A Nation in Waiting: Indonesia in the 1990s

By Adam Schwarz

Book Overview

An account of Indonesia and it's position in the world, having been under the impressive leadership of Soeharto for the last 27 years. Topics cover economic policy, and the political demands of the Muslim community, human rights and the problem of a modernized economy with a rigid political system.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0813388821
• ISBN13: 9780813388823
• Release Date: November 1994
• Publisher: Westview Press
• Length: 370 Pages
• Weight: 0.05 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.5" x 5.5" x 1.0"

Customer Reviews

Incredible insight into a nebulous nation

I started reading A Nation in Waiting while in Jakarta about the week before the Trisakti students were shot by special forces units. As a read the book then the newspapers, it became difficult to tell the difference. The similarities to the Suharto coup in '64 to what Prabowo was trying were incredible. If only more people read this incredible book before last year's bloody catharsis, I'm confident the event would not of been as violent, unpredicted and uncontrolled as it was. The personal insights into Habibi's relationship with Suharto (back to when Habibi was 14), bode well into understanding Habibi's government now and to come. Essential reading on Indonesia

Very accurate predictions about Indonesia.....

This book was written before Suharto was forced to step down as president in 1998. It predicted that an economic crisis would create an even greater income gap and dissatisfaction among the poorer native indonesians and the minority and richer Indonesians (the Chinese Indos)....and unfortunately , its predictions came true. Suharto was forced to step down and many Indo Chinese were slained for no sane reasons. I read this book during my summer holidays in 1997 out of interest in knowing the financial, social and political structures of my neighboring countries better......if u want to understand indonesia better, this is the book to read.

Excellent Understanding of Indonesian Politics

An excellent explanation of Indonesian politics. I lived in Indonesia for 4 years. Indonesian politics are like the shadow puppets--the real actors are behind the curtain. This book explains the relationship of the various factions which Suharto has managed to hold together and the major issues Indonesia must face. A good resource for anyone trying to understand the current crisis.

A must to read for students of Indonesian Politics!

The author shows a lot of insight and deep understanding of the current Indonesian's political climate. As an Indonesian myself, there are information in this book that clarifies years of misinformation from our official government's information. The book is written around 1993. There are some minor discrepancies of the current climate with the one when this book was written