Planet Mole
Indonesia in Focus
Democracy in Jeneponto Community: South Sulawesi
By Barrie | 
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Harry Bhaskara was recently invited to visit the School of Democracy in the southern Sulawesi regency of Jeneponto. The school is one of five run by the Jakarta-based Indonesian Commission for Democracy (KID). Below is his report of the visit. Jeneponto regency in the province of South Sulawesi is home to a militant Muslim community. It is a public secret that Christians are not allowed to build churches there and Chinese Indonesians as well as Javanese are barred from conducting business, local activists say. In the last two years, however, the secret has made its way into school discussions for the first time.
Aceh Struggling: North Sumatra
By Barrie | No Comments » The Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Agency (BRR), which was given the task of helping to rebuild communities in the wake of the devastating earthquake and tsunami of late 2004, is set to end its mission in April 2009. However, several issues are far from being settled in the hardest-hit areas of Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam and Nias in North Sumatra. Aceh is also going through a transition period after signing a deal in 2005 ending decades of war between the government and rebel forces. The following report, detailing the latest situation in Aceh, was written by The Jakarta Post’s Ridwan Max Sijabat and Nani Afrida.
Rewriting Lives in Recycled Paper: Jakarta, West Java
By Barrie | No Comments » 
There is a power of healing in recycled paper. A great one, according to some street children. For them, recycling paper is a way to recover their dignity as human beings. “We recycle waste paper with banana fronds, cogon grass, water hyacinth, onion peels and other organic stuff that is mostly thrown away,” said Hendra, 20, who lived on the streets of Jakarta for six years before joining the workshop. “My life is just like the paper recycling process. I was saved from the streets. I learned to become a person with more dignity by participating in this gallery,” Hendra said at his shelter, the K’Qta gallery, in Kampung Bendungan Melayu, North Jakarta.
Mangrove Park: Bali
By Barrie | No Comments » 
As a small island, Bali is prone to erosion, but protection of its vast beaches and mangrove forests, have helped save much land. The mangrove forests along Jalan Bypass Ngurai Rai to Benoa Peninsula in Nusa Dua, for example, are known as a greater forest park, said Sudrajat Wirapraja, head of the program section of the Denpasar Mangrove Forest Management Agency. The park initially had a coverage of about 1,700 hectares, but the road works and other public facilities have reduced this to 1,100 hectares.
Arid Land Becomes Flourishing Ecosystem: Wonogiri, Central Java
By Barrie | No Comments » 
Amid reports of the environmentally costly exploitation of forest resources across the country, good news comes from a handful of villages in Java. Farmers in Wonogiri and Sukoharjo in Central Java, as well as Gunungkidul in Yogyakarta, have managed to convert arid and seemingly barren land into a flourishing ecosystem. Thousands of trees — mostly teak and mahogany — are thriving among the limestone cliffs and shallow caves of these hilly areas. The big trees are shoehorned in among rocks. “Each tree’s root system is wound through the cracks in the cliff,” said Siman, the manager of one of the five community organizations that manages forest resources in the three regencies.
Sekar Baruna Women’s cooperative: Tulamben, Bali
By Barrie | No Comments » 
Before Ni Nengah Dempi joined the Sekar Baruna women’s cooperative in Tulamben, Karang Asem, it was a daily struggle to feed her five children. The cooperative is located near a number of popular diving destinations some 90 kilometers east of the provincial capital of Denpasar. Dempi and some 28 other women and girls from Tulamben now work carrying diving equipment the 500 meters from hotels to scuba spots. They are paid Rp 8,000 per diving session.
A Safe Haven for Orangutans: Bali
By Barrie | No Comments » 
If longtime orangutan expert and animal behaviorist Francine Neago gets her wish, Bali is set to become a world leader in orangutan and endangered species research. Neago has been passionate about the protection of orangutans for decades, even before she stepped onto Indonesian soil back in 1965.
Indonesians in Focus: Alkhairaat
By Barrie | No Comments » In eastern Indonesia, Alkhairaat is a household name. The Islamic educational foundation operates schools from Palu in Central Sulawesi to Papua. It also plays a significant role in fostering peace in the conflict-torn regions.
10 Million Trees Planted by Indonesian Women
By Barrie | No Comments » Seven Indonesian women`s organizations are planning to plant 10 million trees across the country on December 1, 2007 in anticipation of global warming and climate change. The activity will be preceded by a national conference of Indonesian women on November 26-28 in Jakarta to anticipate the impact of global warming and climate change, a spokesperson for the event`s organizers said.
Nurturing Nature: Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park, Sumatra
By Barrie | No Comments » Extending from Tanggamus and West Lampung regencies in Lampung province to Kaur regency in Bengkulu, the 356,000-hectare Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park (BBSNP) is home to rare wildlife and vegetation as well as a haven for conservation researchers.
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