BeritaBali.com, Badung – As the rainy season intensifies, Bali's iconic beaches – Kuta, Legian, and Seminyak – have once again been inundated with waste carried by ocean currents. The seasonal phenomenon, which worsens during the wet season, has created an unsightly mess along the coastline.

Yvette Tanamal, Jakarta – There have been at least 116 recorded cases of police brutality in the country this year, including 29 extrajudicial killings, a study by Amnesty International Indonesia has found, citing a lack of evaluation, normalized violence and a permissive government attitude toward police misconduct as the primary contributing factors to the "worrying" pattern.

Chontida Auikool – 20 years have passed since the Aceh tsunami, which left deep scars on Indonesia, especially for those directly affected. Aceh was also recovering from a three-decade armed conflict between the Free Aceh Movement and the national government

Riza, Sukabumi – A series of natural disasters in Sukabumi, West Java, has displaced 3,064 people and caused 12 deaths, with two still missing, according to the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB).

Yudono Yanuar, Jakarta – President Prabowo Subianto has set a target date of August 17, 2028, for the commencement of government operations in the new capital city of Nusantara or IKN. This timeline was revealed by Public Works and Public Housing Minister Dody Indra Wirawan.

Hanin Marwah, Jakarta – State-owned oil and gas company PT Pertamina (Persero) is lowering the price of aviation fuel at 19 priority airports across Indonesia. Pertamina President Director Simon Aloysius Mantiri said the policy was a step to reduce the price of air tickets ahead of the Christmas and New Year holiday season.

Septia Ryanthie, Jakarta – Former President Joko Widodo has responded to claims made by the Golkar Party's central board that he has become an honorary member of the party.

Jakarta – Former Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung has secured over 50 percent of the vote in the November 27 Jakarta gubernatorial election, the General Election Commission (KPU) announced on Sunday.

Ricki Putra Harahap, Jakarta – The campaign team for Jakarta gubernatorial candidate Pramono Anung has dismissed rival Ridwan Kamil's planned election lawsuit, citing a substantial margin in the vote tally.

Jayanty Nada Shofa, Jakarta – President Prabowo Subianto would need Rp 13,528 trillion or approximately $900 billion from foreign and domestic investors if he wants to make his 8 percent growth dream come true, government estimates show.

Alfida Rizki Febrianna, Jakarta – The government's assurance that a higher value-added tax (VAT) will apply only to luxury goods, and thus spare low-income families, is being met with skepticism by some analysts.

Antara, Jakarta – Armed Forces Commander General Agus Subiyanto has announced a major reshuffle involving around 300 high-ranking military officers across various government agencies, Antara reported on Monday.

Muhammad Aulia Rahman, Jakarta – The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) announced on Monday that it has recovered approximately Rp 2.4 trillion ($151.3 million) in stolen state assets since the current leadership took office in 2020.

Alfida Rizky Febrianna, Jakarta – Economist Achmad Nur Hidayat recently said that the government should clearly state what sort of "luxury goods" would be subject to the upcoming value-added tax (VAT) hike.

Reiner Brabar, Sorong – International Human Rights Day will be commemorated on December 10. This year is the 76th anniversary of Human Rights Day since the Universal Human Rights Declaration was issued by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948.

Reiner Brabar, Sorong – The All Nusantara leadership board of the Nduga High School and University Student Association (IPMNI) and the families of victims are urging the central government to resolve the human rights violations that occurred on December 7, 2000 in Abepura, Jayapura city, Papua.

Governor Powes Parkop of Papua New Guinea's capital Port Moresby has appealed to West Papuans living in his country to carry on the self-determination struggle for future generations and to not lose hope.

Parkop, a staunch supporter of the West Papua cause, reminded Papuans at their Independence Day last Sunday of the struggles of their ancestors, reports Inside PNG.

