Gods and demons, p.31
Gods and Demons, page 31
(Photo: Priscilla Ziona Huwae)
With former Indonesian Minister for Foreign Affairs Marty Natalegawa and his wife, Sranya Bamrungphong, at the 2018 Ubud Writers and Readers Festival.
The Ogoh-ogoh parade in 2018, on the eve of Nyepi (Silent Day), the Balinese new year.
A Balinese ceremony, 2019.
Press card from the Indonesian Foreign Affairs Department.
With my children, Jake and Ruby.
GLOSSARY
adat – custom, customary law
amdal – environmental impact assessment
anak – child
arak – cheap rice spirit, local firewater
ayam goreng – fried chicken
babi gulung – suckling pig
bale – open-air hut
balian – traditional healer
Banjar – Balinese village council
bapak / pak – sir, Mr, father
becak – rickshaw tricycle
beli emas – buy gold
besok – tomorrow
bule – foreigner, especially Caucasian (not necessarily offensive)
bungkus – takeaway food
bupati – mayor
campur – mixed
canang – small woven basket made from coconut leaves
cap cay – stir-fried mixed vegetables
dukun – shaman
fado – a type of singing originally from Portugal
gang – alleyway
golput – derived from golongan putih, or white group; refers to a voting boycott
ibu – mother or Mrs
jam karet – rubber time
janda – widow or divorcée
jero – the title of a Balinese commoner who marries into a high caste
joglo – traditional Javanese bungalow
kafir – infidel
kampung – village
kawin kontrak – short-term marriage contract
kebaya – traditional long-sleeved blouse
keluarga – family
keronkong – traditional music originally from Portugal
kost – cheap rented room
kufi – prayer cap
losmen – hostel
mangku – high priest
musholla – Islamic prayer room
nasi – rice
nikah siri – unregistered marriage
niskala – Balinese belief in the unseen world (as opposed to sekala, the tangible or seen)
niqab – a garment worn by some Muslim women; it covers the hair and face but not the eyes
pacar – romantic term for boyfriend or girlfriend
pak / bapak – sir, Mr, father
pasung – the practice of restraining the mentally ill using stocks, shackles, ropes, cages and locked rooms
peci – Muslim cap
pembantu – housemaid
penjor – curved bamboo poles decorated with flowers and laden with fruit offerings
pesantren – Islamic boarding school
pinisi – Suluwesi schooner
polda – provincial police
preman – thug
puputan – Balinese mass ritual suicide
pusaka – sacred tokens, magic charms or talisman
puseh – navel
puskesmas – community health centre
reformasi – democratic reformation after Suharto’s fall
sekala – the tangible or seen world (as opposed to niskala, the intangible and unseen)
shabu – crystal methamphetamine
shaheed / syahid – martyr
siri – secret, refers to unregistered marriage
sonket – ornate gold-threaded sarong
sop – buah sticky milk drink
susuk – magic charm implanted beneath the skin
taksu – Bali’s divine Hindu spiritual energy
tamping – leader
tirtha – holy water
udeng – traditional Balinese head cloth with religious significance
warung – restaurant or stall
wayhu – power, inspiration
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This book developed over nearly a decade of my assignments and life in Indonesia. More a series of adventures than work, I thank those I met on the road who freely gave me their time, knowledge and wisdom.
There are numerous people to whom I owe my gratitude for their assistance, generosity and support – both personally and professionally – many of whom are within these pages.
To the survivors and families of the 2002 Bali bombing victims I am deeply indebted for sharing painful memories and emotions to ensure the lives lost in the atrocity are never forgotten. I am particularly grateful to Barry Wallace and Danny Hanley.
In my investigations into Indonesia’s web of terrorism, some of the world’s most expert counterterrorists helped me dig beneath the surface. Among them I am grateful to Noor Huda Ismail, Taufik Andrie, Sidney Jones, Badrus Sholeh and Rohan Gunaratna.
