Titus Jonathan's Stories

(published by The Jakarta Post on 22 June 2010. Click here ) The new motto of the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) that was recently announced at the party’s national congress in Jakarta was a surprise to all of us. The motto states “ The PKS for All ” and is intended to woo all elements of this nation to join the party. The motto constitutes an advertisement that the party is ready to switch from exclusivity to a more inclusive party. Interestingly, the congress invited US Ambassador to Indonesia Cameron Hume to speak about “The US view of Islam”. The PKS admitted bilateral relations between Indonesia and the US were strategic and benefited both countries. This is a rare occasion, but “surprising progress” since the PKS’ political stance is deemed anti-Western. The party secretary-general, Anis Matta, said the party aimed to reach 2 million members from the current 800,000 members, and to pursue the top three parties in the 2014 election. Apparently, the PKS realized there was no histor...

(published by The Jakarta Post on 16 June 2010. Click here ) People, including teenagers, were curious to watch the Indonesian sex videos that were circulated on the Internet last week. Although people accused Ariel Peterpan, Luna Maya and Cut Tari of having featured in the videos, the media, experts and police refrained from explicitly mentioning the names, instead they preferred to say the stars of the videos are national “ celebrity look-alikes ”. The three celebrities have denied all the allegations. “They are just unlucky,” said a friend of mine referring to the “amateur sex video” stars whose names are suddenly positioned at the top of Internet search topics. The “unlucky” statement may be true, as many similar video tapes probably exist of other public figures but, luckily, have yet to be revealed in public. The latter are either clever in hiding the scandal, or even smarter by not allowing their secret life to be intentionally recorded. As usual, the unlucky video stars are fac...

(published by The Jakarta Post on 1 June 2010. Click here ) "I will slaughter the dog!" This was a threat written by my neighbor recently through a mailing list consisting of people in our neighborhood. He expressed his vexation over somebody's dog, which cruises around our residential complex, going to the toilet on his front yard as well as other neighbors'. The dog keeps coming although he has pelted it with rubber slippers or shoes. "I don't want to confront the owner, but if they cannot keep the dog from making our place dirty, don't blame me if the dog gets killed," he wrote, complaining about the smell. The residential gardeners also complained because they have to clean its excrement every day. "You love your dog and can enjoy its cuteness, while we have to deal with its poo," the angry neighbor said in his complaint to the owner. Some in the mailing list suggested he trace who owns the dog, or address his complaint to security off...