MIALS,The University of Melbourne
Victoria 3010,Australia
OR
3/12 Centennial Avenue
Brunswick West
Vic. 3055 Australia
Tel: 61 3 8344 6650 [o]
Fax: 61 3 9349 3472 [o]
Tel: 61 3 9387 8894 [h]
E-mail: ariefb@unimelb.edu.au
Chair of the Indonesian Program of the Melbourne University in Australia, Arief is a scholar and a social commentator on Indonesian affairs with a long-standing interest on political rights, political responsibilities and social harmony. Other issues that interest him are political economy of development, theory of the state and feminism.
Arief began his career as a journalist in Jakarta. In 1981, he worked at the Satya Wacana Christian University in Salatiga, Indonesia and helped establish its Graduate Program in Development Studies.
He was co-founder of the ‘Forum Demokrasi’, an advocacy movement on democracy. In 1994, after the banning of the newsmagazines Tempo, Editor and Detik, he co-founded the ‘Independent Journalists Alliance’ in opposition of the governments tight control over the press in Indonesia.
Arief was a member of the ARENA Executive Board 1994 – 1997