Discovering Indonesia as a Nation - Essay Example

Writing Contest Introduction Discovering a nation does not only comprise of its geography and economy, but also it truly involves understanding of its culture, people, language and their life style. Comprehending a nation involves comprehending its soul which is actually constituted by its demography. E.M. Foster, in his famous modern novel said that he wanted to see the true India. By this statement he meant to delve deep into the soul of a nation which is not constructed by its flora, fauna or geography but invariably developed on the attitude and lifestyle of the people made of flesh and blood who actually make a stretch of land a nation teeming with life and evoking soul into it: “Houses do fall, people are drowned and left rotting, but the general outline of the town persists, welling here, shrinking there, like some low but indestructible form of life” (Forster, 1934). Discovering any nation is developed on the paradigm of comprehending its life. Discovering Indonesia with all its true spirit involves finding out the relation of the people with the place and seek the true soul of the nation. This essay intends to delve deep into the life and history of Indonesia to understand and complement the transition of a nation complete and coherent and culminate in discovering Indonesia in the true and real sense. Discovering Indonesia It is believed that one of the earliest homes of the man has been in Indonesia. The history of Indonesia is a series of occupying cultures such as Cambodian, Chinese, Arabian, Melanesian, English, Indian, Portuguese and Dutch. These cultures have led to a rich and multifaceted society in which the chief religions of the world such as Hinduism, Islam, Christianity as well as Buddhism have been embedded on to the conventional religions of Indonesia (Philtar, 1999). However, most of the people of the country follow Islam. The country is rich in handicrafts and the numerous forms of handicrafts which are practiced include silverwork and printing from Sumatra and Yogyakarta, sandstones as well as wood sculptures, woodcarvings for the purpose of jewelries and furniture and Filgree with various modes of clay from South Sulawesi and Bali (Indonesia Travel, 2011). The country’s population is nearly 215 million and has about 200 ethnic groups. The nationwide language of the country is Bahasa Indonesia. Indonesia is recognized as a country that has the potential to be known as one of the best islands in the world. The well known islands are Kalimantan, Sulawesi, Java, Bali and Maluku Islands (Indonesia Travel, 2011). There are private and state enterprises in Indonesia and the economy of the country is significantly influenced by those companies which are controlled by the army of Indonesia. One of the significant sources of export earnings are oil, gas as well as mineral products (Drakeley, 2005). The tourists visiting Indonesia are enthralled with its rich diversity consisting of ancient temples, rituals, life style and music such as traditional to modern pop, various dance forms which tend to vary from island to island and region to region (Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy, 2008). When geographical context is taken into account, it is noted that the country’s landscape is significantly wide-ranging. The most fertile islands are Java and Bali and these two regions have rice fields. The other regions such as Sumatra, Kalimantan Papua, Sulawesi and Maluku are enclosed with tropical rainforest (Asian Info, 2010). The country has wide variety of animals and birds. Since most of them are at the verge of extinction, the Directorate General of Forest Protection and Nature Conservation has executed a national strategy on natural conservation in order to preserve the whole ecosystem (Asian Info, 2010). Along with the country’s vast geographic and cultural diversity, it is not surprising to note that the cuisines of the country are quite varied. The Indonesians’ ‘typical’ meals are based upon rice, vegetables, fish or meat or poultry escorted by chili-hot condiment or sambal along with fried shallots and wafers in order to provide a crunchy contrast. The country is within the “Ring of Fire” which is gathering point of two tectonic plates of earth thus giving rise to seismic activities (Holzen, Arsana, & Hutton, 1999). The chief pillar of Indonesia’s economic power is its natural resources. One of the remarking challenges to the Indonesia’s economy is poverty. Approximately 53% of the population of the country income is nearly US$ 2 in a day. Except Bali and Jakarta, the country does not have proper