Jakarta is a massive city densely populated with people and high-rise buildings. The city also holds a reputation for having chaotic traffic.

I interviewed Indonesia native, Bagus who is 22 years old. He works in Jakarta full-time as a Senior Assistant in Business Support Division at a reputable Indonesia company. He also recently started his own business, running a coffee shop on the side. Bagus described to me his typical day at work, “normally If you come to work before 9am you can leave an hour early. They let you have a give you time to eat breakfast until 10am and then you work until 12pm and take an hour lunch break. You start work again from 1pm until 4pm or 5pm”. Bagus made it seem like his company’s work culture was really relaxed. Another interesting thing he mentioned was about the presence of foreigners working in his company, “my boss is Indian and the company is owned by a Japanese businessman”. It appears a lot of foreigner’s work in Jakarta, often employed by foreign companies which means the workplace is surprisingly multicultural.

Bagus described to me his typical day at work, “normally If you come to work before 9am you can leave an hour early. They let you have a breakfast until 10am and then you work until 12pm and take an hour lunch break. You start work from 1pm until 4pm or 5pm”. Bagus made it seem like his company’s work culture was really relaxed. Another interesting thing he mentioned was about the presence of foreigners working in his company, “my boss is Indian and the company is owned by a Japanese businessman”. It appears a lot of foreigner’s work in Jakarta, often employed by foreign companies which means the workplace is surprisingly multicultural.

An interesting fact about Bagus is that he used to work and study in Australia so he would compare his work experience. “Do you know how much I earn a month?” to which I exclaimed “no”, not expecting anything to surprise me, “when I started working, I only earned around 300AUD a month”. This was a shock to hear as it is half the amount of the average starting salary in Australian is $45,000-$60,000AUD a year for a white-collar job. He proceeded to tell me about how he manages the coffee shop he runs on the side. “I work full-time Monday to Friday during the week and handle the coffee shop on weekends”. Bagus is a really hard-working individual, making ends meet as a young Indonesian male who is a year or two out of studying. He employs a handful of part-time and full-time employees, stating that he pays them roughly $150AUD for part-timers and $200AUD for full-timers a month.

A typical work day is 7-8 hours in Indonesia. According to studies the average wage in Indonesia is is Rp. 3.750.000,00. While the minimum wage in Jakarta is Rp. 3.355.000,00 (Average Salary in Indonesia 2019).  The cost of living in Indonesia is 49.85% lower than Australia (Numbeo 2019). It seems understandable that the average salary is lower as the cost of living is significantly lower shown statistically. The average salary in Indonesia is incredibly low compared to countries like Australia or America.

References

Average Salary in Indonesia 2019, Emolument, viewed 31^st January 2019 https://www.emolument.com/salary-reports/locations/indonesia/7222

Cost of Living in Indonesia, Numbeo, viewed 31^st January 2019 <https://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/country_result.jsp?country=Indonesia&gt;

Cost of Living for Expatriates in Jakarta 2016, Indo Indians, viewed 31^st January 2019 <https://www.indoindians.com/cost-of-living-for-expatriates-in-jakarta/&gt;

Name of interviewee has been changed to protect his identity.

Designers have the choice to be an ethical influence based on their own personal values and beliefs.  When they choose to challenge societal and cultural norms, they become an agent of change. In the context of Indonesia, cultural norms and expectations surrounding tobacco culture makes it a difficult environment for designers to be an agent of change. It is evident that Indonesia has some of the highest smoking rates and houses the second largest tobacco industry in the world (Indonesia Investments 2016). The majority of the Indonesian market being controlled by tobacco companies (Tjandra 2018). It’s a two-way street where the industry fosters design through advertising and production of packaged cigarettes and in turn designers design material that send a romanticised message about tobacco consumption. The industry essentially provides not only for jobs for designers but many employees across the country. The tobacco industry contributes approximately 10% of all Indonesian tax revenue and employs some 2.5m workers in farming and manufacturing (Tjandra 2018). Tobacco industry generates a large amount of revenue and employment in the country with the sourcing and production of material being done locally (Indonesia Investments 2016). Furthermore, lack of support from government and enforcement of tobacco advertising and control policies inhibits a designer’s ethical reach.

Similarly, in Australia the culture of drinking is widely accepted and associated with social occasions and bringing people together. Designers contribute through advertising of alcohol in general and sponsorship in sporting to send a certain message. The alcohol industry in Australia also generates economic development. The alcohol beverage industry in Australia makes a substantial contribution to Australia’s employment and economy providing jobs for more than 404,000 Australians and injects more than $19.7 billion every year into the Australian economy (Alcoholic Beverages Australia 2018). Although a widely accepted, there are also negative associations with alcohol such as binge drinking, drink driving and addiction. The difference with Indonesia is that the Australian government actively polices are enforced and carried out through advertising restrictions, lock out laws, drinking restrictions, public intoxication laws and visibility of bottles in public.

