Jakartans get 'Djakarta!' life magazine

By Charlie Stevens

JAKARTA (JP): The appearance on Sunday of the new city life magazine Djakarta! is occasion for cautious hope in a city struggling with a post-New Order identity crisis. But if the optimism and determination of the magazine's founder and editor, Daniel Ziv, are anything to go by, then Sunday may be the launch of something bigger than just another monthly rag.

Despite a population large enough to dwarf most world capitals, Jakarta does not enjoy the same global cultural status as other metropolitan centers, unless it's the riot-dodging Molotov-style of glam you're after.

But to the city's residents, there is the sense that Jakarta is a much deeper place. That beyond the billboards and concrete flyovers there is a world largely ignored by the city's media.

"Most people only see Jakarta on the surface and along its main thoroughfares. As soon as you go down below the underpasses and into the lower levels, life becomes completely different," said Daniel.

A doctrine of ikut ikutan (following others) and of consensus at any price are one of the legacies of the New Order regime that remains a sticking point for a lot of magazines and tabloids here. This has created a monotony in the media landscape and a glaring opportunity to fill what is, according to Daniel, an obvious gap in the market.

"People were brought into that understanding through 32 years of New Order rule and until today the local media still reflects that in the sense that most magazines are doing the same thing. Restaurant reviews are actually just advertorials, film reviews are, more often than not, merely a synopsis and even fashion is label-obsessed in the shallowest manner with no regard for concept or creativity," said Daniel.

"We want to talk about what's real in the city, both the ugly and the beautiful. Always telling it how it is and always within a context and not just snapshots. We're not trying to fool anyone that this city is the epitome of the charming tourist paradise."

Daniel, a native of Canada, has been careful to sidestep the expatriate and tourist magazine genre which has had a healthy representation in Jakarta for many years.

"In terms of language, we have a mix of both English and Indonesian so that everybody can feel comfortable with the magazine. But our target readership is primarily Indonesians and we want the magazine to have a local feel. We use local slang and nuances to the point that tourists might have to struggle to keep up, which is the mark of a real city magazine," he says. "To that end, we've been careful about keeping the staff entirely Indonesian."

Topics range from social issues and city scandals to underground clubbing and fringe theater. One feature in the premiere issue follows around a 13-year-old bus poet and offers a glimpse into his world. Another article raises questions of employee exploitation at a certain restaurant chain.

Another niche Djakarta! hopes to fill is that of a reliable, commentary-rich source of event and venue information.

"We've put together a comprehensive monthly listings guide on everything from restaurants, bars and karaoke clubs to rock concerts, art exhibits and children's events," he said.

"When we first started gathering material and contacted local restaurants and businesses, many of them refused to cooperate unless we promised to publish the contents of their official press releases. They couldn't understand why we wanted to examine their products and services for ourselves. That's a culture we're hoping to change - that businesses are not immune to critical analysis," said Ziv. "And of course we plan to sing the praises of services and businesses that do offer good value for money."

An indication of what to expect from this self-confessed spokesrag for the city's sun-starved corners can be garnered from the magazine's lineup, which includes Wimar Witoelar -- currently President Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid's spokesman but better known as an noted talk show host of the New Order era -- the controversial novelist Ayu Utami and a former editor-in-chief of Jakarta Jakarta magazine and prize-winning columnist for Kompas daily, Seno Gumira Ajidarma.