There's no such thing as a free lunch...Or is there?

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It's official. The next president of Indonesia is former army general Prabowo Subianto. Quite how the next five years will pan out is anyone's guess but hopefully the foreign pundits who always bring up his dodgy human rights record will be proven wrong. Nonetheless, on policy making, Prabowo's popularist move to literally offer the poor 'a free lunch' every day of the week does not augur well for the future. Such a policy - if it ever came to fruition - would cost a phenomenal amount of money and likely lead to huge inefficiencies (food waste) and poor incentives (make people lazy). Another concern is Prabowo's strong nationalist bent. Thus, in the possible event that he finds himself with his back against the proverbial wall in the face of stern economic challenges, there is a big chance that he will simply scapegoat foreigners. But he will have to be careful. Construction of the new capital city, Nusantara, for example, is highly dependent on foreign in
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The Jaya Pub: stuck in a timewarp

Back in the seventies, Jakarta’s first real pub opened its doors. It was the start of the oil boom and while most oil companies were reporting huge profits, Indonesia’s state owned oil company Pertamina was close to bankruptcy. Bell bottoms were in and so was facial hair. Koes Plus had just released their 13th album. And the invasion of East Timor was underway…


Some 30 odd years on (and 12,832 shopping malls later) and the Jaya Pub is still standing defiant. Yet the years have clearly taken their toll. The building is noticeably tatty and the stairs leading up to the bar creak like those in a horror film. Old dusty pictures hang on the cracked walls.



But a winning formula is a winning formula. So why change it? The bar has a special theme for each night. Tuesday’s is cocktails night and Wednesday’s is Ladies Night. Yet most of the emphasis is on drinking beer and, of course, the live music for which the pub is famous.



Jaya Pub schedule: click on pic to see it full size

So have a beer, play a game of pool. And even discuss the latest political intrigues. Did I ever tell you what Harmoko stood for? Hari hari omong kosong! Hahaha!

The Jaya Pub
Jl. M.H. Thamrin 12
Telp (021) 31925633 or 3909249
Opening hours 6pm-1am

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