September 27, 2016 edition
Left-behind Children
The 2004 tsunami disaster and other conflicts in Aceh caused many children to lose their parents. SOS Children's Villages helps place them with new families.
IN front of his house, Wahyu was absorbed in a card game with Farhan, a friend of similar age. Once in a while, the seven-year-old shouted, "You lost!" Farhan would respond similarly at other moments. Inside the house, their foster mother Nurjannah and her older children were preparing lunch.
"Wahyu has been here for two and a half years," said Nurjannah when Tempo visited her home three weeks ago. The 35-year-old woman is the foster mother who takes care of Wahyu and his new 'siblings'. The family came together with the support of the SOS Children's Villages foundation. Headquartered in Austria, SOS Children in Aceh has a house at Lamreung, Greater Aceh Regency.
The 2004 tsunami disaster and other conflicts in Aceh caused many children to lose their parents. SOS Children's Villages helps place them with new families.
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More Outreach articles in other editions
September 20, 2016 edition
FOR some housewives in East Nusa Tenggara, gasoline stoves can quickly turn into a fire monster that burns down their houses. "We are afraid it'll explode," said Maria Nogo Sogen in mid-August. The woman who usually goes by Mama Mia looked dead-serious. Quoting television news, she told stories of many fires due to explosions of the gas tube.
Many fires resulting from the melon bombswhat locals call the three-kilogram bright green gas tubestook place often between 2008 and 2010, when the government converted from kerosene use to gasoline. Although East Nusa Tenggara saw no occurence of such fires, the traumatic effect is deep. "We are poor. We save money little by little to build a house and after that it gets burned. Wouldn't that be a bitter experience?" Mia asked.
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September 13, 2016 edition
Traditional Indonesian music can barely be heard in the country's popular music scene today. Its instruments are fast being forgotten, with some in danger of disappearing altogether. Several young musicians, like Agusto Andreas Nagalang from East Nusa Tenggara and Jamaloge from East Kalimantan, are determined to make a difference: They are popularizing two string instruments from their respective regionsthe sasando and the sapek. Agusto has given sasando performances overseas, while Jamaloge encourages people in his village to preserve their musical culture. Both musicians recently performed at the Archipelago String Festival in Malang, East Java, an event to repopularize traditional string instruments. A Tempo English special report.
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September 6, 2016 edition
The Sumatran tigers are the last surviving tiger subspecies in Indonesia. The two othersthe Javan and Bali tigersare already extinct. Today, the Sumatran tigers face the gravest danger. According to the World Wildlife Fund, there are less than 400 tigers in their natural habitat in Sumatra, due to forest encroachment and poaching. Experts contend that conservation efforts should involve the local people, if they are to succeed. In Riau, villagers are recruited as rangers by tiger protection units, while in Jambi, members of the Talang Mamak tribe regularly patrol the forest and teach villagers about the Sumatran tigers. Tempo English reports on Sumatras big cats in commemoration of World Tiger Day in August.
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August 30, 2016 edition
Money-making Mud Crabs
The people of Ohotya village in Papua, rely on mud crabs for their livelihood. The village chief works with the local fisheries agency to ensure the sustainability of the crustacean delectable.
OHOTYA village in Mimika Regency, Papua, was lively in the afternoon. Children came out to play around their stilt houses as the adults finished their daily chores. Ansalma Matnarewa, one of the villagers, just returned from the mangrove forest not far from her village. She was carrying a medium-sized noken, a traditional woven bag.
Ansalma put the bag on the floor of her kitchen and checked her catch of the day. Unprepared, she accidentally let out a large mud crab (Scylla serrata), also known as karaka in the local language. Still covered in mud, the crab walked sideways across the room, its claws up in the air ready to attack.
The people of Ohotya village in Papua, rely on mud crabs for their livelihood. The village chief works with the local fisheries agency to ensure the sustainability of the crustacean delectable.
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August 23, 2016 edition
August 9, 2016 edition
Inherited Traditions of Cleanliness
Since winning the Kalpataru Award in 1995, the village of Penglipuran in Bali's Bangli Regency is now famous for being one of the three cleanest villages in the world. Village law regulates the residents' habits of hygiene.
I learned of the news the first time from reading the website boombastis.com," said I Nengah Moneng, 65, Penglipuran village tourism chief. He invited Tempo to sip the loloh cemcem, a typical drink of Penglipuran that mixes sweet, sour and salty tastes.
He talked about his village's sudden popularity on social media after being named in February one of the three cleanest villages in the world, the other two being Giethoorn in the Netherlands and Mawlynnong in India. "I was surprised. I don't know what institute did the nomination," Moneng said.
Since winning the Kalpataru Award in 1995, the village of Penglipuran in Bali's Bangli Regency is now famous for being one of the three cleanest villages in the world. Village law regulates the residents' habits of hygiene.