Indonesia executes six drug convicts, five of them foreigners

Indonesia executes six drug convicts, five of them foreigners
Widodo has pledged to bring reform to Indonesia

Ban appeals to Indonesia to stop death row executions

Ban appeals to Indonesia to stop death row executions
United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has pleaded to Indonesia to stop the execution of prisoners on death row for drug crimes. AFP PHOTO

Pope: 'Death penalty represents failure' – no 'humane' way to kill a person

Pope: 'Death penalty represents failure' – no 'humane' way to kill a person
The pope wrote that the principle of legitimate personal defense isn’t adequate justification to execute someone. Photograph: Zuma/Rex

Obama becomes first president to visit US prison (US Justice Systems / Human Rights)

Obama becomes first president to visit US prison   (US Justice Systems / Human Rights)
US President Barack Obama speaks as he tours the El Reno Federal Correctional Institution in El Reno, Oklahoma, July 16, 2015 (AFP Photo/Saul Loeb)

US Death Penalty (Justice Systems / Human Rights)

US Death Penalty (Justice Systems / Human Rights)
Woman who spent 23 years on US death row cleared (Photo: dpa)



.

.
"The Recalibration of Awareness – Apr 20/21, 2012 (Kryon channeled by Lee Carroll) (Subjects: Old Energy, Recalibration Lectures, God / Creator, Religions/Spiritual systems (Catholic Church, Priests/Nun’s, Worship, John Paul Pope, Women in the Church otherwise church will go, Current Pope won’t do it), Middle East, Jews, Governments will change (Internet, Media, Democracies, Dictators, North Korea, Nations voted at once), Integrity (Businesses, Tobacco Companies, Bankers/ Financial Institutes, Pharmaceutical company to collapse), Illuminati (Started in Greece, with Shipping, Financial markets, Stock markets, Pharmaceutical money (fund to build Africa, to develop)), Shift of Human Consciousness, (Old) Souls, Women, Masters to/already come back, Global Unity.... etc.) - (Text version)

… The Shift in Human Nature

You're starting to see integrity change. Awareness recalibrates integrity, and the Human Being who would sit there and take advantage of another Human Being in an old energy would never do it in a new energy. The reason? It will become intuitive, so this is a shift in Human Nature as well, for in the past you have assumed that people take advantage of people first and integrity comes later. That's just ordinary Human nature.

In the past, Human nature expressed within governments worked like this: If you were stronger than the other one, you simply conquered them. If you were strong, it was an invitation to conquer. If you were weak, it was an invitation to be conquered. No one even thought about it. It was the way of things. The bigger you could have your armies, the better they would do when you sent them out to conquer. That's not how you think today. Did you notice?

Any country that thinks this way today will not survive, for humanity has discovered that the world goes far better by putting things together instead of tearing them apart. The new energy puts the weak and strong together in ways that make sense and that have integrity. Take a look at what happened to some of the businesses in this great land (USA). Up to 30 years ago, when you started realizing some of them didn't have integrity, you eliminated them. What happened to the tobacco companies when you realized they were knowingly addicting your children? Today, they still sell their products to less-aware countries, but that will also change.

What did you do a few years ago when you realized that your bankers were actually selling you homes that they knew you couldn't pay for later? They were walking away, smiling greedily, not thinking about the heartbreak that was to follow when a life's dream would be lost. Dear American, you are in a recession. However, this is like when you prune a tree and cut back the branches. When the tree grows back, you've got control and the branches will grow bigger and stronger than they were before, without the greed factor. Then, if you don't like the way it grows back, you'll prune it again! I tell you this because awareness is now in control of big money. It's right before your eyes, what you're doing. But fear often rules. …

Thursday, December 3, 2009

Introducing Drama to Indonesian Children

The Jakarta Globe, Tasa Nugraza Barley

Members of the Sekolah Cikal drama club performing “Playground of Andalas,” a musical written by their teacher, which exposed them to the traditional arts of Sumatra. (Photo: Tasa Nugraza Barley, JG)

Malik, look what you’ve done to us!” Jasmine cried out. Malik looked guilty — he knew he’d done something terrible. He tried to speak but his mouth wouldn’t form a single word.

Malik had accidentally pushed a button on the Professor’s teleportation machine. Now the group didn’t know where they were, and the Professor’s face turned pale as he realized the machine was broken. They wouldn’t be able to go back if he couldn’t fix it.

“Where are we?” Nana asked, looking very afraid.

“I think we’re in the jungle,” Ega said, glancing around cautiously. He was amazed by the thickness of the jungle. He saw big trees and weird animals that he’d never seen before.

While the Professor tried to fix his broken teleporter, the children decided to explore the jungle to see if they could find someone who could tell them where they were. While they were struggling through the bushes and dodging jungle insects, they heard a melodic sound in the distance.

“Wait, do you guys hear that?” Nana asked excitedly. They all began running, wanting to find out where the sound was coming from.

They finally came upon a group of beautiful young women in traditional Indonesian clothes. Not only were these women chanting, they were also dancing.

“Oh, I now what that is,” Jasmine yelled to her friends. “It’s an Acehnese dance called saman.”

