Rhetoric and reticence

Abstract

In contemporary Indonesia, national government development policies have achieved significant economic gains. Economic benefits, however, have not been uniform across the nation. This paper presents a cultural perspective on processes of economic development on the island of Timor in eastern Indonesia. It is argued that development is constrained by the promotion of inappropriate technologies and development methodologies which fequently contradict local indigenous community needs and interests. In this context the rhetoric of development ideology meets an indigenous reticence to embrace official economic prescriptions. -Author Show more