Job Discussion Forums

[wannaBguru]

u have a point demonicat. however, there is probably more corruption in america, its just that John Public, gets his share of the money before all the politicians take their part. if u want an accurate assessment of american politics, just watch that eddie murphy film where he gets elected to congress. dont know about oz, but in the usa, the tax and social system are just legalized/controlled forms of corruption and bribes.

honestly, i dont know what u are on about no being free here. i have been here on and off for about 10 years and have NEVER paid a bribe. i have a car and a motorcycle and drive like an aggressive maniac. i am not kidding when i say that i shouldnt be allowed to drive at all. i am sure i will get pulled over 1 day and have to pay some money, but it hasnt happened yet. about a month ago, i got pulled over 2x in one day. had my paperwork and licesce. both times the cop said thanks and have a nice day. the second time was 2am. i have never been hassled much here, even when i do stupid, rude, or dodgy things. the RT (neighborhood leaders) people can be a bit tough to take, but if u lived in germany, they have the same system. anyway, i have never reported to them and have never had any problems. maybe i am just lucky. anyway, all the craziness and bribery add to the charm of living here.


PP, u dont not need to speak a foreign language 2 work at an embassy. the interviewers are american and are givien language lessons. usually they conduct the interviews in english, but they can can carry on rudimentary conversations in bhs indo. u need a 4 year degree to apply, preferable in politics or another liberal arts program. u can get the us embassy website using google........ us embassy jakarta......... follow the links. i think it they work for the state dept. or possibly foreign service. u do not get to pick your postings, unless u are hired directly by an embassy..... very difficult. u have to pass a series of tests including psychological, general world affairs, physical and honesty....... like a lie dectotor. background checks will be done and a host of other things. so u actually work for the state dept and not an individual embassy



u dont need a degree to teach english here. i have met people that didnt even finish high school that were teaching here.

[xsbir]

You are right on, Wannabeguru. I too have been here more or less 10 years, and I have rarely paid a bribe. Only when the other way would have been much more costly or time consuming. I too own a car, and drive a lot.

Freedom. There are two kinds: freedom from, and freedom to. In the West we have lots of freedom from: theft (yeah right), personal injury, loss, etc. or so the theory goes. Little freedom to: do what you want, drink anytime, anywhere, smoke drugs, etc. Here, in Indonesia, it seems like we have very little freedom from: have to have gates, lock everything, be careful, etc; however, we have lots of freedom to: do whatever we want. If it happens to be illegal, and you get caught, you pay a (relatively) small bribe.

That's one thing I feel after all my time here. I feel a lot freer than I do in my own country. Free to do what I want.

[PlasticPill]

So it's about the bribes. Isn't that found all throughout Indonesia, not just Jakarta?

While I was staying in Surabaya, I was returning home and the police had set up a station to pull everyone over that was passing down the street. I was told it was just a simple ID check to ensure no cars were stolen. Sounds fine I guess, until they tell me that the photo copy of my passport isn't good enough. They want the original. I was lucky enough to have someone with me to talk to them, but I still ended up having to pay them money. ((Barely usd $3.00))

I can see how that would be annoying, but I don't think it's unique to Jakarta.

[Demonicat]

What I meant largely by freedom is the right to determine your own fate. Primary example, can you just leave the country if you want? No. you need your boss to sign an EPO. Can you have any religion you want? Can you marry someone not of your religion? Technically, all of those are illegal in this country. Yes, in Indonesia, you have a large amount of freedom to do as you wish in regards to the law, but I would argue that just because the de facto law is very lenient, we should not forget how rigid and harsh the true law is. And, no it is not limited to Jakarta, its just hat many of us are concentrated in Jakarta, so more complaints and issues arise from there. There are relatively few attractions in Jakarta (unless you like malls), so few people say happy things- like they would of Bali, or Yogyarta.

[happy_me]

Lucky they don�t fallow the law here and lucky they don�t have laws like Banda Aceh.

[wannaBguru]

pretty funny. all countries have immigration laws. the united states is nearly impossible to get it, but u can leave anytime u want, even 20 years later. there is no immigration on the way out. crazy.

about religion, i always write n/a........ i dont have one. some people freak out and try to insist i have one. i just stick to my guns and eventually they process my paperwork, whether opening a bank account, going to the hospital, or getting my kitas.

all countries have laws which are repressive and not always enforced. while i was taking a course in criminal justice, my instructor was a Lieutenant in the local police dept. and he said that he could arrest anyone at anytime. there were laws still on the book from the 1800's that stated whenever he told someone to stop/freeze, that if they moved even one finger they could be charged with resisting arrest and failure to obey a command from a police officer. go figure.

i get your point, and sometimes i can feel put out by the bizarre laws in indo, but other things irrate me more, such as the terrible customer service all industries, especially banks. and cable, and internet, and....... and the fact that when u ask someone for directions, they never know but cant admit it, they send u round and round in circles....... like a dog chasing its tail. i just ignore the laws i dont like and try to obey the ones that dont inconvience me too much. if u have a good schoool, or complete your contract, leaving the country shouldnt be too difficult

[laughing_magpie06]

The issue with customer service is my main problem also......I cant understand where this society came to the point where they don't realise how silly they look when they give wrong or bad advice to customers.
I had a case once where I was in a restaurant and after waiting 20 minutes wondered why the food took so long. I was told because the cook wasn't working that day. Not that they could tell me on the way in. \and a restauanr that told me they served beer but it was not refridgerated.
The silly laws I try to forget about..but still weep when I want to leave the country and think about the red tape involved.

[guruengerish]

on the matter of rules and regulations, has there been any development on the upper age limit for teachers?

Last I heard was that age 55 was it: Immigrasi would not issue permits for new teachers to work or move to another school past this age.

Any changes or are they sticking to their guns?

[Chancellor]