A President’s Son Is in Indonesia’s Election Picture. Is It Democracy or Dynasty?
The New York Times | Yoes Kenawas | 6 January 2024
…But this time, the president, widely known as “Jokowi,” is lending his brand to the former general — in the form of his son as running mate. The merger of the two political families appears to give their ticket the edge, polls indicate. “It is clear that Jokowi is building a political dynasty,” said Yoes C. Kenawas, a research fellow at Atma Jaya University in Jakarta. Mr. Joko’s goal, he said, is to prepare his son to run for president in 2029. Serving under Mr. Prabowo would be a “period of apprenticeship.” “Because in the end, the aim is president,” he said, “not vice president.”….[Read more]
Jokowi’s son and V-P candidate silences critics in debate ahead of Indonesia’s polls
The Strait Times | Yoes Kenawas | 28 December 2023
Mr Yoes said that for the president and vice-president to be an effective team, technical knowledge is not enough, and that strategic thinking is also required to achieve bigger goals for the country….Mr Yoes said: “Statistics show impressive achievements. But on the ground, people still depend on state support, inequality is still a big problem, and more importantly, corruption is still there – if not getting worse in the past nine years. Democracy is also still declining.”….[Read more]
How do political dynasties thrive in democracies?
PolGovTalks | Yoes Kenawas | 21 December 2023
“Political dynasties actually need democracy to thrive,” said Yoes C Kenawas. In his research, Yoes revealed that in one election, there was a threefold increase in the number of candidates who were political dynasty members. How could this be? Does democracy in fact, create opportunities for someone to legally establish a political dynasty? Is this ethical? How do political dynasties in Indonesia really operate? In this interview, PARES interviews Yoes C Kenawas, a PhD candidate in Political Science at Northwestern University and IFAR Atma Jaya Research Fellow, who has studied political dynasties in Southeast Asia for over 15 years…..[Read more]
KPU makes last-minute changes to debate format
The Jakarta Post | Yoes Kenawas | 7 December 2023
Political analyst Yoes Kenawas said that the uncertainty surrounding the presidential debate format less than a week before the first debate was supposed to take place showed how disorganized KPU was in managing the upcoming general election…..[Read more]
Jokowi, Indonesia’s kingmaker, works to keep influence after election
The Strait Times | Yoes Kenawas | 14 October 2023
With the uncertainty over where Jokowi’s loyalties lie, these placements are deliberate, said Yoes C. Kenawas, a research fellow from Atma Jaya University who studies dynastic politics. “Ganjar and Prabowo are ‘Jokowi’s men’ but who knows after Jokowi steps down,” he said. “Blood is thicker than water.”….[Read more]
Netizens are Citizens Too: Strengthening Digital Activism in Indonesia
Podcast Hubungan Internasional UGM | Muhammad Fajar | 1 October 2023
In a democratic country, the people’s voice is important for the nation’s politics. The community takes various actions to voice, remind or protest policies/decisions of the government that have the potential to hurt the community. The presence of the internet provides new tools for carrying out activism. What is the portrait of community activism in the digital world? What can we do so that our actions are more heard? What happened to conventional activism?….[Read more]
As elections draw near, political dynasties get stronger
Podcast Bebas Aktif | Yoes Kenawas | 23 August 2023
Dynasty politics has become one of the important topics in Indonesia’s current political landscape, especially as we approach the upcoming 2024 elections. Unfortunately, there are still many instances of dynasty politics, both at the national and local levels in this country. What could explain this?….[Read more]
Political dynasties in Indonesia: Familiar last name may hold sway in upcoming elections
Channel News Asia| Yoes Kenawas | 5 February 2023
Political dynasties are not a new phenomenon in Indonesia. Aside from BJ Habibie, the country’s third president, every Indonesian president so far has had at least one immediate family member who entered politics. However, Mr Yoes Kenawas, who specialises in dynasty politics told CNA that such political dynasties can be problematic. Mr Kenawas said that the presence of a political dynasty in a party discourages the development of other politicians who do not have strong connections ….[Read more].