Against a backdrop of humanitarian disasters and anti-US protests, President Obama’s first visit to Indonesia was overshadowed by the ‘handshakegate’ affair after Communications Minister Tifatul Sembiring found himself at the centre of a media maelstrom for shaking hands with First Lady Michelle Obama after he swore he would not touch a woman to

Rampant unregulated urban development, which environmentalists blame on widespread collusion between city officials and the business elite, has resulted in Jakarta loosing 28% of its green space over the last 25 years – much of it replaced by shopping malls, luxury apartments and government offices.

Kid: Perhaps the people’s representatives would be smarter and perform better if their new building and comparative studies were here (Sidoarjo), in Wasior, in Mentawai or Merapi, yeah Dad!

1st Man: We live in a disaster prone area so of course we have to be responsive to disasters...

2nd Man: Their response is just a comparative study...

Alie: It’s your own fault for living in Mentawai, why didn’t you just become the speaker of the House!

Man: Are you evacuating too Mr?

Legislator: A comparative study!

President: What, you want to overthrow me?!

Kid: Mr... the legs on your chair need fixing!

1st Man: We’ve been waiting a year already... how much longer?

2nd Man: There’s still four more years to go...

From an opinion piece in the Jakarta daily Kompas by Ikrar Nusa Bhakti on the first year of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono’s second term in office titled Before the Catastrophe.

Once upon a time in Wasior...

Broker – Fee – Budget – Welfare

Kid: So you’ll be made the boss for the sake of politics... power... the political parties... or for the sake of... the piggy banks! (the suspiciously large bank accounts held by 15 police generals)

Pradopo: For the sake of the people, nation and country fool!

Someone must be held responsible! You take the blame... Yes of course Sir. I’ll give the answers (a play on the words ber-tanggung-jawab, men-[t]anggung and men-jawab).

Man: Catching an eel is harder than catching a terrorist, yeah Mr?

Kid: Just shoot ‘em on sight!

It’s an open secret that instead of actually writing a university paper or thesis, rich students can pay to have it written for them. Ranging anywhere between 250,000 and several million rupiah, the cost of is calculated based on the number of words, references and quality of presentation.

Man: Raft-Way, why not...

Man: Social justice for all Indonesians?

Widespread corruption, which pervades almost every aspect of Indonesian life, is estimated to cost the country’s economy around Rp50 trillion (US$5.6 billion) a year or around 1.4% of GDP annually, just over half the US$9 billion allocated to government poverty alleviation programs in 2010.

Police officer: Purely a criminal act!

Man: You forgot your magnifying glass Mr!

Pool of blood reads ‘violence’

Bhinneka Tunggal Ika: The national motto, Unity in Diversity

1st Man: Doesn’t it say there’s freedom of worship?

2nd Man: It only say’s it...

Refugee: Wow the new building design... it’s to house us right Mr?