Adil Al Hasan, Jakarta – Minister of Agrarian Affairs and Spatial Planning/Head of the National Land Agency (ATR/BPN), Nusron Wahid said that his ministry is currently drafting Government Regulations on Sustainable Food Agricultural Land (LP2B). This is done to address the issue of paddy field conversion totaling up to 100 to 150 thousand hectares each year.

Thomas Rizal, Jakarta – Former President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo is expected to remain a significant political figure in Indonesia, with many productive years ahead at the age of 63. A political analyst suggests that Jokowi's influence could be further solidified by establishing his own political party.

Antara, Yustinus Paat, Jakarta – As former President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo distances himself from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), two of Indonesia's major political parties, Golkar and Gerindra, are vying for his allegiance.

Yustinus Paat, Jakarta – Amid growing public resistance to the planned increase in value-added tax (VAT), a close ally of President Prabowo Subianto clarified on Friday that specific goods and services will remain exempt from the tax.

Medikantyo Adhikresna, Jakarta – The government's plan to implement a 12 percent value-added tax (VAT) in 2025 is feared to reduce automotive sales due to price increases.

Several automotive manufacturers are considering measures to address this challenge, as the policy is expected to reduce consumer purchasing power and affect vehicle sales in the coming year.

Marchio Gorbiano, Jakarta – Fruit seller Budi was seeking better prospects when he signed up for an IT job in Cambodia. But he found himself detained in a heavily guarded compound where he was forced to carry out online scams.

Ervana Trikarinaputri, Jakarta – The Commission for the Disappeared and Victims of Violence (KontraS) recorded 62 cases of torture with a total of 128 victims from December 2023 to November 2024, spread across Indonesia. This data was collected through the Human Rights Monitoring conducted by KontraS over the past year.

Antara, Jakarta – The Communication and Digital Affairs Ministry has shut down three Instagram accounts with a combined following of over one million for promoting online gambling activities. The accounts – @mimin_storyy (774,000 followers), @awcogans (430,000 followers), and @meme.kocakk25 (177,000 followers) – have been removed.

Mita Amalia Hapsari, Jakarta – President Prabowo Subianto already has a plan to help Jakartans breathe cleaner air, according to his senior economic advisor Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan.

Jakarta – Femicide, or the killing of a woman or girl by a man, typically because of her gender, and other incidents of gender-based violence regularly make national and local headlines in the country.

Mita Amalia Hapsari, Jakarta – The government is now trying to find the middle ground following huge backlash to the 12-percent value added tax (VAT) plans, according to President Prabowo's economic advisor Mari Elka Pangestu.

Jakarta – At least seven people are missing following floods and landslides that hit Sukabumi regency, West Java in the past week, while authorities said at least five villagers lost their lives during the disaster.

Jayanty Nada Shofa, Jakarta – Indonesia recently urged countries to stop supplying weapons to Israel during an emergency special session on the Gaza crisis at the UN General Assembly.

Ervana Trikarinaputri, Jakarta – The Commission for the Disappeared and Victims of Violence (KontraS) has revealed that there were 45 extrajudicial killings by state apparatus in the past year. This data was collected by KontraS monitoring between December 2023 and November 2024.

Vinnilya, Jakarta – The textile industry is bracing for further hardship as a planned increase in Value Added Tax (VAT) to 12 percent takes effect in January 2025, potentially exacerbating an already difficult situation.

Olena Wibisana, Iman Rahman Cahyadi, Jakarta – Islamic preacher Miftah Maulana Habiburrahman, popularly known as Gus Miftah, announced Friday that he would resign from his position as the president's special envoy for religious harmony.

The 43-year-old preacher's resignation came after a video of him and an iced tea seller went viral on the internet.

Ichsan Ali, Jakarta – President Prabowo Subianto hinted on Friday that he would warmly welcome his predecessor, Joko "Jokowi" Widodo, should the latter choose to join the Great Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra).

