Powerhouse nations have powerful sports organizations. Japan. South Korea. Even China. They all boast big-time soccer, baseball or basketball leagues playing to packed houses with national television audiences. What then does the sorry state of pro sports in Indonesia say about the 200 million-strong archipelago? Perhaps more than abandoned building projects or creeping separatism, Indonesia's National League, a 28-team soccer federation that plays in decrepit stadiums on spotty pitches, is enough to make even the most patriotic pribumi wonder what has gone wrong.
As with so many symbols of the tur-moil in Indonesia, the fate of the country's...
