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wardb.bsky.social
Ward Berenschot
@wardb.bsky.social
320 followers 150 following 44 posts

Political anthropologist - studies politics of Indonesia and India - writes about land conflicts between palm oil companies and rural Indonesians. KITLV & University of Amsterdam

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Political science 51%
Sociology 17%
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wardb.bsky.social
Ward Berenschot @wardb.bsky.social · Jun 11
Now online: the English version of our documentary Colonial Debris. Together with documentary makers Watchdoc, we made this film to convey the results of our research project on land conflicts between palm oil companies and rural Indonesians.
youtu.be/aII6__-xz8g?...
COLONIAL DEBRIS (full movie)
YouTube video by Watchdoc Image
youtu.be
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wardb.bsky.social
Ward Berenschot @wardb.bsky.social · 23d
Invite: We are organising a discussion on the protests in Indonesia and Nepal, this monday 15-17 at the University of Amsterdam. Do join!
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wardb.bsky.social
Ward Berenschot @wardb.bsky.social · 27d
Nice: Tempo made this video summarizing our book on how cybertroops operate in Indonesia, watch it to get a quick overview! www.instagram.com/reel/DOYLWAZ...
Login • Instagram
Welcome back to Instagram. Sign in to check out what your friends, family & interests have been capturing & sharing around the world.
www.instagram.com

wardb.bsky.social
Ward Berenschot @wardb.bsky.social · Sep 8
Simply brilliant. Bansky depicting the absurdity of how the justice system in the UK (and elsewhere) treats those protesting against the genocide.
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wardb.bsky.social
Ward Berenschot @wardb.bsky.social · Sep 3
Great piece by Edward Aspinall discussing the ongoing protests in Indonesia (and why they are likely to keep resurfacing).

www.newmandala.org/mass-protest...
Mass protest and the two worlds of Indonesian politics - New Mandala
A subculture of street protest survives beyond Jokowi
www.newmandala.org
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wardb.bsky.social
Ward Berenschot @wardb.bsky.social · Sep 2
Wat zit er achter de protesten in Indonesië? Net terug uit Jakarta sprak ik met Edwin Mooibroek over Prabowo’s problemen voor zijn Indonesië podcast.

www.indonesienieuws.nl/podcast-5/
Podcast: Wat is de oorzaak voor de massale demonstraties in Indonesië?
De afgelopen week waren er massale anti-regeringsprotesten in Indonesische steden. Er zijn verscheidene doden gevallen, alleen al in Jakarta zijn 1200 mensen opgepakt. De aanleiding voor de protesten ...
www.indonesienieuws.nl
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Reposted by Ward Berenschot

groene.nl
De Groene Amsterdammer @groene.nl · Sep 1
Tijdens de allesverwoestende oorlog in Gaza werden meer dan tweehonderd journalisten gedood. Zulke aantallen wijzen op een opzettelijke moordcampagne van het Israëlische leger. Dat inzicht dringt nu ook door tot westerse media.
Het valt niet meer te ontkennen: in Gaza zijn journalisten een doelwit voor het Israëlische leger.
Tijdens de allesverwoestende oorlog in Gaza werden meer dan tweehonderd journalisten gedood. Zulke aantallen wijzen op een opzettelijke moordcampagne van het Israëlische leger. Dat inzicht dringt nu…
buff.ly
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wardb.bsky.social
Ward Berenschot @wardb.bsky.social · Aug 31
With the death of an Ojek driver, discontent with Indonesia’s democracy is spreading. Prabowo will need to show he is doing something about it. But what?
www.thejakartapost.com/indonesia/20...
Protesters set fire to regional council buildings in several provinces - Archipelago - The Jakarta Post
National Police Chief Gen. Listyo Sigit Prabowo said on Saturday the president ordered authorities to take firm action against protesters who violated laws.
www.thejakartapost.com
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wardb.bsky.social
Ward Berenschot @wardb.bsky.social · Aug 31
The English version of our documentary ‘Colonial Debris’ is now on Youtube! With palm oil practitioners we wrote this blog at Oxfam to highlight the links between land conflicts, palm oil and colonialism.
views-voices.oxfam.org.uk/2025/08/you-...
You can't talk about palm oil without talking about land rights - and colonialism - Views & Voices
​​Indonesians​ fighting against exploitation of their land for palm oil must confront ​​both​ ​powerful corporate interests and an extraordinary level of state control over land that can be traced bac...
views-voices.oxfam.org.uk
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wardb.bsky.social
Ward Berenschot @wardb.bsky.social · Aug 31
In Indonesia these right often are toothless in practice, as collusion and corruption undermine the realization of these rights. That is what we tried to show in ‘Colonial Debris’.
sustainablepalmoil.bsky.social
Sustainable Palm Oil Choice @sustainablepalmoil.bsky.social · Aug 6
“People really do have various rights. They have the right not to give up their land. They have the right to receive compensation for the loss of land. Or share in the profits of the plantation. And people have a right to protest” - ‪@wardb.bsky.social‬

views-voices.oxfam.org.uk/2025/08/you-...
You can't talk about palm oil without talking about land rights - and colonialism - Views & Voices
​​Indonesians​ fighting against exploitation of their land for palm oil must confront ​​both​ ​powerful corporate interests and an extraordinary level of state control over land that can be traced bac...
views-voices.oxfam.org.uk
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wardb.bsky.social
Ward Berenschot @wardb.bsky.social · Aug 29
De politieke onrust broeit al een tijd. Grote maarschappelijke onvrede over de zelfverrijking van politici.

