1,720,977 research outputs found
In Search for Authenticity : Village tourism, community resilience and cultural preservation in Indonesia
Get PDFThe authenticity of nature and culture is the main attraction of rural tourism. However, this does not mean that the attractions in these destinations are untamed. Instead, tourism attractions have been managed and set up in such a way as to be attractive, memorable, and safe for tourists. The hope is that these attractions will provide a satisfying travel experience, encouraging visitors to return or recommend the destination to their social circles. This reality makes rural tourism a contest between preservation and commodification.
Samiran Tourism Village is a contemporary case study from Southeast Asia. This destination is one of the most popular rural tourism spots at the foot of Mount Merapi in Central Java, Indonesia. The majority of visitors are domestic tourists from cities in Central Java. Most of them come to enjoy the mountainous landscape with the comfort of various amenities, such as cafes, restaurants, cottages, or local theme parks. Many tourists are also seeking a closer experience with rural life in the area. Those who wish to sample the unique Merapi-style local lifestyle participate in the Samiran Village Tour guided by a local tour operator named Guyub Rukun. Both segments of tourists seek authentic experiences in a familiar, comfortable, and organized manner.
This study assesses authenticity as a social construct. Various tourism scholars argue that authenticity is a perceptual experience based on the interaction between tourists and tourist attractions. A genuine attraction will evoke more admiration than its replica. Tourists may accept artificial attractions as substitutes when the original is unavailable or inaccessible. On the other hand, the hosts find the momentum from tourism to preserve their traditions. Economic diversification resulting from tourism contributes to the capacity of the community to sustain its traditions.
Based on this conceptual foundation, this study proposes a hypothesis that tourists and hosts mutually contribute to the construction of the authenticity image of rural tourist attractions. Tourists enjoy the beauty of mountainous landscapes, farmlands, and enduring Javanese traditions, which validate their imagination of the village's authenticity. Tourism provides hosts with a reason to revisit the relevance of old values. Traditions in religious-based festivals and local art troupes reviving folk dances are examples of how cultural preservation intersects with the practices of the Samiran Village Tourism program. Staged authenticity serves as a compromise between tourists seeking authenticity and hosts pursuing progress
Indigenous Peoples, the State, and the Economy in Indonesia : National Debates and Local Processes of Recognition
Get PDFSome communities in Indonesia’s margins have adopted indigenous identities to overcome stigmatization as \u27backward\u27. Following recent government efforts to develop Indonesia’s peripheral areas, these communities can also identify as entrepreneurs because they can now apply for land titles – a change that government officials hope will boost local economies. The question of who is \u27indigenous\u27 has thus become an area of political controversy that the state must address. Through analysis of legal documents and political processes, this paper focuses on state-indigenous relations in Indonesia, with an emphasis on economic processes. Participatory observations and interviews have been carried out to gain better insights into ongoing recognition of indigenous communities. Preliminary findings suggest that indigenous activists are disappointed, as the government is not pushing forward crucial legislation, and recognition of land titles is slow. Therefore, activists have instead turned their attention to means of rec- ognition in the regencies. The example of Enrekang, South Sulawesi, provides insights into these developments and into the current relations between the state and indigenous peoples
Islam, Politics, and Cyber Tribalism in Indonesia: A Case Study on the Front Pembela Islam