References

Industry Contribution, Alcoholic Beverages Australia, viewed 31^st January 2019 <https://www.alcoholbeveragesaustralia.org.au/information/industry-contribution-2/&gt;

Tobacco & Cigarette Industry Indonesia, Indonesia Investments, viewed 31^st January 2019 <https://www.indonesia-investments.com/business/industries-sectors/tobacco/item6873?>

Tjandra, N. 2018, Indonesia’s lax smoking laws are helping next generation to get hooked, The Jakarta Post, viewed 15^th January 2019 <https://www.thejakartapost.com/academia/2018/06/04/indonesias-lax-smoking-laws-are-helping-next-generation-to-get-hooked.html&gt;

Images

XXXX Gold Campaign 2016, Mumbrella, viewed 31^st January 2019, <https://mumbrella.com.au/xxxx-gold-launches-first-campaign-host-encourages-aussies-enjoy-little-things-406175>

Zhang, A. 2018, Tobacco Advertisement in Ambon, Photograph

Indonesia the highest smoking rates for males and the second biggest market for tobacco in the world (Tjandra 2018). Lack of support for tobacco control from the Indonesian government means that tobacco companies hold substantial power politically and financially in marketing their products. This was clearly seen on my walk around the local area in Ambon as tobacco advertisements were spotted at almost every corner on my journey from the main road near the hotel to more the suburban areas. They appeared in forms of posters, banners, billboards, on bins and even on vehicles. It was no surprise to find out that tobacco advertising in Indonesia is considered the most aggressive and innovating in the world (Danadarono et al 2009).

While exploring the neighbourhood near the hotel, it was very apparent that the smokers that I came across were all males. I observed that they were either standing by the streets, sitting on motorbikes or loitering in small groups around stores. This resonates with the WHO Report on global tobacco epidemic which reveals that 65% of adult men in Indonesia smoke while only 2% of females smoke (World Health Organisation 2017). I thought perhaps there was a link between the main demographics of smokers being males to the aggressive advertising of tobacco.  

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Through my walk from the main roads to the more suburban areas of Ambon, I found the frequency of tobacco advertisements were high around the main roads and lower in the suburban areas.  I rarely saw the same frequency of advertising for other products and services in the area. It’s as if you can’t escape from tobacco advertisements with one or even multiple popping up at every store, wall or pole you pass by. I observed the content of advertisements contained English slogans such as “Never quit” or “We are Stronger” usually paired with imagery of men doing “masculine” or “cool” things. I found in my research that the key theme of these advertisements is to do with enhancing masculinity through smoking (Danadaro et al 2009). I thought that was an interesting aspect of culture here, the idea of smoking as a desirable image linked to “being a man”. It seems that Indonesian men know the health risks of smoking but the message tying masculinity to smoking has led to a massive increase in smoking among these classes (Schewe 2017).

Tobacco culture thrives through advertising locally in Ambon and nationally as Indonesia is the only country in Asia that has not signed the World Health Organisation’s Framework Convention of Tobacco Control (Tjandra 2018). It’s disheartening to see a city so colourful and diverse plagued with the advertising of tobacco at every corner.

References:

Danardono, M. Nichter, Ma. Nichter, M.  Ng, N. Padmawati, S. Prabandari, Y. 2009, Reading culture from tobacco advertisements in Indonesia, Tobacco Control, viewed 15^th January 2019 <https://tobaccocontrol.bmj.com/content/18/2/98.short>

Schewe E. 2017, Why do so many Indonesian men smoke?, JSTOR Daily, viewed 15^th January 2019 <https://daily.jstor.org/why-do-so-many-indonesian-men-smoke/>

Tjandra, N. 2018, Indonesia’s lax smoking laws are helping next generation to get hooked, The Jakarta Post, viewed 15^th January 2019 <https://www.thejakartapost.com/academia/2018/06/04/indonesias-lax-smoking-laws-are-helping-next-generation-to-get-hooked.html>

Report on the global tobacco epidemic 2017, World Health Organisation,  viewed 15^th January 2019 <https://www.who.int/tobacco/surveillance/policy/country_profile/idn.pdf>

Tobacco smoking kills more than 7 million people worldwide a year and is one of the biggest health threats in the world. In America, it is the largest preventable cause of death and disease, killing more than 480 000 Americans a year through smoking and second-hand smoke exposure. Policies such as raising the cost of smoking through taxes, funding anti-smoking media campaigns, as well as ensuring that health professionals to routinely advise smokers to stop (West 2017) are just some control methods in battling the tobacco epidemic.