infrastructural development (Economy Watch, 2010). The type of government that rules Indonesia is independent republic which received independence in the year 1945. The estimated Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the country as on 2011 is $823 billion (US Department of State, 2011). The President is considered as the top government in Indonesia who is elected for a period of 5 years. The president is capable of conducting the administration of the government (Travel Document System, 2009). The country attracts thousands of tourists each year. However, it was noted that there was sharp decline in the travel and tourism in 2008-2009. The flow of inbound tourist was slow and the spending of the tourist shrunk during the period of 2008-2009. In order to improve the tourism of the country, the government of Indonesia initiated several campaigns such as ‘Visit Indonesia Year’ in the year 2010 (Euromonitor International, 2011). There are great trade chances in various sectors such as coal, electronics, arts and crafts, palm oil, gas, minerals, jewelry, agricultural products and metals as well as other industry sectors (Trade Indonesia, 2011). United States has strongly supported Indonesia during the times their struggle for independence. Since then the ties between the two nations have been quite strong. Being the member of the UN Security Council, both the countries i.e., USA and Indonesia are working together in order to solve the global issues such as nuclear non propagation actions, conflicts of middle-east and other issues threatening the international peace. The country also enjoys favorable and friendly relation with other countries of the world (The Embassy of The Republic of Indonesia, 2008). Conclusion Indonesia is a country of island with most diverse culture and ethnic background. It is because of the congenial innate friendly nature of the people of Indonesia, it has become the favorite tourist spot. This essay has tried to explore the country in the best possible manner by studying the politics, economy, culture, food habits, and geography. Exploring such nation provides immense pleasure and provides scope to gain deeper insights into the demography of the country. References Asian Info. (2010). Travel guide. Retrieved from http://www.asianinfo.org/asianinfo/indonesia/about_indonesia.htm Asian Info. (2010). Indonesia’s wildlife. Retrieved from http://www.asianinfo.org/asianinfo/indonesia/pro-wildlife.htm Drakeley, S. (2005). The history of Indonesia. United States: Greenwood Publishing Group. Euromonitor International. (2011). Travel and tourism in Indonesia. Retrieved from http://www.euromonitor.com/travel-and-tourism-in-indonesia/report Economy Watch. (2010). Indonesia economy. Retrieved from http://www.economywatch.com/world_economy/indonesia/ Forster, E. M. (1934). A Passage to India. India: Pearson Education. Holzen, H. V., Arsana, L. & Hutton, W. (1999). Food of Indonesia: authentic recipes from the spice islands. Japan: Tuttle Publishing. Indonesia Travel. (2011). Culture and religion of Indonesia. Retrieved from http://www.indonesiatravel.org.uk/culture-religion-of-indonesia.html Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy. (2008). Discover Indonesia. Retrieved from http://www.indonesia.travel/en/discover-indonesia Philtar. (1999). Indonesian religion. Retrieved from http://www.philtar.ac.uk/encyclopedia/indon/geness.html Trade Indonesia. (2011). Trade Indonesia. Retrieved from http://www.tradeindonesia.com/ The Embassy of The Republic of Indonesia. (2008). Indonesia-United States relation. Retrieved from http://www.embassyofindonesia.org/ina-usa/home.htm Travel Document System. (2009). Government. Retrieved from http://www.traveldocs.com/id/govern.htm US Department of State. (2011). Background Note: Indonesia. Retrieved from http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/2748.htm Bibliography Indonesia Travel. (2011). Indonesia facts. Retrieved from http://www.indonesiatravel.org.uk/indonesia-facts.html Indonesia Travel. (2011). Business and economy. Retrieved from http://www.indonesiatravel.org.uk/business-and-economy-indonesia.html Indonesia Travel. (2011). Currency of Indonesia. Retrieved from http://www.indonesiatravel.org.uk/currency-of-indonesia.html Indonesia Travel. (2011). Shopping in Indonesia. Retrieved from http://www.indonesiatravel.org.uk/shopping-in-indonesia.html Indonesia Travel. (2011). Visa rules for Indonesia. Retrieved from http://www.indonesiatravel.org.uk/indonesia-visa-rules.html Indonesia Travel. (2011). History of Indonesia. Retrieved from http://www.indonesiatravel.org.uk/history-of-indonesia.html Read More