Single in Indonesia: stigma and emancipation – DW – 05/31/2025
Whether single, looking for a partner or divorced – what happens when young Indonesians decide to look for love their way?
In Indonesia, marriage is still the social norm. Those who don't conform, stand out and must often field many uncomfortable questions. Treading the fine line between familial pressure, religious duty and growing self-confidence, Indonesian singles are now seeking love in new ways. Whether divorced, separated or simply without a partner: what does it feel like to push back against society's expectations? And in this largely traditional country, how is it possible not just to find love, but also self-fulfilment?
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
DW
a day ago
- DW
Single in Indonesia: stigma and emancipation – DW – 05/31/2025
Whether single, looking for a partner or divorced – what happens when young Indonesians decide to look for love their way? In Indonesia, marriage is still the social norm. Those who don't conform, stand out and must often field many uncomfortable questions. Treading the fine line between familial pressure, religious duty and growing self-confidence, Indonesian singles are now seeking love in new ways. Whether divorced, separated or simply without a partner: what does it feel like to push back against society's expectations? And in this largely traditional country, how is it possible not just to find love, but also self-fulfilment?
DW
20-05-2025
- DW
Indonesia: FGM – still practiced despite ban – DW – 05/20/2025
Female genital mutilation (FGM) affects about half of women in Muslim-majority Indonesia. Circumcision persists despite the ban. Resistance to female circumcision grows in Indonesia Female genital mutilation (FGM) affects more than 230 million girls and women worldwide, according to a UNICEF report. The procedure is widespread in Indonesia, although it is officially prohibited, and carried out by traditional healers but also in specialized clinics. It is deeply rooted in Indonesian tradition and over the centuries, has been incorporated into Islamic practice. But resistance to the procedure has been growing for years, says the UN. The Indonesian Midwives Association strongly opposes female circumcision. Now, in the conservative region of Aceh, initial attempts to introduce a symbolic form of the practice are underway.
Int'l Business Times
07-05-2025
- Int'l Business Times
Indonesia's Silvermen Beg To Make Ends Meet
On a rainy day in Indonesia's capital Jakarta, three men coated in metallic paint known as the "manusia silver", or silvermen, brave the elements at an intersection near a mall to ask drivers for change. It is an arresting act that comes with health risks, one some young Indonesians feel is necessary to make ends meet as the cost of living worsens and jobs dwindle after the Covid pandemic. "I'm ashamed to earn money like this. I want to find a real, more dignified job," said Ari Munandar, 25. "But the embarrassment disappears when you remember that your daughter and your wife are at home." Barefoot, dressed only in shorts and daubed head to toe by the irritating paint, Ari, his brother Keris and their friend Riyan Ahmad Fazriyansah each take a lane in the road. When the cars come to a stop they strike robotic poses in front of the drivers. "Good afternoon, have a nice drive," says Ari. The poses have little meaning other than to attract cash. "I do them because one day I saw a friend earn more by doing them," he said, moving between cars, holding out a bucket for donations. On a good day they can pocket up to 200,000 rupiah ($12), but typically earn around 120,000. That's much less than Jakarta's monthly minimum wage of five million rupiah and barely enough to cover daily expenses. "I'm not going to eat lunch, just drink and smoke," said Ari. Every penny counts in a country where prices have risen steadily in recent years. A kilogram (two pounds) of rice, the archipelago's main staple, jumped by 27 percent between 2015 and 2025, according to statistics agency data. And behind the paint, the friends are clearly undernourished. None are taller than 172 centimetres (five feet eight inches) nor weigh more than 55 kilograms. A lack of employment opportunity is the main cause of young men and women taking to the streets, they say. "Since I was made redundant in 2019 I've been begging," said Ari. "Before that, I worked cleaning toilets." According to government data, the number of people living below the poverty line in metropolitan Jakarta -- a megalopolis of 11 million people -- was up from 362,000 in 2019 to 449,000 as of September 2024. "Many young people with few qualifications between the ages of 20 and 40 have found themselves unemployed," said Bhima Yudistira, executive director of the Center of Economic and Law Studies. "Even though there is no national count, there has been a huge rise in begging in Jakarta after the pandemic of 2021." After five hours at the intersection, the group returns home by hitchhiking a ride from a tuk-tuk. The three pile into the back, counting their meagre earnings and lighting a cigarette to share. Once dropped off, they walk by a polluted river and across a railway line to their Jakarta slum. Far from the capital's high-rises, children play near the tracks to the rhythm of the trains as Ari makes his way back to remove the silver. The paint, similar to that used for screen-printing on fabric, is not easy to remove. Squatting in front of a well and buckets filled with water, he splashes his body before scrubbing fiercely, his one-year-old daughter Arisya watching. "At first the paint burned and I had a blister on my neck, but now it only stings my eyes," he said. The shower reveals a new, younger man. Once dry, he heads home to play with Arisya. "As soon as I'm here I forget all the fatigue and the hardship," he says, smiling. "But I hope she never does what I do."