I owe thanks to countless refugees who shared their shattered lives with me, not least Mohammad Bagherian and his wife, Shirin, who tirelessly drove me round Jakarta at all hours.
I thank my wonderful children, Jake and Ruby, for their encouragement; Pamela Robson for reading my early drafts and providing inspiration and insight; Philippa Ellis for her unflagging patience in retrieving my stories from The Australian newspaper’s archives; Asana Viebeke Lengkong for her indefatigable insights and friendship; Agung Wardana; Andreas Harsono; Endy Bayuni, for his historic perspective; Janet DeNeefe; Michael Vatikiotis; Justin Hale; Jane Walters; Russell Darnley; Richard and Gilana Poore; my assistant Firdia Lisnawati, who periodically worked impossible hours; the Dyson family; Yuyun Ismawati Drwiega and the Balifokus team; Luh Ketut Suryani and her colleague son, Cokorda Bagus Jaya Lesmana; Ida Ayu Puspa Eny; Dr Putu Anda Tusta; Jason Childs; William J. Furney; Paul Lupton; Marian Carroll; Daniel Rudi Haryanto; Jeff Hammond; Vicki Czugaj; my editors at The Australian, ever generous with their time: Patrick Lawnham and Steve Waterson; The Australian newspaper and The Weekend Australian Magazine, without which this book would not have life; my friend and agent, Margaret Gee; Brigitta Doyle and HarperCollins and ABC Books Australia.
about the author
DEBORAH CASSRELS has been a journalist for over 40 years. She has been based in Bali since 2009, and has written extensively for The Australian newspaper on refugees, politics, terrorism, crime and the Bali Nine Australian drug smugglers, among other issues. She covered the 2015 executions of the two Bali Nine ringleaders and was a finalist for the Walkley Freelance Awards in 2016 for her work on terrorism in Indonesia.
Previously a features writer at The Weekend Australian Magazine, she contributes to The Times of London, The Guardian and SBS. Her work has also appeared in The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age and The Australian Financial Review.
After beginning her career as a reporter for The New Zealand Herald, she moved to Australia in the mid-1980s to work for The Australian and The Courier-Mail. She has freelanced in the US, Europe and Central America.
Deborah has two children and divides her time between Indonesia and Sydney.
copyright
The ABC ‘Wave’ device is a trademark of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and is used under licence by HarperCollinsPublishers Australia.
HarperCollinsPublishers
Australia • Brazil • Canada • France • Germany • Holland • Hungary India • Italy • Japan • Mexico • New Zealand • Poland • Spain • Sweden Switzerland • United Kingdom • United States of America
First published in Australia in 2020
by HarperCollinsPublishers Australia Pty Limited
Level 13, 201 Elizabeth Street, Sydney NSW 2000
ABN 36 009 913 517
harpercollins.com.au
Copyright © Deborah Cassrels 2020
The right of Deborah Cassrels to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with the Copyright Amendment (Moral Rights) Act 2000.
This work is copyright. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part may be reproduced, copied, scanned, stored in a retrieval system, recorded, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the publisher.
HarperCollinsPublishers
Level 13, 201 Elizabeth Street, Sydney, NSW 2000, Australia
Unit D1, 63 Apollo Drive, Rosedale 0632, Auckland, New Zealand
A 75, Sector 57, Noida, Uttar Pradesh 201 301, India
1 London Bridge Street, London SE1 9GF, United Kingdom
Bay Adelaide Centre, East Tower, 22 Adelaide Street West, 41st Floor, Toronto, Ontario, M5H 4E3, Canada
195 Broadway, New York, NY 10007, USA
ISBN 978 0 7333 3890 8 (pbk)
ISBN 978 1 4607 0913 9 (ebook)
A catalogue record for this book is available from the National Library of Australia.
Cover design by Hazel Lam, HarperCollins Design Studio
Cover image by Cheryl Ramalho /Getty Images
Photograph of Deborah Cassrels by Sonny Tumbelaka
Deborah Cassrels, Gods and Demons
