Overseas Think Tank for Indonesia

by Muhamad Ali, Ph.D

How did the State and civil society negotiate the Shari’a and the civil law in a modern pluralistic Indonesia? Why is it difficult for a compromise that pleases everyone? The State continues to function as the legitimate power to produce laws in which the Shari’a has to contribute and to adjust itself in a Muslim majority yet, pluralistic nation. The tensions and negotiations between various elements– the government and civil society, result from a long duree of encounters of the Middle East (including the Mediterranean), Europe, and Asia in the Indonesian archipelago. A history of a legal culture and interfaith interaction in a local context reveals the various and changing impact of global forces. Read the rest of this entry »

by Evan A. Laksmana

This month, the Indonesian Military (TNI) would have embarked on around 12 years of reform since Soeharto fell in 1998. Though civil society groups might still cry foul over their lack of “wholehearted” willingness to change, we need to think about what’s next; the transition from a “military reform”-oriented process to a “defense transformation”.

A “reform” agenda implies fixing certain aspects of the military’s “distorted” roles and functions. Given that Soeharto abused the military as a regime maintenance tool, this would logically mean focusing on getting the TNI out of politics and out of business, and submit to democratic civilian control and the rule of law. Read the rest of this entry »

Sumber gambar: national-caaba.org

oleh Dr. Beni Bevly

Pengusaha kecil dan menengah (supplier) seringkali menghadapi kesulitan untuk memenangkan kontrak atau tender dari perusahaan raksa swasta dan sektor umum dari pemerintah. Bagaimana cara mengatasinya?

Dalam seminar dua hari NCAABA (National Council of Asian American Business) Supplier Academy di San Francisco State University, San Francisco yang saya hadiri beberapa waktu lalu juga membicara hal serupa dalam konteks Tanah Seberang. Seminar yang lebih cenderung mengarah pada workshop ini dihadiri oleh para pebisnis kecil dan minoritas. Read the rest of this entry »

by Evan Laksmana

THE issue of Myanmar and its future political development came up once again during the 16th Summit of the Association of South-east Asian Nations (Asean) in Hanoi earlier this month.

And according to the local press in Jakarta, there now appears more expectation for Indonesia to play a bigger, more decisive role in pushing the matter forward.

In fact, with Indonesia set to take over the Asean Chair next year – following an unusual swap with Brunei – some are speculating whether Jakarta might use the opportunity to launch a new bilateral or regional initiative to press on for more meaningful change in Myanmar. Read the rest of this entry »

oleh Yunani Adam

Pada awal periode reformasi tahun 1998 masyarakat Indonesia mempunyai harapan besar akan terjadinya perubahan yang postif, termasuk diharapkan akan tampilnya pemimpin yang mengutamakan kepentingang masyarkat banyak dan negara. Sebaliknya, hingga saat ini leadership atau karakter dan ketrampilan kepemimpinan banyak pemimpin yang mengendalikan roda pemerintahan dan organisasi non-pemeritahan ternyata masih jauh dari harapan rakyat banyak dan merugikan negara. Dalam kesempatan ini saya akan membahas kemungkinan merubah leadership pemimpin Indonesia dengan menerapkan sistem pendidikan yang tepat.

Secara teknis, penerapan pendidikan yang saya ajukan adalah program pendidikan berantai yang melibatkan banyak individu, baik mereka yang berada di dalam maupun di luar negeri, termasuk dari segi pendanaan. Read the rest of this entry »