Tag: The Jakarta Post

Post-harvest processing helps cocoa farmers

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Thu, 09/18/2008 10:34 AM  |  Surfing Bali

The establishment of a Cocoa Processing Unit (CPU) in Tabanan regency has helped the local cocoa farmers to get better prices and to avoid the trap set by the tengkulak (village-level commodity middlemen).

The CPU is the result of collaborative efforts between PT Big Tree Farm, an agricultural commodities’ trading company, with Amarta, the agro-business initiative funded by USAID. Amarta built the processing plant, while PT Big Tree Farm manages the commercial aspects.

The facility lies at Lalanglinggah village in West Selemadeg and not far from around 4,000 hectares of cocoa plantations operated by local farmers.

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Bedugul organic farmers struggle against long distribution

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Anton Muhajir,  Contributor, Bedugul | Thu, 09/18/2008 10:35 AM | Surfing Bali

The hilly area of Bedugul, around a two-hour drive north of the island’s capital Denpasar, is one of the most scenic places in Bali.

For decades it has been the island’s biggest producer of fresh fruit and vegetables.

Recently, local farmers are breaking free from the prevailing trade and distribution scheme in order to gain better prices for their products and a better life for their families.

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Street Kids Ministry provides alternative education for the needy

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Anton Muhajir,  Contributor,  Denpasar | Tue, 09/16/2008 10:27 AM | Bali

The tallest among about 15 children in the room, 11-year-old Ni Wayang Komang shyly sang along with the others, clapping her hands at times.

That day she was joining an alternative school for street children in Banjar (neighborhood organization) Penyaitan, Pemecutan, West Denpasar.

The school, named Street Kids Ministry, accommodates children of low-income families in the banjar.

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Factory workers, journalists unite for May Day rally

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Jakarta Post – May 2, 2008

Dicky Christanto, Denpasar – Protesters at a May Day rally held in Denpasar on Thursday accused the government of failing to protect Indonesians working longer hours for no extra pay.

The alliance of organizations commemorating the May 1 International Workers’ Day displayed dozens of banners while activists gave speeches about how “unfriendly” government policies had jeopardized workers’ lives.

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Bali farmer discovers benefits of going organic

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– July 20, 2007

Anton Muhajir, Contributor, Tabanan

When I Gede Hanjaya’ wife Franziska Rapp was suddenly diagnosed with breast cancer, her doctor suggested she undergo surgery and avoid foods with chemical additives.

Hanjaya, a successful garment manufacturer, changed his life to do so. Leaving his business, he developed an organic farming site in his hometown of Tabanan regency, around 70 kilometers west of Denpasar.

“I wanted to produce healthy food for my family,” he said.

For the last 10 years, Hanjaya and his family have consumed fresh, chemical- and pesticide-free produce, with good results.

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Resistant virus threatens people with HIV/AIDS

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The Jakarta Post , Jakarta | Thu, 02/08/2007 4:57 PM | Life

Anton Muhajir, Contributors, Denpasar

Thirty-four-year Agung has serious problems with his eyesight. His right eye is not functioning at all, while the vision in his left eye is filled with black dots. Agung works as a truck driver delivering gasoline from the Pesanggaran area of South Denpasar to places throughout the provincial capital of Bali.

For the last few months, Agung could no longer see things clearly. The father of one can see nothing but blurred images within a five-meter distance.

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'Playboy' back with more skin but ad pages laid bare

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The Jakarta Post , Jakarta | Thu, 06/08/2006 2:42 PM

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The second edition of Playboy Indonesia is not only free of steamy nude pictorials, but also conspicuously lacking in advertisements.

White space occupied the pages where the glossy advertisements that filled April’s first edition should have been placed.

“”These blank pages are dedicated to our loyal clients who have been threatened against placing ads in this magazine,”” is the message from publisher PT Velvet Silver Media on the blank pages, acknowledging unnamed cell phone, cologne and tobacco advertisers.

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Photos reveal strength, optimism

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The Jakarta Post , Jakarta | Fri, 05/26/2006 1:25 PM | Life

I Wayan Juniartha, The Jakarta Post, Denpasar, Bali

Anybody could sense the tristesse in his faltering voice. Yet, along with the anguish there was also a trace of hard-nosed realism to his words. Robbie Baria, a young photographer, both lamented and rejoiced at the weeks he had spent with a poor, HIV-infected housewife at Pemuteran, a coastal village in northern Bali.

“”The entire experience has deeply affected my life. It put me in face-to-face contact with the harsh reality of poverty and suffering. On the other hand, it also introduced me to an individual, who, above all else, refused to give in to one of the world’s brutal tragedies,”” he said.

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Orphaned due to HIV/AIDS in North Bali village

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The Jakarta Post , Jakarta | Thu, 08/04/2005 9:05 AM | Life

Anton Muhajir, Contributor/Singaraja

Eleven-year-old Gede Edi Suantara was once a happy and healthy boy. His life turned dark and miserable when his beloved mother Kadek Widiasih died a year ago following his father who also died two years ago.

Raised by his uncle, Komang Sunetra, the orphaned boy is a depressed teenager. “”He was once a very smart boy who often got the top grade in his class. But since his mother died of HIV/AIDS, he drastically changed,”” the uncle said.

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Property boom can have negative impact on local people

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The Jakarta Post , Jakarta | Thu, 02/17/2005 11:27 AM | Life

Anton Muhajir, Contributor, Denpasar

It was drizzling that Saturday, but Ketut Karja and his two friends were still working in their rice field in Legian, on the outskirts of north Kuta. Across the street, several Westerners were seen sitting in the gazebo of a restaurant. They were separated only by several rice fields and a highway known as “”Sunset Road””.

It is a new road that connects Legian, Kerobokan and nearby areas with Nusa Dua, Jimbaran and other tourist areas in the south.

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