The poverty of a rich country

Some 300 ethnic groups live and 200 different languages are spoken in the country. You can get a clearer glimpse of this diversity as you tour around the park in Jakarta, which is a little bit bigger than Miniatürk in İstanbul.

As we pass by one of the sections allocated to different cultures, the guide says that the people living in that section eat human flesh. We are startled. Seeing our reactions, he adds, “They no longer eat it.” In a section allocated to a community called Toraca, the guide tells us that the people here live together with their mummified dead relatives for three years. We also learned that the number of spouses may be up to 20 for men in the Papua region and that matriarchal customs are still preserved and boys have to spend their lives up to the age of 11 in a sanctuary in part of Sumatra.

Of course, these are the shades of color in the country. The main religion of the country is Islam with 88 percent of the population being Muslims. In this regard, the trip's coinciding with Ramadan has offered us opportunities for interesting observations. The iftar and suhoor programs on TV are reminiscent of Turkey. You can see something that reminds one of Ramadan on every corner. The streets are full of posters requesting support for the National Zekat (Alms) Administration. Voices of people reciting Quran can be heard everywhere in Jakarta until the suhoor.

It seems that Islam has a more smiling face here. What we saw after the morning prayer was performed in the Istiqlal Mosque, which is the largest mosque in the Far East as it allows more than 100,000 people to pray collectively, was very meaningful in this regard. In the mosque, divided into two equal parts for men and women, some were praying while others were resting. The imam was preaching about food in front of the mihrab (niche). The preacher made some theatrical gestures and had a smiling face early in the morning and cheered up the congregation with his jokes. There was a big poster detailing the programs held in the mosque.

The fact that opposite this enormous mosque is a huge cathedral, both of which were designed by a Christian architect, gives us hints about religious life in Indonesia. Having suffered from various ideological conflicts and oppression until 10 years ago, Indonesia is now heading toward becoming an exemplary country for democracy and tolerance. Its constitution guarantees everyone's right to enjoy his or her faith. Six religions are officially recognized: Islam, Protestantism, Catholicism, Hinduism, Confucianism and Buddhism.

As far as we understand, this is not just lip service paid to religious freedom. People can get organized and enjoy their faith in every field from education to daily life. The major days of six officially recognized religions are marked as official holidays around the country. Among Muslims, there are a number of influential groups with millions of members. About 20 million students attend the schools run by these groups and their diplomas are recognized by the state.

In this country, which is a member of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) with its rich oil reserves, and which also has rich natural gas, gold, and coal reserves and which resembles a giant grocery with its different exotic fruits and vegetables, the biggest problem, weirdly, is poverty despite the its huge potential.

Next to the high towering buildings of banks, hotels and corporations at the center of Jakarta, you can see misery. The majority lives in shanty houses. Municipal services are very poor. Dozens of rivers passing through the city are like open sewage canals although one would expect them to be blue streams providing the city's inhabitants with a lovely spectacle. Around 50 percent of the population has to live on less than $2 a day. While 15 percent of the population is rich, 85 percent are poverty-stricken. There is virtually no middle class. The minimum wage is $100 although it varies from one state to another.