan that have enabled reconciliation, or at least something more closely approximating reconciliation than "negative peace."
Despite fifty years’ time and recent scholarship, the politicide of hundreds of thousands—if not ... more Despite fifty years’ time and recent scholarship, the politicide of hundreds of thousands—if not more than a million—of Indonesians accused of communism between 1965 and 1967 following a purported ...
Islamist extremists in Afghanistan and elsewhere are exaggerating their successes in inflicting c... more Islamist extremists in Afghanistan and elsewhere are exaggerating their successes in inflicting casualties on American and other International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) forces. This article quantifies the exaggeration for the month of November 2010, putting ...
... Emha Ainun Nadjid (Cak Nun) and Kyai Kanjeng Emha Ainun Nadjid (born 1953), or Cak Nun as he ... more ... Emha Ainun Nadjid (Cak Nun) and Kyai Kanjeng Emha Ainun Nadjid (born 1953), or Cak Nun as he is commonly known, is one of the luminaries of the Yogyakarta culture scene. ... Cak Nun also had a lengthy on-stage conversation with Hidayat Nur Wahid. ...
... Martin's Press, 1992); Sabrina R. Ramet, Profit Motives in Secessio... more ... Martin's Press, 1992); Sabrina R. Ramet, Profit Motives in Secession, Society 35, no. 5 (July/August. 1998), 26-29; Jeffrey J. Cormier, Blocked Mobility and the Rise of Cultural Nationalism: A Reassessment, International Journal of Politics, Culture and Society, 16, No. ...
Prior to the Indonesian invasion of East Timor, the Catholic Church remained somewhat aloof from ... more Prior to the Indonesian invasion of East Timor, the Catholic Church remained somewhat aloof from the population, although the beginnings of The importance of the Church began with the founding of the Dare seminary And the publication of the newsletter Seara. These two developments helped push East Timorese identity, which turned to nationalism aimed at ousting the Indonesians after their invasion. During the Indonesian occupation, the Church and clergy became firmly aligned with the people through a process of inculturization, and in return people flocked to the Church as the only reliable refuge from the horrors of the occupation. The membership rate skyrocketed to over 95 percent, although many of these are nominal Catholics who gained tangible benefits from their association with the Church. The Indonesian military and government pursued strategies to deal with the Church, but they ultimately failed. The Catholic Church can be credited with helping to foment the East Timorese nat...
In this paper we explore the ways in which the Indonesian Front Pembela Islam (Islamic Defenders ... more In this paper we explore the ways in which the Indonesian Front Pembela Islam (Islamic Defenders Front–FPI) uses hate speech and demonization to legitimize violent attacks on organizations and individuals it considers to be sinful or religiously deviant, and civil discourse to establish credibility and respectability. 1 We argue that the use of a discursive frame established by fatwa (legal opinions) issued by the semi-official Majelis Ulama Indonesia (MUI–Indonesian Council of Muslim Scholars) and tacit support from powerful political factions enable FPI to conduct campaigns of demon-ization and violence with near impunity and to avoid being labeled as a terrorist organization. We elaborate on a distinction between what the Center for Religious and Cross-Cultural Studies (CRCS) at Gadjah Mada University calls the two faces of FPI (Bagir et al. 2010a). The CRCS report distinguishes between civil and uncivil modes of FPI discourse and praxis. The civil mode seeks to establish the organization's credibility in the public sphere. It presents FPI as the ally of authorities in attempts to control deviance and assisting those in need, especially victims of natural disasters. The Cont Islam (2014) 8:153–
Recent scholarship continues to shed light on the 1965-66 anti-communist massacres in Indonesia, ... more Recent scholarship continues to shed light on the 1965-66 anti-communist massacres in Indonesia, as well as its effect on Cold War politics around the globe. John Roosa’s Buried Histories: The Anti-Communist Massacres of 1965-66 in Indonesia (2020) is his third book on the subject, and explains, through rigorous case studies, some of the variation in the scope of the killings due to the role of the military and militias. Vincent Bevins’ The Jakarta Method: Washington’s Anticommunist Crusade and the Mass Murder Program that Shaped Our World (2020) argues that the Indonesian case became a “playbook” for other right-leaning forces to crush communism in Latin America and elsewhere, and has left a legacy of legitimized violence from which many have not yet recovered.
