Alfida Rizky Febrianna, Jakarta – The Financial Services Authority (OJK) is set to implement new regulations allowing financial technology platforms to offer online loans of up to Rp 10 billion ($617,526), an increase from the previous limit of Rp 2 billion.

Hendrik Yaputra, Jakarta – The Executive Board of Nahdlatul Ulama (PBNU), Indonesia's second-largest Islamic organization, has expressed deep disappointment and concern over a recent meeting between five of its members and Israeli President Isaac Herzog.

Jakarta – The Setara Institute for Peace and Democracy opposes the revisions to Law Number 4/2004 on the Indonesian Military (UU TNI) saying that they could reverse reformasi – the political reform process that began in 1998.

Dio Suhenda, Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo has joined a lengthy roster of world leaders to condemn an attack on former United States president Donald Trump that left the Republican presidential candidate with an injured ear.

Jakarta – The head of the TNI Information Center or Kapuspen, Maj. Gen. Nugraha Gumilar, said the recruitment for military cyber soldiers was still in the planning stage. This plan was conveyed by TNI Commander General Agus Subiyanto following the hacking of TNI Strategic Intelligence Agency or BAIS data at the end of June 2024.

Muhammad Syarahil Mutianwar Efendi – Indonesia's gig workers – who navigate the digital marketplace as delivery personnel, ride-hailing drivers or online freelancers – are in an increasingly precarious position. They are essential cogs in the gig economy but often lack the safety nets traditionally associated with formal employment.

Felix K. Chang (FPRI) – In February 2024, Indonesia elected Prabowo Subianto as its next president. While he does not take office until October, speculation over whether and how Indonesia's foreign policy might change is already swirling.

Haryudi, Aceh – The National Statistics Agency (BPS) recently released surprising data about rape cases in Indonesia. Based on the report "Criminal Statistics 2023" issued by the BPS, Aceh emerged as the province with the highest number of rape cases in 2023.

Jakarta – The presiding judge of a high court in West Java painted a damning portrait of the state of law enforcement in the country when he recently proclaimed that police officers had wrongfully arrested Pegi Setiawan, 27, for allegedly masterminding a 2016 double murder in Cirebon regency.

Jayanty Nada Shofa, Jakarta – Investment Minister Bahlil Lahadalia recently denied claims of China having a monopoly on foreign investments in Indonesia.

Reuters, Jakarta – Indonesia's President-elect Prabowo Subianto wants to give school children free meals, but the plan and his pledge to be 'daring' on spending have the country's debt and currency markets on edge.

Ambaranie Nadia Kemala Movanita, Jakarta – Institute of Southeast Asian Studies (ISEAS) military observer Made Supriatma has highlighted the proposal for revisions to the TNI (Indonesian military) Law to allow TNI soldiers to conduct business activities.

Australia's BHP Group will temporarily suspend its Nickel West operations and West Musgrave project from October, the miner said on Thursday, as it reels from a plunge in metal prices and an oversupply in the global market.

The world's largest listed miner intends to review its decision to temporarily suspend its Western Australia nickel operations by February 2027.

Jakarta – Kaesang Pangarep, chairman of the Indonesian Solidarity Party (PSI), suggested that his party would not be joining the Golkar-led coalition in the Banten gubernatorial election to support frontrunner Airin Rachmi Diany.

Singapore – One of the companies behind the world's biggest carbon credit project won a key court battle in Indonesia as it attempts to resume activity at the vast site in Borneo.

Irfan Maulana, Padarincang, Indonesia – On a white-hot afternoon in June, people from Padarincang subdistrict gathered near a mountain lake to recite an istighosah, an Islamic prayer blended with Indigenous context here in Indonesia's Banten province.

Zhulfakar, Jakarta – The Golkar Party will appoint a businessman as a running mate for Kaesang Pangarep, the youngest son of President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo, if he runs in the Jakarta gubernatorial election in November, party chairman Airlangga Hartarto said on Thursday.

Jakarta – Over the past two weeks, we have heard the bad news of the sudden dismissal of a medical school dean in Surabaya, East Java. From Medan, good news has circulated about a number of children recovering after successful heart surgery at the Adam Malik General Hospital in the North Sumatra capital.

Hans Nicholas Jong, Jakarta – Activists allege that two of the world's biggest pulp and paper companies have violated their zero-deforestation pledge by clearing natural forests and peatlands in Indonesia.

Vinnilya Huanggrio, Jakarta – The government has cut off access to online gambling networks operating from Thailand and Cambodia, an official said in a recent interview.

Efforts to break the cycle of regional gambling syndicates in Indonesia began three weeks ago, said Usman Kansong, a director general with the Ministry of Communication and Informatics.

Zach Hope and Amilia Rosa – Consider yourself a "quality" tourist? Bali, Australia's favourite jaunt, has set an easy bar for qualification: follow the rules (the important ones at least) and be respectful.

This year the Balinese have added another, exceedingly modest, condition. And it is already being violated by about half the island's foreign visitors.

Jakarta – The water crisis in Weda Tengah subdistrict, Central Halmahera, North Maluku, is a sharp illustration of the difference between rhetoric and the reality of environmental policy. How can promises about sustainable water management be realized if the government continues to grant mining concessions that damage the local ecosystem?

Riri Rahayu, Jakarta – Indonesian President Joko Widodo or Jokowi issued Presidential Regulation (Perpres) No. 75 of 2024 concerning the Acceleration of Development of the Nusantara Capital City (IKN) on Thursday, July 11, 2024. This decree outlines several key measures to attract investors and expedite the construction process.

Ilona Estherina, Eka Yudha, Jakarta – Political observer Adi Prayitno doubts the future of Indonesia's new capital city project, or Nusantara Capital City (IKN), after the government transfer from President Joko Widodo or Jokowi to Prabowo Subianto. The difference in the priority programs between both leaders will potentially hamper the continuity of IKN construction.

Putri Safira Pitaloka, Michelle Gabriela, Jakarta – President Joko Widodo or Jokowi emphasized that the new capital transfer from Jakarta to Nusantara Capital City (IKN) won't be forced before the infrastructure is ready.

Ilona Estherina, Jakarta – Indonesia's government has no immediate plans to revise the latest import regulations, according to Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto. The current regulations are outlined in the Trade Minister's Regulation No. 8 of 2024, which came into effect on May 17, 2024.

Annisa Febiola, Jakarta – Minister of Investment Bahlil Lahadalia said Indonesia's economic growth in 2023 was one of the best in the world, supported by a strong investment rate.

Shela Octavia, Jessi Carina, Jakarta – TNI (Indonesian military) Commander General Agus Subiyanto is considered to have been too hasty in concluding that there was no involvement of TNI personnel in the fatal fire at the home of Tribrata TV reporter Rico Sempurna Pasaribu in Karo regency, North Sumatra.

Jakarta – Certain connecting roads in South Lampung regency, Lampung, appear to still be damaged despite President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's visit last year, following a viral video showing the worsening conditions of the roads in Sumatra's southernmost province.

Antara, Jakarta – Ridwan Kamil, the curator of the new capital city Nusantara (IKN), announced that the core area, comparable in size to Jakarta's National Monument (Monas), is expected to be completed by August.

Antara, Jakarta – The new Law No. 4 of 2024 on Maternal and Child Welfare (KIA Law) can protect Indonesian couples from the rising childfree trend, according to Bonivasius Prasetya Ichtiarto, Deputy for Population Control at the National Population and Family Planning Board (BKKBN).

Alfi Dinilhaq, Jakarta – Cybersecurity expert Alfons Tanujaya has called for a decisive response from the government to online gambling operators who have hacked government websites in retaliation for the crackdown on online gambling.

Aditya Hadi, Jakarta – Indonesia has set its sights on ratifying a preferential trade agreement (PTA) with Iran, with many expecting it to open doors for local products to markets in Central Asia, South Asia and the Middle East, but experts have urged caution over its geopolitical situation and sanctions from Western countries.

Nirmala Maulana Achmad, Aryo Putranto Saptohutomo, Jakarta – Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI) Director Muhammad Isnur has questioned why a Presidential Letter (Surpres) on the Draft National Police Law (RUU Polri) has been issued before a problem inventory list (DIM) has been drafted or study of the bill.

Irfandi, Heru Andriyanto, Makassar – The government has announced vacancies for new commissioners of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), but the selection committee reported on Thursday that only one woman has applied among the 79 applicants so far.

Iman Rahman Cahyadi, Jakarta – Several websites belonging to the central and local governments were compromised by hackers on Thursday in what appears to be a retaliatory attack against the ongoing crackdown on gambling apps and websites.

Jakarta – The national petrochemical industry is also in need of protection from the rush of imported plastic raw materials just like the textile industry after the 2024 Trade Ministry regulation entered into force. This is crucial to ensure the sustainability of the domestic industry and also to convince companies who wish to make major expansions to meet the domestic demand.

Jayanty Nada Shofa, Jakarta – An American government official said Thursday that the promised JETP money worth billions of dollars meant to help Indonesia's energy transition is already moving.

Sandy Yule – When Melbourne-born Helen Hill, an outstanding social activist, scholar and academic, died on May 7, 2024, at the age of 79, the Timorese government sent its Minister for Education, Dulce de Jesus Soares, to deliver a moving eulogy at the funeral service at Church of All Nations in Carlton.

Celvin Moniaga Sipahutar, Jakarta – Chief Security Minister Hadi Tjahjanto confirmed on Thursday that the upcoming simultaneous elections for governors, mayors, and regents will proceed as planned.

Indonesia will elect 38 governors and more than 500 mayors and regents across the country on November 27.

Antara, Jakarta – Investment Minister and Head of the Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) Bahlil Lahadalia is advocating for the extension of gold miner Freeport Indonesia's (PTFI) Special Mining Permit (IUPK) before President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's term ends in October.

Saskia E Wieringa – Despite a long history of acceptance of trans and same-sex practices, homosexuality in Indonesia is currently framed as deriving from the West, and as alien to the country's traditions and majority religion, Islam.

Anton Nilsson – The suspected killing by fire of an Indonesian journalist last month is just the latest case of reporters in the country being intimidated for their work, journalists and researchers tell Crikey.

Astrid Meilasari-Sugiana, Gunardi Endro and Siwage Dharma Negara – Public expectations for corruption eradication will never be met unless fundamental reforms are implemented within Indonesia's Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) and other law enforcement agencies, including the National Police and the Attorney General's Office.

Jakarta – Former agriculture minister Syahrul Yasin Limpo was jailed for 10 years on Thursday after he was found guilty of misappropriating more than $900,000 of public funds.

The Jakarta Corruption Court found the Nasdem Party politician guilty of ordering officials in his ministry to send him money from state coffers, some of which was used for his personal expenses.

Apriadi Gunawan, Medan – North Sumatra Police named on Thursday a third suspect allegedly involved in an arson attack that killed a journalist and his family in Karo regency in the province.

"We have named B as a new suspect in the case," provincial police chief Comr. Gen. Agung Setya Imam Effendi said on Thursday, identifying the person by his initial.

Jakarta – Indonesian President-elect Prabowo Subianto will allow the nation's debt-to-GDP ratio to rise to 50 per cent provided his administration can boost tax revenues, the Financial Times reported citing one of his closest advisers.

Radhiyya Indra, Jakarta – As public anger over the failure to prevent the ransomware attack on a temporary national data center facility in late June starts to wane, experts and civil groups have urged the government to be transparent about its progress in recovering the impacted databases.

Dio Suhenda, Jakarta – Authorities are investigating 11 faculty members at Lambung Mangkurat University (ULM) who have been accused of violating academic ethics to earn their professorships, as public pressure rises on the government to sanction academics of similar cases plaguing the country's higher education.

Jakarta – Coordinating Ministry for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs stated that the Indonesian Armed Forces' (TNI's) dual functions contained in the TNI Bill will not bring the state institution into the New Order era.