THE MYSTERIOUS MARKSMAN

Between 1983-1985, a series of extrajudicial executions of criminals took place throughout Indonesia in which bodies, many of which had tattoos, were found shot and left in public places. The killings, which became known as petrus, an acronym for penembak misterius (mysterious marksman) and were later admitted to be a government effort to control crime, terrified the unsuspecting public. Three of the stories in this collection are related to this confusing and frightening time. All of the stories deal with despair&mdash sometimes tender, sometimes absurd, sometimes grotesque. Seno Gumira Ajidarma is a master storyteller who can capture a sentiment&mdash fear, perplexity, heartache, stubbornness, pride&mdash and weave it into a chain of events that unravel as comedy or heartbreaking tragedy. These stories touch on moments in the lives of people&mdash assassins, office workers, abandoned wives, children, people waiting in a line or for a bus&mdash each struggling to deal with precious memories of the past, bewildering scenes in the present and alarming changes of an uncertain future.