Matthew Kish (The Oregonian/OregonLive) – Once a month, American labor activist Jim Keady logs into Remitly, an app for transferring money abroad, at his New Jersey home and sends $100 to a former Nike factory worker in Indonesia.

Chesa Andini Saputra, Alfi Dinilhaq, Bambang Ismoyo, Jakarta – Indonesia's financial regulators staged an extraordinary collective retreat on Friday, resigning in rapid succession after a sharp market sell-off rattled investor confidence and exposed long-standing weaknesses in market governance.

Nandito Putra, Jakarta – The Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Center (PPATK) has revealed a significant volume of funds suspected to originate from illegal mining activities in Indonesia. During the period of 2023-2025, the total turnover of funds related to unlicensed mining reached Rp992 trillion.

Adi Warsidi, Jakarta – Aceh Governor Muzakir Manaf announced the end of the Aceh disaster emergency response phase. The status will transition to a 90-day disaster recovery period.

Ervana Trikarinaputri, Jakarta – The Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) has urged President Prabowo Subianto to withdraw Indonesia's membership from the Board of Peace initiated by the United States. MUI Vice Chair Cholil Nafis conveyed this through his personal social media account on Wednesday, January 28, 2026.

Ria Fortuna Wijaya, Jakarta – Around 4,000 civil servants are set to relocate to Indonesia's new capital, Nusantara, later this year, Vice President Gibran Rakabuming said on Thursday, as the government pointed to steady progress in completing core facilities in the city.

Lusa – The Government of Timor-Leste will propose changes to the public debt regime in order to diversify sources of financing and reduce dependence on the Petroleum Fund, Timorese Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao announced on Thursday.

Muhammad Aulia Rahman, Jakarta – Stste prosecutors have seized documents and electronic evidence during searches of the home of former Environment and Forestry Minister Siti Nurbaya Bakar and several other locations as part of an investigation into alleged corruption in the governance of the palm oil plantation and industry sector.

Sharia police have caned a couple 140 times each in Indonesia's Aceh province for having sex outside marriage and drinking alcohol, likely one of the severest such punishments since the deeply conservative region adopted Islamic law.

Apriadi Gunawan, Medan – A civil lawsuit against two corporations accused of causing environmental damage linked to the devastating Sumatra floods formally opened this week at the Medan District Court in North Sumatr

Rofiqi Hasan (Kontributor), Jakarta – Coinciding with the 6th Bali Liquor Day at The Westin Resort, Nusa Dua, Badung, on Thursday, January 29, 2026, the Industry Ministry handed over the Bali liquor production license to the Bali Provincial Government.

Singapore – MSCI is a powerhouse within the $139 trillion asset management industry and its decisions are hugely consequential for countries around the world – as Indonesian investors learned this week to their cost.

Indonesia officially announced its entry into the Gaza Peace Council at the World Economic Forum 2026 in Davos on January 22. The Gaza Peace Council is a Trump-backed initiative that, according to RRI, aims to safeguard a multilateral, humanitarian effort to reconstruct Gaza, RRI reports.

Jakarta – The nomination of Thomas Djiwandono, President Prabowo Subianto's nephew, for Deputy Governor of Bank Indonesia (BI) could damage the independence of the central bank. This move could undermine investors' trust and disrupt national economic stability.

Arnoldus Kristianus, Jakarta – The government is finalizing a Ramadan-Eid al Fitr 2026 stimulus package aimed at supporting both demand and supply to lift economic growth in the first quarter of 2026.

Jayanty Nada Shofa, Jakarta – Senior minister Airlangga Hartarto recently denied that tariff talks with the US had involved some terms related to drone purchases, while saying that the document signing hinges on the leaders' availability.

Indah Handayani, Jakarta – Rupiah closed weaker against the US dollar on Thursday, sliding despite a softer greenback, as domestic concerns overshadowed relatively limited external pressures.

