Page 12 - SCANDAL AND DEMOCRACY

Note on Spelling and

Personal Names

Names in this book, with certain exceptions, are spelled using the post-1972 sys-
tem (Ejaan yang Disempurnakan). Exceptions include those that appear in quota-
tions from other sources and names of authors in the notes who use the old spelling.
With the new system, the name of Indonesia’s fi rst president, for example, is spelled
“Sukarno” instead of “Soekarno,” “Soesanto Pudjomartono” becomes “Susanto
Pujomartono,” and “Akbar Tandjung” becomes “Akbar Tanjung.” Also, as Western
news sources frequently point out, many Indonesians, such as the former president
Suharto, go by only one name. These cases are indicated in brackets [one name] in the

first reference to the person.
For Indonesians with multiple names, there is no standard practice for short-
ened references. Instead, use of the first, middle, or last part of their full names, or
a nickname, varies by individual. For example, the former minister of information,
Muhammad Yunus Yosfiah, is called “Pak [Mr.] Yunus,” while the former director
general of press and graphics, H. Dailami, is called “Pak Dailami,” and the former
head of Kompas , Jakob Oetama, is called “Pak Jakob.” For the sake of simplicity, after
the first reference to an individual by his or her full name, subsequent references
use the last component of the person’s name, which in the United States would be
called the surname. For example, the Golkar leader Akbar Tanjung is commonly called
“Akbar” or “Pak Akbar,” but in this book I refer to him as “Tanjung” after the first ref-
erence. Notable exceptions include the former president Megawati Sukarnoputri, who
is referred to in short references as “Megawati” or “President Megawati.”