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The CDC anti-smoking ad campaign “Tips from former smokers (Tips)” released in 2012 is an example of a tobacco control design initiative in America. The campaign was funded by the government and produced by the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention. This campaign is educational, and emphasises the burden of smoking through profiling real people who are living with serious long-term health effects from smoking (Centres for Disease Control and Prevention 2012). Emphasis on health issues caused by smoking or exposure to second-hand smoke include cancer, heart disease, stroke, asthma, diabetes complications and many more. The campaign is a harsh reality check for smokers in terms of health consequences and the impact on their families. The campaign features video, print and social media advertisements as well as a website containing information and resources about the campaign. The campaign features testimonials from smokers dealing with the health consequences paired with confronting images of the damage to their bodies. It encourages smokers to quit through a motivation for their family and realising the health burden of smoking.

The campaign continues to run today and has shown high success in terms of cost, costing less than what the tobacco industry spends to market their products. A positive response from the audience was also received, it was estimated that more than 9 million smokers have attempted to quit because of the campaign; and estimates that more than half a million have quit for good (Tobacco Free Kids 2013). Statistics gathered from the campaign website shows that when the campaign aired in 2012, an estimated 1.64 million smokers to make a quit attempt and about 100,000 smokers to quit for good (Centres for Disease Control and Prevention 2012). Studies on the success of this campaign shows that increased worries about health led to greater quitting intentions among U.S. smokers. While it was also evident the hard-hitting, graphic, and emotional advertisements was also effective at changing cessation-related outcomes (Alexander et al. 2015). Although the campaign only aired for three months it received a highly successful results of smokers attempting to quit and quiting for good. Therefore, airing anti-smoking mass media campaigns with greater frequency and consistency across the United States has had a positive impact in decreasing the use of tobacco (Alexander et al. 2015). On top of funding and airing anti-smoking media campaigns, there are opportunities to increase funding in other areas that are overlooked in the tobacco control policy in America such as tobacco cessation services and increasing coverage in health insurance plans for those services (Cameron et al. 2016).  

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References

Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, 2012, Tips From Former Smokers, CDC, Washington, viewed 13^th January 2019, <https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/campaign/tips/about/index.html>

Tobacco Free Kids, 2013, CDC’s Anti-Smoking Ad Campaign Spurred Over 100,000 Smokers to Quit, TBFK, Washington, viewed 13^th January 2019, <https://www.tobaccofreekids.org/press-releases/2013_09_09_cdc>

West, R. 2017, Tobacco smoking: Health impact, prevalence, correlates and interventions, NCIB, viewed 13^th January 2019, <https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5490618/&gt;

Alexander, R. L. Beistle, D. M. Davis, K C. Duke, J. C. Fraze, J. L. MacMonegle, A. J. Rodes, R. M. 2015, Impact of U.S anti-smoking national media campaign on beliefs, cognitions and quit intentions, NCIB, viewed 13^th January 2019, < https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4514523/&gt;

Cameron, B. J Carr, T. A Lapin, B. Mader, E. M. Morley C. P. 2016, Update on Performance in Tobacco Control: A Longitudinal Analysis of the Impact of Tobacco Control Policy and the US Adult Smoking Rate, 2011-2013, NCIB, viewed 13^th January 2019, <https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5035147/&gt;

Images

Tips Christine Cancer, Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, viewed 13^th January 2019, <https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/campaign/tips/resources/social/images/tips-christine-cancer-sm-934×700.jpg&gt;

Tips Bill Diabetes, Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, viewed 13^th January 2019, <https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/campaign/tips/resources/social/images/tips-bill-diabetes-sm-934×700.jpg&gt;

Tips Felicita Gum Disease, Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, viewed 13^th January 2019, < https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/campaign/tips/resources/social/images/tips-felicita-gum-sm-934×700.jpg&gt;

Tips Amanda Print Ad, Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, viewed 13^th January 2019,
<https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/campaign/tips/resources/ads/pdf-print-ads/amandas-tip-print-ad-7×10.pdf

Tips Beatrice Print Ad, Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, viewed 13^th January 2019,
<https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/campaign/tips/resources/ads/pdf-print-ads/beatrices-tip-print-ad-7×10.pdf&gt;

Tips Becky Print Ad, Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, viewed 13^th January 2019,
<https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/campaign/tips/resources/ads/pdf-print-ads/beckys-tip-print-ad-7×10.pdf&gt;

Website Screenshot, Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, viewed 13^th January 2019,
<https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/campaign/tips/?s_cid=osh-stu-home-spotlight-002&gt;