Our New Year’s resolution for 2018 was to bring you more compelling, under-reported original stories from Jakarta and throughout Indonesia. To slightly humblebrag, we believe we have fulfilled our goal and got many of our readers to think about important issues that generally fly under the radar in this country.
Before we make the jump to 2019, for which we will continue bringing you even more of those juicy Coconuts original content, let’s take a look back at some of Coconuts Jakarta’s best and most-read feature stories in 2018.
Help us fight illiteracy and bring the joy of reading to kids in Eastern Indonesia with Taman Bacaan Pelangi
This year, Coconuts Jakarta kickstarted #CoCommunity, a series in which we tell the stories of great causes in the countries and cities we love to our readers who may want to lend a helping hand. We highlighted the great work the folks at Taman Bacaan Pelangi (Rainbow Reading Garden) are doing as they bring the gift of reading to kids in the most remote parts of Indonesia.
‘Single, pretty, proportionate body’: Discriminatory job ads in Indonesia are illegal but nobody is stopping them
Were you aware that any form of discrimination in job ads, whether it be against gender, age, or physical appearance is actually illegal in Indonesia? Neither are a lot of job posters, apparently. In what has become on of our most discussed stories this year, we took a look at why the discriminatory practice persists and what hope, if any, we have for truly equal employment opportunity for all.
We all need to stop using the terms ‘maid’ and ‘helper’ | Opinion
Domestic workers are easily among the most hardworking and self-sacrificing members of our societies. Yet, as we have painfully seen on many occasions, they are too often subjected to mistreatment and abuse. In this op-ed, we argue that there’s a desperate need to humanize domestic workers, and it can start with a simple act of showing respect when addressing them.
A middle school teacher married his former student after 7 years of dating, why’d Indonesian media frame it an inspirational tale?
We have criticized the misogynistic nature of the Indonesian media numerous times before, but this is indeed one of the most troubling stories we ever saw romanticized by the media. There’s nothing inspirational about an adult dating a child, and it’s highly distressing that we still had to point this out in this day and age.
Unmasked: Topeng monyet may be banned in Jakarta, but dangerous monkey pet trade persists
Topeng monyet dancing monkeys have long been outlawed in Jakarta (followed by other major Indonesian cities), but animal rescuers are still finding macaques being abused for entertainment. We looked at why keeping monkeys as pets is not only unethical, but also dangerous for both humans and monkeys.
Shackled for years, now free: Indonesia helps people with mental conditions find new lives
Shackling people with mental health conditions has been commonplace in Indonesia for years due to the stigma against them. This story shows that people with mental health conditions can thrive in our communities if given the chance, and it seems Indonesian officials are finally waking up to that fact.
#UninstallGojek and the high cost of supporting LGBT rights in Indonesia
The moral panic towards the LGBT community escalated again in Indonesia this year. In this feature, we examined one of the biggest LGBT controversies of the year and how it sparked hatred towards the vilified group, as well as telling some of the most harrowing stories of how difficult it is to be part of the LGBT community in Indonesia.