Andrew Johnson – I have a friend Julian King, who Duncan Graham reports has been subjected to a stun grenade as our Australian Federal Police burst through his door to seize his PhD research, phone and computers. Reportedly, the AFP are concerned about OPM (Organisasi Papua Merdeka _Free Papua Organisation), the indigenous independence movement in West Papua.

Indonesia, West Papua – On 15 November 2024, thousands of Papuans went to the streets after the West Papua National Committee (KNPB) called for peaceful Papua-wide demonstrations against the central Government's plan to relaunch the transmigration program, with West Papua being one of the target areas.

Jakarta – Situ, as small lakes in the western part of Java are known, are part of the freshwater ecosystem, but often escape attention. These curved bodies of water have never been recorded as state assets because they formed naturally, without any proof of ownership. As a result, many of them are not maintained, and sediment builds up until they become ordinary land.

Alfida Rizky Febrianna, Jakarta – The planned increase in Indonesia's value-added tax (VAT) rate from 11 percent to 12 percent could reduce the country's gross domestic product (GDP) by Rp 21 trillion ($1.3 billion), an economist warned on Thursday.

Resty Woro Yuniar – Indonesia's struggle with deadly bootleg liquor, exacerbated by limited access to legal alcohol and deep cultural stigmas, has left the nation with the world's highest recorded methanol poisoning death toll, exposing a grim public health crisis.

Asher Ellis – Indonesia's recent scuffle with Apple over iPhone 16 sales offers a revealing window into the Prabowo administration's emerging trade and industrial policy.

Zulfakriza Z. – 20 years have passed since the Aceh tsunami, which left deep scars on Indonesia, especially for those directly affected. Aceh was also recovering from a three-decade armed conflict between the Free Aceh Movement and the national government

Jakarta – The Aceh Transition Committee (KPA) raised the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) flag during a ceremony that drew hundreds of attendees to commemorate GAM's 48th anniversary in Lhokseumawe, Aceh, on Wednesday.

Jakarta – Foreign Minister Sugiono acted calmly on Monday when House of Representatives Commission I legislators overseeing defense and foreign affairs bombarded the new chief diplomat with questions about several of President Prabowo Subianto's contentious decisions, including his controversial joint statement with Chinese President Xi Jinping last week.

Dio Suhenda, Jakarta – Teachers' associations remain skeptical about President Prabowo's recent announcement to significantly increase the remuneration of educators, noting that the new leader might have confused the plan with the prevailing certification program that has been in place for over a decade.

Ruth Dea Juwita, Jakarta – The foremost global conference on climate change resulted in a commitment from developed nations to fund climate change initiatives in developing nations to the tune of US$300 billion a year, but it is unclear how exactly Indonesia might avail itself of that funding.

Yustinus Paat, Jakarta – All political parties in the House of Representatives confirmed on Thursday the appointment of five commissioners for the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) and five members of its oversight body.

Yogi Eka Sahputra, Batam – Recent statements made by the Batam Development Authority or BP Batam during a hearing with the House of Representatives (DPR) have ignited strong opposition from residents who continue to vehemently reject the Rempang Eco-City project.

M. Raihan Muzzaki, Martha Warta Silaban, Surabaya – The Minister of Industry, Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita, stated that the Domestic Component Level or TKDN policy has received much criticism from various countries. Although he did not mention which country criticized it, he said such criticism is common for the Ministry of Industry.

Devy Ernis, Antara, Jakarta – Ahmad Zuhdi Muhdlor, chairman of the Tanfidziyah of the Nahdlatul Ulama Regional Board (PWNU) of the Special Region of Yogyakarta, proposed that the government create rules prohibiting children and teenagers under 16 from using social media.

Intan Setiawanty, Clara Maria Tjandra Dewi, Jakarta – Press Council will summon journalists who are suspected of being involved in police report manipulation in the shooting case of SMKN 4 Semarang students. This summons is also addressed to the management of CNN Indonesia to provide clarification.