Merangkai SinoLogika: Bunga Rampai - Christine Susanna Tjhin

The minority group has had a huge impact on Indonesia’s capital. But the success of its small elite has led to recurring discrimination and bloodshed – which has come to a head as Jakarta’s ethnic Chinese governor runs for election. Before Jakarta, there was Batavia, the 17th-century capital city of the Dutch East Indies, built with the skill of just a few hundred ethnic Chinese artisans who had settled as traders along the shore. How little has changed. Many big projects in modern day Jakarta, a city of more than 10 million, have been built by developers from the minority group, the descendants of the original merchants and other Chinese who have arrived since. Chinese-Indonesians – estimated to make up 1% to 4% of the country’s 250 million people – have had an impact on Jakarta which is vastly disproportionate to their physical numbers. The economic success of the group’s small elite has led to repeated bouts of resentment, discrimination and even violent assaults. ...

The Jakarta Post  -  Many recent debates surrounding Indonesia’s supposed leadership in the region have been framed in terms of how Indonesia could (or should) engage China. One of the most heated debates concerns the South China Sea (SCS) issue. The highly charged tensions in the SCS have cast serious doubts on China’s “peaceful rise”. Recent articles by Evan Laksmana and Klaus Raditio have brought up timely conversations on how best to engage China, to which the author will attempt to contribute. Whether the term “hegemonic” is deemed as pejorative or neutral, China’s behavior in the SCS ought to be understood through its domestic context. Inability or unwillingness to understand this would seriously undermine our ability to formulate effective policies of engagement. There are several contributing factors behind China’s behavior that we need to consider. Firstly, is the history factor. China’s claims to the SCS have evolved with its transition from an empire to a modern rep...

In this paper, six experts examine the South China Sea issue, and what role middle powers can play in helping ensure that the contest over disputed territory does not lead to conflict.  Link to download:  http://bellschool.anu.edu.au/experts-publications/publications/4528/south-china-sea-middle-power-perspectives Brendan Taylor and William Tow examine Australian debates, arguing that Australian policymakers should explore an ‘Asia-first’ approach by cooperating with Indonesia and South Korea to help manage and encourage resolution on the issue. Shafiah Muhibat and Christine Susanna Tjhin provide an Indonesian perspective of middle power diplomacy in the South China Sea, claiming that while middle power collaboration is possible, it will require addressing issues of legitimacy and trust between Indonesia, Australia and South Korea. Lee Jaehyon and Bong Youngshik Daniel round out the discussion by examining South Korea’s strategic distance from the South China Sea. They cla...

My piece in Jakarta Post today on what happened to me & family in May 98. Every year each May for the past 18 years I have always wanted to write something meaningful. But I always failed. Never could finish the damn thing. I'm still not sure why. This year I finally did it... Original writing is provided below. JP didn't make much changes - some grammars & few selected words. Printed version can be read here . This is one of two articles I sent to JP.  My family and I are amongst many Chinese Indonesian families, who got attacked and made a very conscious decision to not report it. We had zero faith in Indonesia's system at that time. My family saw no point in reporting other than being harassed again or wringed for cash. They're used to anti Chinese assaults & genuinely were unsurprised that it had happened (or will happen) again. My aunt's stoic answer that night when I asked if she's afraid perplexed me, "Udah biasa, Suk. Mami malah y...