Get PDFAt the end of 2016, Islamist organisations proved able to mobilise hundreds of thousands of people for political purposes in Indonesia. In order to explain their success, the role of social media should not be underestimated, as Islamic movements rely heavily on agitation in online media. This article sheds light on the example of the Front Pembela Islam, using one of the organisation’s Facebook pages as a case study. Within the algorithmic enclave of a cyber tribe, narratives and symbols are applied in memes. The research examines how narratives and symbols evoke emotions in online memes and offline banners, what narratives are addressed, and how the memes make claims regarding commonly acknowledged signifiers such as the NKRI, Islam and Pluralism. The guiding thesis is that these memes express not simply anti-pluralist or anti-NKRI notions, as opponents of these groups frequently assert, but rather combinations ofrobust nationalism and their alternative version of pluralism with conservative Islamic approaches. Nonetheless, threats and enemies are inevitably present as a constitutive outside and suggest a highly exclusive version of Indonesianness. Thus similar narratives and symbols applied in online media also emerge within public spaces, blurring the distinction between the online and offline realms
Aufmarsch der Islamist*innen in Indonesien: Religion als politisches Kapital im Wahlkampf
No full textAm 4. November 2016 waren Jakartas Straßen ganz in weiß getaucht. Etwa 100.000 Islamist*innen und Sympathisant*innen demonstrierten gegen den amtierenden Gouverneur von Jakarta. Islamistische Gruppen, aber auch Religionsgelehrte aus eher gemäßigten Gruppierungen, warfen ihm vor, den Islam beleidigt zu haben. Tatsächlich aber manifestierte sich in der Großdemonstration ein schon lange schwelender Konflikt, in dem Religion, Geld und die Macht politischer Eliten zusammenwirken
Social Media in Research on a Marginalized Identity: The Case of Atheism in Indonesia
Get PDFSocial media have played a major role as a place where one can meet and socialize with like-minded people, and this is especially important for marginalized groups. Atheists depict such a group in Indonesia where public expressions of atheism are punishable. Whereas social media often plays an important role in finding like-minded people, it is also potentially dangerous to reject religion on social media. In this research workshop, I argue that insights into the ways in which atheists use and engage in social media groups are crucial if one wants to know more about atheist ways of life in Indonesia. However, atheist groups are subject to internal fragmentation, as atheism in Indonesia is highly diverse, and, as a researcher, one can find oneself caught up in these internal struggles. Finally, I argue that social media research is an important addition to offline research, since it enables the researcher, especially when dealing with sensitive issues and identities, to directly enter and critically engage with the premises in which such identities are constituted and developed
Gender Trouble in Indonesien Diskurse der nationalen Identität
No full textNach den islamistisch motivierten Terroranschlägen im Herzen Jakartas am 14. Januar 2016 hatten sich viele eine kritische Diskussion über die Ursachen reaktionärer religiöser Ideologien gewünscht. Diese führen in Indonesien nicht nur zu wachsender Intoleranz gegenüber von den offiziellen Interpretationen abweichenden religiösen Überzeugungen,sondernkönnen letztlich auch in Gewalt und Terror münden. Allerdings wurde diese Debatte, als sie noch im Entstehen begriffen war, sofort von einer anderen überlagert, in der konservative religiöse Ansichten wieder ihre hegemoniale Stellung innerhalb öffentlicher Diskurse herstellen konnten
Book review: Pichler, M. (2014). Umkämpfte Natur. Politische Ökologie der Palmöl- und Agrartreibstoffproduktion in Südostasien
No full textBook Review: Pichler, M. (2014). Politische Ökologie der Palmöl- und Agrartreibstoffproduktion in Südostasien.
No full textDas Erbe von 1965: Neuverortung der indonesischen Identität im Spannungsfeld zwischen Religion und Atheismus
Get PDFWährend ihrer Anhörung vor dem International People Tribunal (IPT) in Den Haag im November 2015 betonte Saskia Wieringa die Bemühungen des Orde-Baru-Regimes von Präsident Suharto, die Kommunistische Partei Indonesiens (Partai Komu- nis Indonesia, PKI) als atheistisch und damit als Bedrohung für die indonesische Identität darzustellen. Diese direkte Verbindung hatte in den ers- ten Jahren nach der Unabhängigkeit nicht bestan- den. Nicht-Gläubige waren zwar an den Rand der Gesellschaft gedrängt worden, ohne aber als Bedrohung für die indonesische Nation wahrgenommen zu werden. Die These, die indonesische Identität sei nicht nur grundsätzlich theïstisch, sondern könne auch Nicht-Gläubige nicht akzeptieren, entstand als Produkt bestimmter politischer Diskurse nach 1965 und lebt in der Rechtspraxis bis heute fort
Stadt, Land, Geist. Kuntilanak auf der Suche nach einer Heimat
Get PDFIndonesien: Mit Kanonen, so erzählen sich die Menschen in Pontianak, vertrieb einst der erste Sultan der Stadt das Geisterwesen Kuntilanak. Doch man kann nie wissen, ob die gefürchtete Untote nicht doch zurückkehrt. In Filmen und Gruselgeschichten wird sie lebendig gehalten, während die Bäume, in denen sie lebte, durch Menschenhand zerstört werden
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