Anand Krishna’s Writings
“I would like to share my hearing with you – that is if you permit me to do so!”
Archive for the 'Jakarta Post' Category
The typical Malaysian problem
Author: Anand Krishna
Anand Krishna , Jakarta | Sat, 01/30/2010 12:52 PM | Opinion
As pointed out by Azmi Sharom of University of Malaya in his dissertation (www.projectmalaysia.org), “at the crux of the problem facing plurality in Malaysia” are the twin issues of race and religion. Read the rest of this entry »
read comments (0)Promoting faith-based secularism
Author: Anand Krishna
Anand Krishna , Jakarta | Mon, 01/18/2010 10:44 AM | Opinion
When the British writer George Holyoake first used the term secularism in 1851, he likely had no idea that his brainchild would be so dreaded by so many prominent religious establishments.
In our country, the Indonesia Ulema Council (MUI) issued an edict on July 29, 2005, declaring as haram (forbidden in Islam) the idea of secularism, saying it was “opposed to the teachings of Islam”. Read the rest of this entry »
The voice in the wilderness
Author: Anand Krishna
Anand Krishna , Jakarta | Sat, 01/02/2010 12:58 PM | Opinion
The “voice” is gone. And we are left with wilderness.
Gus Dur, the voice that made the wilderness less terrifying, shall no longer be heard. His was the voice of hope, the voice that kept the flame of hope burning in many hearts. Alas, that voice is gone . And yet, on second thought, where can it go? The echo of each and every word he ever uttered shall remain here. Right here, with you and with me – with all of us. Read the rest of this entry »
Preserving and living the Balinese heritage
Author: Anand Krishna
Anand Khrisna , Jakarta | Tue, 12/29/2009 9:07 AM | Opinion
The United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) has chosen Bali as the pilot project for environmentally friendly tourism. Geoffrey Lipman, the UNWTO assistant secretary general, praised Bali for its local wisdom, and spoke of the need to apply it to meet actual challenges such as climate change. Read the rest of this entry »
Practical lesson from Melbourne Convention: God, men and pluralism
Author: Anand Krishna
Anand Krishna , Jakarta | Mon, 12/21/2009 3:14 PM | Opinion
“You are lucky. A good hotel location, the city mosque is not far from your hotel, just walking distance,” Hassen, the maxi (not a taxi, because it could take six of us) driver greeted me as I was struggling to put on my seat belt.
Melbourne 2009 – and it was the second day of December.
What a change! I was in the city more than 20 years ago.
Then, as a businessman, and I do not remember being driven by a Hassen who would for the next half an hour brief me on the geography of the city, highlighting only such places related to the “religion of God”.
Hmm, “So, other religions are not *of’ God?”
Lessons of leadership: Why do our politicians fail?
Author: Anand Krishna
Anand Krishna , Jakarta | Thu, 12/17/2009 8:59 AM | Opinion
In spite of their “purportedly” common vision toward a better and more livable world, our politicians have failed. Certainly not all of them were, or, are insincere.
Nevertheless, they have failed to deliver. Today, we live in a more comfortable, but not a “better” world. Conflicts and wars are tearing us apart – whereas, peace and harmony remain issues for discussion among our elites.
SBY: Indonesian President and world citizen
Author: Anand Krishna
How does President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono evaluate his five years in office? His speech at the John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, on Sept. 30 is a brief commentary of his own performance.
The nobility of “Nobel” recipients
Author: Anand Krishna
Anand Krishna , Jakarta | Wed, 10/14/2009 1:34 PM | Opinion
Alfred Nobel (1833-1896) is, perhaps, the greatest inventor of all time. The range of his inventions is simply mind-boggling, from the deadly dynamite to the prestigious Nobel Prize. It is not the dynamite, though, but the prestigious prize that has carried his name to this date.
In 1888, a French newspaper erroneously published an obituary of Nobel, citing him as “the merchant of death”. That was a turning point in the life of the man who had turned Bofors, formerly a steel mill, into a major armament manufacturer, still in business to this day.
Global interfaith harmony
Author: Anand Krishna
About 60 years ago, then president Sukarno scoffed at Indian shopkeepers in India who took pride in displaying their religion on their signboards, “Hindu Tea Stall”, “Muslim Restaurant”, and so on and so forth.
Probing SBY’s `Indonesia 2025′ vision
Author: Anand Krishna
In his address to the nation on Aug. 15, 2009, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono mentioned self-dependency (kemandirian), competitiveness (daya saing) and excellence in civilization (peradaban yang unggul) as three important factors in nation building.