The Young and the Restless
Journeys across Indonesia taken by young, intense researchers from the States have contributed to a clearer knowledge of political systems and Islam here. None, however, have produced works of monumental significance, as those written up by researchers who belonged to earlier generations of Indonesianists, like George McTurnan Kahin, Benedict Anderson and Clifford Geertz.
November 16, 2011
MICHAEL Buehler was 9 when he moved to Jakarta. The young Swiss saw a country that seemed different from his own when he first arrived in 1985. These differences stood out even more when he traveled from Flores in East Nusa Tenggara to Aceh in North Sumatra in 1997.
Buehler became drawn to Indonesian politics. He found himself working as a consultant on governance, political reforms and corruption eradication strategies for the Asia Foundation, Ge
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