Indonesia’s Ticking Time Bomb
Commentary by Wayne Forrest I fear a ticking time bomb could soon explode in Indonesia. Its probably not what you think; its not a natural disaster or mass movement based […]
Regret
There’s a lot of regret going around these days. Democrats, who lost a close election, no doubt regret they didn’t do more to convince Midwest rust belt voters worried about […]
Honking in the Free World
Commentary by Wayne Forrest Their signs read “Om Telolet Om”. It simply means, “sir, honk your horn, sir”. Young girls and boys, especially in Jakarta, hold them up for passing […]
Two Years In
Two years into his 5 year term President Jokowi is exhibiting some of the qualities of former President Suharto. I say this not to compare them in any fundamental way […]
The Big Number
Commentary by Wayne Forrest AMCHAM Indonesia and the US Chamber of Commerce recently released the fourth in their terrific annual series of reports that collectively put the US as perhaps […]
Educated Abroad
Commentary by Wayne Forrest Indonesia has always had an ambivalent attitude towards foreigners, foreign investment, and Indonesians educated abroad. I began thinking about this during the latest Cabinet reshuffle when […]
Golkar Returns
For those familiar with Indonesian politics Golkar is the party synonymous with Indonesia’s economic development. More than a just a political party, Golkar was an amalgamation of various “functional groups” […]
Duane Gingerich’s Pivot: In Memoriam (1942-2016)
As President Obama prepares to receive most of Southeast Asia’s heads of state at the US-ASEAN Summit February 15-16 in Rancho Mirage I am thinking of a recently fallen friend […]
New Deregulation Package
Indonesia has released the second of three deregulation/stimulus packages designed to boost a flagging economy and strengthen the exchange rate. The first (released September 10) was primarily an exercise in […]
The Meaning of Banggai
August 7, 2015 President Jokowi traveled to the Banggai Regency in central Sulawesi this week to inaugurate the $5.8 billion “Pertamina Mega Integrated Project”, which is planned to match the […]