Regio Azië

Gotong Royong: a recent flood and strong leadership strengthen a system of solidarity in Lombok

- by standplaatswereld

By Jop Koopman On the 6th of December 2021, a massive flood happened in the area of Gunungsari in West Lombok. Floods are not rare in the rainy season in this region, but due to heightened weather variability and climate change, they are increasing in intensity. Around seven villages were heavily affected by a large landslide and rivers that expanded their boundaries. As the first picture shows, many houses were dragged into a river and overflown with mud. Luckily, most of the residents made it out alive, but sadly several people were missing and died. A bridge between two neighboring …

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Unsung heroes: Jakarta’s waste picker women and their unpaid care work

- by standplaatswereld

by Rachma L Putri “I think, as long as I remember, I never felt happy about my life. There is always too much burden in my life” said Darminah with teary eyes when I asked her about her work and daily life as a waste picker, a wife and a mother. In addition to her daily routine, she has to do a variety of unpaid care work such as providing meals for her family, taking care of her children, taking them to school, and caring for her ailing – and abusive – husband. I heard this story when I visited …

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Myanmar anthropologists dismissed

- by standplaatswereld

By Maaike Matelski – In this picture, anthropology students from Yangon University show the ‘three fingers salute’ for democracy. Students and university staff across Myanmar have been protesting against the recent military takeover. Since the coup of 1 February, the military has seized control of dozens of schools and university campuses. It has used lethal force against peaceful protestors, resulting in at least 860 deaths, including many university students. Over 5000 students, teachers, journalists and other dissidents have been arrested, as well as a small number of Westerners. Australian academic (and adviser to Aung San Suu Kyi’s NLD government) Sean …

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Mobility and immobility during the pandemic: Experiences on a journey from Amsterdam to Semarang

- by standplaatswereld

By Pamungkas (Yudha) Dewanto           As a response to the global corona crisis, authorities all over the world set strict health protocols for travelers. Focusing on the case of China, anthropologist Biao Xiang argues that the COVID-19 epidemic has triggered grid reactions: “Residential communities, districts, cities and even entire provinces act as grids to impose blanket surveillance over all the residents, minimize mobilities, and isolate themselves.” Grid reactions, he argues, are however not about community grids only; the term more generally refers to all-out, undifferentiated, war-like strategies to combat the virus. In this blog, I share how such grid reactions played …

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Military coup in Myanmar: back to square one?

- by standplaatswereld

In the early morning of 1 February, the day that a newly elected government was supposed to convene, Myanmar’s military staged a coup, taking government leaders captive and seeking control of the country. The takeover was announced on national television, followed by intermittent disruptions in internet and other media. Military leader Min Aung Hlaing cited alleged election fraud as justification for this takeover, which is to last for at least a year. Meanwhile, the country’s elected leadership is facing charges in line with previous military fabrications: state counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi is charged with illegally importing walkie-talkies, while president …

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Podcast #3 is online! Guest: Haiyue (Fiona) Shan

- by standplaatswereld

In this episode, Puck de Boer talks to Haiyue (or Fiona, her English name) Shan, a PhD student at the Sociology department of VU University. From a holistic, multidisciplinary perspective, she investigates the experiences and challenges of Chinese migrant women in the Netherlands before, during and after they give birth, with a special focus on mental health and postpartum depression. Haiyue likes to experiment with podcasts and documentaries to collect data and disseminate her research outcomes. Topics in this podcast include:-Haiyue’s research, the importance of a multidisciplinary perspective and the role of anthropology within it.-Questions and challenges regarding pregnancy in …

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‘Humanizing’ Indonesia’s COVID-19 Pandemic Response

- by standplaatswereld

BY RATU AYU ASIH KUSUMA PUTRI AND PAMUNGKAS A. DEWANTO While the rich industrial countries are simply readjusting their national budgets amid the COVID-19 outbreak, the fiscal options for the middle-to-low income countries seem to be strictly limited. The Indonesian government, for instance, has undergone about USD 51 billion deficit after allocating about USD 25 billion for the health sector and other incentives for the COVID-19 relief. Unfortunately, in coping with this unprecedented crisis, the government not only experiences financial deficit but also ‘implementation deficit’ in channelling the pandemic relief. Jokowi administration relies heavily on the centralized database and numeric …

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Corona in Bangladesh

- by standplaatswereld

DOOR ELLEN BAL Nasrin heeft zich in haar huis teruggetrokken. Ze woont in de woning van haar ouders in Dhaka. De andere verdiepingen zijn verhuurd en zorgen voor wat inkomsten. Haar dagen besteedt ze aan het schrijven van artikelen. Af en toe brengt ze een kort bezoek aan de bazaar voor wat boodschappen. Zo snel als ze kan vlucht ze daarna haar veilige huis weer in. De opzet van de markten in Dhaka maakt social distancing onmogelijk. Onlangs maakte de regering bekend dat de lockdown is verlengd tot ten minste 15 mei. Nasrin kan het nog wel een paar weken …

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Religious extremism: vulnerability and resistance among Indonesian migrant workers in Asia

- by standplaatswereld

By Yudha Dewanto  After turning 16, never having stepped a foot outside of her province, Katri pushed herself to go to Malaysia. Seeking a solution to family problems, seeing the new outfits, fancy gadgets and even leased cars of friends who migrated to Malaysia earlier, and feeling that her junior high school diploma would not be sufficient to get a local job, part of her was saying, “just go!” She went to Warsan, a rich tobacco farmer who often sponsored those willing to depart to Malaysia as domestic workers. Warsan did not just finance the departure, but also connected them …

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Yellow fragmentation

- by standplaatswereld

By Irene Stengs. Bangkok, Sunday May 5. With hundreds of others, I am queuing to enter the restricted area around the Grand Palace where the Royal Land Procession will start at 4 PM. In this seven-kilometer procession, Thailand’s new king Vajiralongkorn (Rama X), seated on the Royal Palanquin carried by sixteen royal guards, will halt at three royal temples to pay respect to the temples’ Buddha images. The procession is part of the three-days coronation ceremonies and offers ‘the people’ the opportunity to see their monarch in real life and to pay their respect. The entrances are check points: before …

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