Wat hier onder zit is een clientelistisch systeem waarin politici steeds meer geld in hun campagnes pompen en allerlei commerciele belangen dienen.

nos.nl/l/2580357
Dagenlange gewelddadige protesten in Indonesië, 'dood aan de corruptie'
Wat begon uit onvrede met een hele hoge woningtoelage voor parlementsleden, is uitgemond in protesten tegen een veelvoud van zaken.
nos.nl
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wardb.bsky.social
Ward Berenschot @wardb.bsky.social · Aug 27
Happy to see Kompas report on our book on ‘cybertroops’ in Indonesia. With this research we hoped to raise awareness about how these networks buzzers operate and why you should be wary of ‘viral’ trends.

www.kompas.id/artikel/pasu...
Pasukan Siber, Industri Bayangan yang Menggerus Demokrasi
”Buzzers” dan ”influencers” dibayar Rp 100.000 hingga puluhan juta rupiah untuk memengaruhi opini publik.
www.kompas.id
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Reposted by Ward Berenschot

krisruijgrok.bsky.social
Kris Ruijgrok @krisruijgrok.bsky.social · Aug 22
Inspiring talks at our workshop in Semarang, Indonesia (@undip) on online influence operations in South East in Asia. @wardb.bsky.social @yatunsastra.bsky.social
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Reposted by Ward Berenschot

ingridrobeyns.bsky.social
Ingrid Robeyns @ingridrobeyns.bsky.social · Aug 17
Vraag: stel, De Telegraaf lezer en iedereen die deze krant wel eens tegen komt bij de kapper, afhaaltent, etc. gaat van nu tot de verkiezingen dit soort propaganda lezen. *Is daar iets tegen te doen?*
Zijn er wel eens wetenschappers die iets insturen naar De Telegraaf om tegengas te geven?
merijnoudenampsen.org
Merijn Oudenampsen @merijnoudenampsen.org · Aug 17
Het communisme is terug, want GroenLinks-PvdA wil een bescheiden belasting op overwaarde bij woningverkoop. Knotsgekke column.
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Reposted by Ward Berenschot

sustainablepalmoil.bsky.social
Sustainable Palm Oil Choice @sustainablepalmoil.bsky.social · Aug 6
“People really do have various rights. They have the right not to give up their land. They have the right to receive compensation for the loss of land. Or share in the profits of the plantation. And people have a right to protest” - ‪@wardb.bsky.social‬

views-voices.oxfam.org.uk/2025/08/you-...
You can't talk about palm oil without talking about land rights - and colonialism - Views & Voices
​​Indonesians​ fighting against exploitation of their land for palm oil must confront ​​both​ ​powerful corporate interests and an extraordinary level of state control over land that can be traced bac...
views-voices.oxfam.org.uk
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Reposted by Edward Aspinall, Ward Berenschot

clmgrhm.bsky.social
Colum Graham @clmgrhm.bsky.social · May 30
Great new special issue out in South East Asia Research on village politics in Indonesia @edwardaspinall.bsky.social @wardb.bsky.social @kitlv.bsky.social @anubellschool.bsky.social @newmandala.bsky.social www.tandfonline.com/toc/rsou20/3...
South East Asia Research
Village Politics in Indonesia: Across Time and Space. Volume 33, Issue 1 of South East Asia Research
www.tandfonline.com
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wardb.bsky.social
Ward Berenschot @wardb.bsky.social · May 13
A open side-event at the upcoming RSPO meet in Paris on 20 may: Oxfam and Solidaridad are organising a screening of the documentary Colonial Debris, followed and panel discussion on land rights & palm oil.
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Reposted by Ward Berenschot

krisruijgrok.bsky.social
Kris Ruijgrok @krisruijgrok.bsky.social · Apr 16
Impressive report by @fittarelli.com from CitizenLab on Thailand's IO. Nice to see that one of the "influential black accounts" that we also identified in our recent article is now exposed as belonging to the Thai state.

www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
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Reposted by Ward Berenschot

carlquintanilla.bsky.social
Carl Quintanilla @carlquintanilla.bsky.social · Apr 16
Six months apart. 🇺🇸

