October 25, 2016 edition

New Hope for Young Farmers
A non-governmental organization initiated a capacity building program in the agriculture sector, at East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) province. Around 3,000 youths in two NTT regencies are today doing well as farmers in their villages.
Rows of watermelon plants flourish in Norbes Selan's one-hectare farm at Tubelopo village. It will take a few more months before the fruits can be harvested. In another section of the farm, cucumber, tomato, green beans and chayote have started to grow. "I think I'll be able to harvest some of them soon," said the 27-year-old woman.
It takes around four hours by car to get to Tubelopo in the North Central Timor Regency from Kupang, the capital city of NTT. Norbes said there are not many job opportunities in her village; as a young woman, she had never thought of becoming a farmer.

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More Outreach articles in other editions

October 18, 2016 edition

Balinese youths established the Celuk Design Center, creating new designs and expanding their marketing network.

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October 11, 2016 edition

In 2009, Indonesian batik was designated a 'Masterpiece of Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity' by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO). Batik has flourished since the late 1800s but, until recently, only in Java. Today, however, other regions in Indonesia have begun creating their own batik motifs, applying their own distinct artistic traditions. Jimmy Afar, a designer from Papua, introduced the art of batik-making to women in Papua. Meanwhile, Nurcahaya from North Sumatra uses traditional Batak patterns in her creations. Tempo English reports on the development of the increasingly diverse batik industry, in celebration of National Batik Day on October 2.

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October 4, 2016 edition

The massacre of close to half a million people, which began after a failed coup attempt led to the killing of Army generals on September 30, 1965, is the darkest chapter in the history of modern Indonesia. To this day, there has never been an acceptable accounting for the killings, most of whom were members and suspected followers of the now-banned Communist Party of Indonesia (PKI). In July, the International People's Tribunal in The Hague, the Netherlands, concluded that the state must bear responsibility for the killings, a verdict rejected by the Indonesian government, which adamantly refuses to issue any apology, stalling reconciliation efforts at the national level. In Central Sulawesi, the mayor of Palu publicly apologized to victims living in his area and launched an ongoing public discourse on the tragedy. Meanwhile, in Bali, an exhumation of mass graves in one village and giving the bodies a proper burial was one way of reconciling with the tragic past. A Tempo English special report.

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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.

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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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