Bloomberg spot exchange data showed the rupiah fell 33 points, or 0.2%, to Rp 16,755 per dollar. In contrast, the US dollar index slipped 0.27% to 96.18.

Apriadi Gunawan, Medan – Two months after devastating floods struck Sumatra, many children in North Sumatra, West Sumatra and Aceh provinces are still studying in tents under difficult conditions as clean-up and repair work at damaged schools drag o

Faisal Maliki Baskoro, Jakarta – Vice President Gibran Rakabuming on Thursday dismissed claims that Nusantara, Indonesia's future capital in East Kalimantan, is turning into a "ghost town," insisting that construction and the phased relocation of civil servants are progressing according to plan.

Jamal Abdun Nashr, Jakarta – Hundreds of students from State High School 2 Kudus suffered food poisoning after consuming free nutritious meals (MBG) on Thursday, January 29, 2026. The food distribution program was part of President Prabowo Subianto's campaign promises.

Endang Mulyani, Jakarta – Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka on Thursday reiterated the government's commitment to accelerating development in Papua, one of Indonesia's poorest regions, citing plans to expand healthcare, improve transport infrastructure, and widen access to education.

Ary Hermawan – Eyeing the 2029 legislative elections, Indonesia's National Mandate Party has rebranded itself as the "party of the youth" and looks set to jettison its image as the "Muhammadiyah party".

On 24 January 2026, Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI) tortured and intimidated 20-year-old Nonis Bahabol in the Tomon 2 area of Dekai Town, Yahukimo Regency.

Gembong Hanung, Jakarta – The Jakarta provincial administration has widened its weather modification efforts to the skies over the capital's satellite cities until next week, with an aim to curb intense rainfall that recently triggered flooding in the city.

Jayapura – The People's Earth Heritage Foundation (Pusaka) says there are four patterns used by the government to "rob" Papua of its natural resources.

Sita Planasari, Jakarta – Indonesia has rejected demands from the United States to buy U.S. drones as part of their trade deal, as reported by The Straits Times citing relevant sources, as quoted from Antara.

Sultan Abdurrahman, Jakarta – A member of the Presidential Security Detail (Paspampres) received a reprimand from a journalist during President Prabowo Subianto's visit to the United Kingdom. Responding to the incident that later circulated on social media, Paspampres stated that their member's action was in accordance with procedures.

Andrew Tito, Jakarta – Heavy rainfall across Jakarta and surrounding areas since Wednesday night has pushed several floodgates and river monitoring posts to alert status, leaving dozens of neighborhoods and major roads inundated across the capital.

Monique Handa Shafira, Jakarta – Indonesia's financial regulator said it will raise the minimum public shareholding requirement for listed companies to 15%, up from 7.5%, as authorities move to address investor concerns flagged by MSCI over market transparency and investability.

Debate within the Commission for the Acceleration of National Police (Polri) Reforms is still about institutional matters rather than more fundamental problems. The issue discussed is whether Polri should be placed under a particular ministry, come under the authority of a new ministry like a National Security Ministry, or remain as it is.

On 22 January 2026, Prabowo signed the Board of Peace (BoP) Charter that was initiated by the United States in Davos, Switzerland. This shows a misguided commitment of the Indonesian Government towards all the efforts that the civil society has done to show support and solidarity for Palestine.

Jakarta – The National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas) had its funding cut during a hearing with the House of Representatives on Wednesday as part of a plan to divert government expenditure to other programs, despite concerns over the number of disasters the agency has to deal with.

Alif Ilham Fajriadi, Jakarta – The Food Processing Journal from the Faculty of Agriculture, Alkhairaat University, Palu, published a study three years ago on the nutritional content of shredded Suckermouth Catfish (Common Pleco) from the Ciliwung River, Jakarta.

Hans Nicholas Jong, Jakarta – Indigenous rights activists have condemned the Indonesian government's decision to grant 328,000 hectares (810,505 acres) of cultivation rights for a massive rice plantation project in Papua, warning that the final land permit was issued at unusually rapid speed, compared with the years-long process typically required for large-scale plantation permits.