@economist.com
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wardb.bsky.social
Ward Berenschot @wardb.bsky.social · Apr 10
Nice: Jakarta Post reported on our research on oligarchization & highlights why it matters: 'Oligarchization' blocks meaningful public participation in lawmaking www.thejakartapost.com/opinion/2025...
'Oligarchization' blocks meaningful public participation in lawmaking - Academia - The Jakarta Post
Collective action that involves all stakeholders of civil society is necessary to prevent the country's encroaching descent into an oligarchy.
www.thejakartapost.com
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Reposted by Ward Berenschot

nrc.nl
NRC @nrc.nl · Apr 4
Zijn Amerikaanse universiteit siddert onder het offensief van Donald Trump. Maar de zorgen van socioloog Jacob Boersema zijn breder. „In Nederland zien we daar ook tekenen van.” buff.ly/OvMYfK9
Als hij naar zijn universiteit in de VS reist, zegt deze Nederlandse racisme-onderzoeker liever niet meer wat hij precies doet
Sociologie: Zijn Amerikaanse universiteit siddert onder het offensief van Donald Trump. Maar de zorgen van socioloog Jacob Boersema zijn breder. „In Nederland zien we daar ook tekenen van.”
buff.ly
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wardb.bsky.social
Ward Berenschot @wardb.bsky.social · Mar 27
Inderdaad, ik was te optimistisch! Het leek erop dat rol van leger in overheid beperkt zou blijven, maar de uiteindelijke versie is heel zorgelijk

wardb.bsky.social
Ward Berenschot @wardb.bsky.social · Mar 25
In November 2024, Indonesia went to the polls to elect its local leaders. As i analyse in this short piece, these elections reflected an ongoing centralization of power. Jakarta aka Prabowo’s regime asserted itself on local politics.

www.insideindonesia.org/the-national...
The nationalisation of regional elections - Inside Indonesia: The peoples and cultures of Indonesia
A quarterly magazine on the peoples of Indonesia - cultures, politics, economy and environment
www.insideindonesia.org
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Reposted by Edmund Heery, Elizabeth Pisani, Maarten A. Hajer , and 3 more

newseye.bsky.social
News Eye @newseye.bsky.social · Mar 22
NEW: Elon Musk’s X has suspended accounts of Turkish opposition groups, suppressing footage of anti-government protests.

So, best we share all the footage we can here!

This was last night’s massive demo against Erdogan’s government, which follows the arrest of his rival Ekrem İmamoğlu.

🇹🇷 #Turkey
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Reposted by Simon L. Lewis, Ana S. L. Rodrigues, David A. Bell , and 4 more

paulecohen.bsky.social
Paul Cohen @paulecohen.bsky.social · Mar 19
Le Monde reporting that a French scientist traveling to Houston to attend a conference was denied entry to US after a search of his phone & computer revealed messages critical of Trump's science cuts, "which [says CPB] conveyed hatred of Trump & could be qualified as terrorism". Computer confiscated
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Reposted by Ward Berenschot

suzannekroger.bsky.social
Suzanne Kröger @suzannekroger.bsky.social · Mar 18
Het afpakken van rechten staat nooit op zichzelf. Dit gaat iedere Europeaan aan.

nos.nl/l/2560216
Hongarije neemt wet aan die Pride-mars verbiedt
Tijdens de stemming staken tegenstanders van premier Orbán rookfakkels af en werden nepafbeeldingen uitgedeeld waarop Orbán en de Russische president Poetin elkaar kussen.
nos.nl
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wardb.bsky.social
Ward Berenschot @wardb.bsky.social · Mar 17
Is de Indonesische president Prabowo zijn populariteit nu al kwijt? Ik was te gast bij Edwin Mooibroek’s Indonesie podcast, een overzicht van de de eerste maanden van Prabowo’s presidentsschap. www.indonesienieuws.nl/podcast-4/
Podcast: Zijn de wittebroodsweken van president Prabowo al voorbij?
De Indonesische president Prabowo is nu 5 maanden aan de macht. Om zijn belofte voor gratis lunch voor alle schoolkinderen en zwangere vrouwen te kunnen betalen moet de Indonesische overheid miljarden...
www.indonesienieuws.nl
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Reposted by Elliott L. Hazen, Helen Burstin, Tanya Heikkila , and 10 more

docsirianni.bsky.social
Rachael Sirianni, PhD @docsirianni.bsky.social · Mar 15
This is horrible to post, but I may as well post it. We are essentially shutting down research operations in my group, which is focused on treatments for pediatric brain cancer. I’m a well funded investigator, and there’s no choice. Science can’t function without the stability of NIH
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Reposted by Teja Tscharntke, Ward Berenschot

anneapplebaum.bsky.social
Anne Applebaum @anneapplebaum.bsky.social · Mar 8
If you missed it - this is @chrismurphyct.bsky.social describing the transfer of wealth from ordinary people to the very wealthy, happening right now

youtu.be/MXZuHf7LMZE?...
Murphy: Trump’s Billionaire Tax Cut is a Scam to Take Money From Regular People
YouTube video by Senator Chris Murphy
youtu.be
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Reposted by Ward Berenschot

therickydavila.bsky.social
Ricky Davila @therickydavila.bsky.social · Mar 1
Hillary Clinton warned everyone.
Hillary Clinton warned everyone.
Hillary Clinton warned everyone.
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