Many factors contributed to the timing, in August 1999, of the referendum in Timor-Leste that led... more Many factors contributed to the timing, in August 1999, of the referendum in Timor-Leste that led to the country’s independence; among them: Suharto’s abdication, Indonesia’s vulnerability to pressure after the East Asian economic crisis, Indonesia’s confidence that it will prevail using its usual methods of intimidation and manipulation, and, of course, the political and armed struggle of who supported and died for independence in Timor-Leste. Another element was the solidarity networks that emerged among activists from various countries who exerted internal pressure on their governments to force them to change their policy towards Indonesia. This article examines the East Timor Action Network, founded in 1991 in the United States, and its lobbying and internal pressure strategy. Building on Sikkink and Keck’s model of principle-based issue networks and their ability to exert domestic pressure for international results, this article shows how the Network successfully lobbied for ch...
Situations: Cultural Studies in the Asian Context, 2019
The documentary Passabe (James Leong and Lynn Lee, 2006) portrays former militia members who retu... more The documentary Passabe (James Leong and Lynn Lee, 2006) portrays former militia members who returned to Timor-Leste following the August 1999 referendum and the process by which reconciliation took place. Recent studies have questioned the nature of reconciliation, however, and argued that in many post-conflict regions the situation is best described by "negative peace." This article examines the situation in Passabe shown in the film and describes the spiritual elements of lisan that have enabled reconciliation, or at least something more closely approximating reconciliation than "negative peace."
Despite fifty years’ time and recent scholarship, the politicide of hundreds of thousands—if not ... more Despite fifty years’ time and recent scholarship, the politicide of hundreds of thousands—if not more than a million—of Indonesians accused of communism between 1965 and 1967 following a purported ...
Islamist extremists in Afghanistan and elsewhere are exaggerating their successes in inflicting c... more Islamist extremists in Afghanistan and elsewhere are exaggerating their successes in inflicting casualties on American and other International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) forces. This article quantifies the exaggeration for the month of November 2010, putting ...
... Emha Ainun Nadjid (Cak Nun) and Kyai Kanjeng Emha Ainun Nadjid (born 1953), or Cak Nun as he ... more ... Emha Ainun Nadjid (Cak Nun) and Kyai Kanjeng Emha Ainun Nadjid (born 1953), or Cak Nun as he is commonly known, is one of the luminaries of the Yogyakarta culture scene. ... Cak Nun also had a lengthy on-stage conversation with Hidayat Nur Wahid. ...
... Martin's Press, 1992); Sabrina R. Ramet, Profit Motives in Secessio... more ... Martin's Press, 1992); Sabrina R. Ramet, Profit Motives in Secession, Society 35, no. 5 (July/August. 1998), 26-29; Jeffrey J. Cormier, Blocked Mobility and the Rise of Cultural Nationalism: A Reassessment, International Journal of Politics, Culture and Society, 16, No. ...
Prior to the Indonesian invasion of East Timor, the Catholic Church remained somewhat aloof from ... more Prior to the Indonesian invasion of East Timor, the Catholic Church remained somewhat aloof from the population, although the beginnings of The importance of the Church began with the founding of the Dare seminary And the publication of the newsletter Seara. These two developments helped push East Timorese identity, which turned to nationalism aimed at ousting the Indonesians after their invasion. During the Indonesian occupation, the Church and clergy became firmly aligned with the people through a process of inculturization, and in return people flocked to the Church as the only reliable refuge from the horrors of the occupation. The membership rate skyrocketed to over 95 percent, although many of these are nominal Catholics who gained tangible benefits from their association with the Church. The Indonesian military and government pursued strategies to deal with the Church, but they ultimately failed. The Catholic Church can be credited with helping to foment the East Timorese nat...
In this paper we explore the ways in which the Indonesian Front Pembela Islam (Islamic Defenders ... more In this paper we explore the ways in which the Indonesian Front Pembela Islam (Islamic Defenders Front–FPI) uses hate speech and demonization to legitimize violent attacks on organizations and individuals it considers to be sinful or religiously deviant, and civil discourse to establish credibility and respectability. 1 We argue that the use of a discursive frame established by fatwa (legal opinions) issued by the semi-official Majelis Ulama Indonesia (MUI–Indonesian Council of Muslim Scholars) and tacit support from powerful political factions enable FPI to conduct campaigns of demon-ization and violence with near impunity and to avoid being labeled as a terrorist organization. We elaborate on a distinction between what the Center for Religious and Cross-Cultural Studies (CRCS) at Gadjah Mada University calls the two faces of FPI (Bagir et al. 2010a). The CRCS report distinguishes between civil and uncivil modes of FPI discourse and praxis. The civil mode seeks to establish the organization's credibility in the public sphere. It presents FPI as the ally of authorities in attempts to control deviance and assisting those in need, especially victims of natural disasters. The Cont Islam (2014) 8:153–
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