Singapore – Indonesian stocks on Thursday were plunging toward their largest two-day fall on record as the risk of a downgrade to frontier market status triggered a headlong rush for the exits.

Eka Yudha Saputra, Jakarta – The Convergence Digital Indonesia Innovative Synergy Association (Kondisi) has criticized the Ministry of Communication and Digital (Komdigi) for promoting job vacancies without providing adequate protection for applicants' personal data.

Robert Dougherty – Australia has announced a joint declaration on establishing Parseria Foun ba Era Foun (New partnership for a new era) with the government of the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste.

Basten Gokkon – Indonesian authorities have detained five people in connection with the alleged illegal hunting and shooting of an endangered Javan leopard in the Gunung Sanggabuana conservation forest in West Java, a case that has intensified scrutiny of wildlife protection failures and the limits of enforcement on the ground.

Reiner Brabar, Jayapura – The timber industry in Sorong regency, Southwest Papua, generates billions of rupiah in profits from merbau wood, but indigenous communities who own customary land only receive around 0.6 percent of the export value.

Burhanuddin Muhtadi – While the Prabowo Subianto government and its coalition partners in parliament have temporarily shelved their plans to abolish direct local elections due to public discontent, this years-long initiative is not dead.

Jayanty Nada Shofa, Jakarta – Sovereign wealth fund Danantara wants the state-run vaccine manufacturer Bio Farma to let go of its pharmaceutical subsidiary Kimia Farma amid ambitious business overhauls.

Philip Jacobson, Loeha Raya, Indonesia – The road to the headquarters of the Loeha Raya Farmers' Cooperative is inundated from the monsoon, and a baby cayman splashes around in a puddle formed in a natural crater by the side of the road.

Antara, Badung, Bali – Indonesia's alcoholic beverage industry contributed about Rp 9.3 trillion ($554 million) to state revenue in 2025, the Industry Ministry said on Thursday.

There is no need to continue with the anti-disinformation and foreign propaganda bill. Existing legislation is sufficient.

Deden Abdul Aziz (Kontributor), Jakarta – A total of 205 early childhood, elementary, and junior high school students, as well as toddlers, in Cikalongkulon District, Cianjur Regency, West Java, are suspected of experiencing food poisoning after consuming foods from the free nutritious meal (MBG) program on Tuesday, January 27, 2026.

Gembong Hanung, Jakarta – The government has halted the operations at major emitting facilities run by eight companies in Greater Jakarta for violating emission standards, a move critics say may offer limited relief in tackling pollution from the region long choked by coal-fired power plants.

Pribadi Wicaksono (Kontributor), Jakarta – Shadow economy is a growing threat to fiscal stability in Indonesia, said fiscal policy researcher from the Faculty of Economics and Business at Gadjah Mada University (UGM) Yogyakarta, Rijadh Djatu Winardi. He warns the Indonesian government that intentional "hidden" economic activities could lead to significant state losses.

Fuat Edi Kurniawan, Sadar Ginting, Anna Christi Suwardi – In the upper reaches of the Mahakam River, inside one of the last intact rainforest corridors of Borneo, the Dayak Bahau community of Long Isun has been fighting a long, layered battle for justice.

Jakarta – The death toll from a landslide in Indonesia has risen to 34 with dozens still missing, authorities said on Wednesday, days after the torrent of debris crashed through a mountain village.

Heavy rain triggered the landslide that barreled through Pasirlangu on Saturday, severely damaging dozens of homes and displacing hundreds.

Theressia Sunday Silalahi, Celvin Moniaga Sipahutar, Jakarta – President Prabowo Subianto officially inaugurated the members of Indonesia's National Energy Council (DEN) at the Presidential Palace on Wednesday, amid speculation of a possible cabinet reshuffle.