“That means we’re in Aceh. We’re in Sumatra, guys,” Nana shouted.

In mid-November, Sekolah Cikal, a national plus school, held three days of activities at the Salihara arts complex in South Jakarta. The event was titled “Playground of Andalas” (Andalas is another name for Sumatra).

Besides displaying artworks inspired by the nature and culture of Sumatra, members of the school’s drama club performed a musical of the same name. The characters in the play had the same names as the children who played them.

The cast spent three weeks rehearsing to develop the show, which told the story of a group of children who ended up on the island of Sumatra after they accidentally pushed the wrong button on a teleportation machine invented by their friend, a genius professor.

By the end of the story, which was written by their teacher, the children had shown their audience how beautiful Sumatra is, through song and dance.

Though subjects such as art, drama and music should be part of mainstream education, they are often seen as non-academic and left off the curriculum.

Syanda Kunto, Sekolah Cikal’s project and development manager, said it was unfortunate that theater was not a more popular activity in Indonesian schools.

“Most parents don’t see the connection between studying theater and a child’s future success,” Syanda said.

“Many people are scared to speak in front of others — which is related to their confidence — despite the fact that it’s a very important skill in the work field. Through learning theater, kids can practice that skill in a fun environment.”

Theater is also a way for children to explore ideas and emotions in a safe environment.

“Through theater, kids have an opportunity to act out different roles. They can be a father, a mother, a happy person, a mad person or anything else. By doing that they can express their emotions and also develop sensitivity,” Syanda said.

Rizki Pradana has been involved in the theater club at the State University of Jakarta for nine years. He also teaches drama at several schools across the capital. He said that over the years young people had started showing more interest in such extracurricular activities, and more and more schools and universities in Jakarta now had theater clubs.

Dwi Cahyadi, a playwright from Teater Canvas (Theater Canvas), agreed that many schools in Jakarta had added theater as an after-hour activity.

But both Rizki and Dwi said that, in general, theater was still often seen as only for children who were artistically gifted.

“Most people in Indonesia still see theater as an exclusive world that can only be enjoyed by [an elite few],” Rizki said.

He said that was a misleading perception and in many other countries people embraced the theater as entertainment everyone could enjoy.

To counter the attitude here, Dwi said it was important for schools to introduce drama and theater as soon as possible to their students.

“We need to familiarize our children with theater as early as possible,” Dwi said. “By letting the kids learn about theater as early as possible, they can see that drama is another exciting activity, like sports and music. Who knows, some of them may grow up to become Indonesia’s next generation of famous playwrights, actors or actresses.”

He added that participation in theater programs could improve children’s intelligence and teach them to be more creative by letting them play different kinds of characters.

Syanda said that theater also helped children develop other talents and skills. “Through drama, children can improve their confidence by practicing talking and acting in front of many people,” Syanda said.

Jasmine, 10, is in the 5th grade at Sekolah Cikal. She has been in the drama club for more than three years and acted in “Playground of Andalas.” She said she joined the club because she wanted to build her confidence, and that she enjoyed participating in theater because it allowed her to explore many different characters.

Jasmine said the things she found the most challenging were trying to portray emotions through facial expression in her acting and memorizing dialogue.

Rengga Radwifa Pradityo, 10, another drama club member, said he used to be very shy, but through his involvement in theater he had gained the courage to speak in front of people. He said his confidence has increased and he now participates more actively in classes at his school.

Besides directly learning things such as public speaking skills, Rizki said that theater could be used as a bridge for students to learn other things, such as language skills.

“Some of my plays are in English, so by practicing drama my students also learn how to speak English with confidence,” Rizki said.

Arswendy Nasution, the head of theater at the Jakarta Arts Committee, said that it was important for the government to support the theater so that more young people could participate.

Previously, he said, Ali Sadikin, Jakarta’s governor from 1966 to 1977, supported the development of theater by building art and cultural centers in Jakarta.

But that was back during the glory days of Indonesian theater, when such well-known playwrights as WS Rendra, Teguh Karya, Arifin C Noer and Putu Wijaya provided a significant portion of the nation’s entertainment.

It was also before TVs were available in almost every household and soap operas, variety shows and infotainment had taken over families’ evening leisure hours.

“Today, our government doesn’t give enough support to the theater world. Artists always find it hard to get a venue,” Arswendy said. He argued that this lack of funding and lack of visibility for the arts made young Indonesians reluctant to join theater groups.

Arswendy said the government needed to use more than just simple economic facts in making spending decisions.

“Culture is not considered important in this country. And that’s so wrong because culture is actually a very critical investment in every country,” he said.

Teater Tanah Air
Children aged 6-16, every Sunday from 2:30 p.m.
Taman Ismail Marzuki
Jl. Cikini Raya No. 73
Tel. 021 7181721

Sanggar Abul
Children aged 12-18, every Sunday from 10 p.m.
Bulungan Sports Center
Jalan Bulungan Raya No.1
Tel. 021 96248374

Related Article:

Indonesian Beatboxers Move to Their Own Rhythm

The Indonesian Beatboxing Community during a visit to the Goethe Institute.
(Photos courtesy of the group)


No comments: