Bella Evanglista, Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo officially appointed Police Inspector General Eddy Hartono as the head of the National Counter-Terrorism Agency (BNPT) on Wednesday. Eddy, a former key figure in Indonesia's elite counter-terrorism unit, Densus 88, brings a wealth of experience to his new role.

Ilham Oktafian, Stefani Wijaya, Jakarta – Sports Minister Dito Ariotedjo is planning to report an alleged misuse of funds dedicated to run the 2024 National Sports Week (PON).

Ruth Dea Juwita, Jakarta – The gig economy has trapped a significant chunk of Indonesia's young workforce in jobs that make it harder for them to move up and achieve optimal welfare, with repercussions for national human capital development.

Tenggara Strategics, Jakarta – Anies Baswedan, the former Jakarta governor and candidate in the last recent presidential election, finds himself at a critical crossroads in his political career after failing to secure a nomination for the 2024 Jakarta gubernatorial race. With his ambitions momentarily stymied, speculation is rife about his next move.

Jakarta – After losing in February's presidential election and failing to register his reelection bid in Jakarta last month, former governor Anies Baswedan has alluded to the possibility of forming his own civil society group or political party to channel the growing public demand for change.

Jakarta – Several political parties have named celebrities to lead the campaign teams for their respective nominated candidates using their popularity as part of the effort to garner votes ahead of the November regional head elections.

Yerica Lai, Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo named on Wednesday Saifullah Yusuf, the secretary-general of the nation's largest Islamic organization Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), to replace former social affairs minister Tri Rismaharini, known as Risma, who resigned to focus on campaigning for the November regional election.

Jakarta – Information and Communications Minister Budi Arie Setiadi has defended chairman of the Indonesian Solidarity Party (PSI) chairman Kaesang Pangareng's lavish trip to the United States on a private jet last month, saying that President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's son was only trying to protect his wife.

Dio Suhenda, Jakarta – Defense Minister and president-elect Prabowo Subianto has completed a high-profile diplomatic tour of five ASEAN nations a little over a month before his inauguration as the country's new leader in October, a move seen by many as a way to bolster the country's influence within the region amid rising tensions.

Rebecca Ratcliffe and agencies – Indonesia will suspend the construction of new hotels in some areas of Bali, amid fears about overdevelopment of one of its most famous tourist destinations.

Tourism has rebounded in Bali after the Covid pandemic, but there is growing concern about the strain visitors are placing on local infrastructure, the environment, and culture.

Dili – Pope Francis on Monday (Sep 9) called for action on abuse of young people after arriving in Timor-Leste, the Catholic-majority nation that has been shocked by several child sexual assault cases involving clergy members in recent years.

Batam – Residents of Rempang Island from the Sembulang Village in Galang district, Batam City, Riau Islands, remain steadfast in protecting their village from the Rempang Eco City National Strategic Project (PSN).

Joseph Rachman, Jakarta – The US Department of Labor has put Indonesian nickel on a list of products made using forced labor, a potential significant setback for the Southeast Asian nation's bid to become a key global supplier of coveted battery materials for both Western and Chinese firms.

Tenggara Strategics – President-elect Prabowo Subianto intends to divide the Public Development and Housing (PUPR) Ministry into two separate entities: one focused exclusively on housing, and the other on infrastructure development, effectively undoing the 2014 merger that created the PUPR Ministry.

Jakarta – Investors in Indonesia invariably laud the "burgeoning middle class" as one of several things the country has going for it. Often this is celebrated as both a key driver of economic growth and a key reason for companies' interest in the local consumer market.

Jakarta – Indonesia's People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) emphasized that MPR Resolution No. XXXIII/MPRS/1967 stripping first president Soekarno of his power and implicating him in the 30 September Movement had expired and is no longer enforceable.

Jakarta – Perpetrators of sexual harassment on Jakarta metropolitan area's main rail transport network will now get a lifetime ban from the trains, following several reports of inappropriate behaviour.

Railway company Kereta Commuter Indonesia (KCI) is also considering increasing the number of female-only carriages.

Antara, Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo bid a farewell to North Sumatra locals during a trip to Deli Serdang on Tuesday as his retirement nears.

Chandra Adi Nurwidya, Yogyakarta – Former Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan, whose bid for reelection faltered due to a lack of political backing, has expressed respect for a growing movement among his supporters to spoil their votes by marking all three candidates on the ballot in the upcoming gubernatorial election.

Alfi Dinilhaq, Jakarta – Indonesia's automotive industry is showing signs of recovery. Data from the Association of Indonesian Automotive Industries (Gaikindo) in August 2024 revealed national car wholesales (factory to dealer) reached 76,304 units, a 2.8 percent increase month-on-month (MoM) from 74,229 units in July.

Yustinus Paat, Jakarta – In a plenary session on Tuesday, the House of Representatives rejected all nine candidates for Supreme Court justices and three candidates for Human Rights Tribunal judges proposed by the Judicial Commission, the body responsible for overseeing the judiciary.

Zhulfakar, Jakarta – Over the past decade, Indonesia has dramatically increased its internet penetration from 34.9 percent to 79.5 percent, now reaching around 221 million people, according to Fadhilah Mathar, Director of the Telecommunication and Information Accessibility Agency (BAKTI) at the Ministry of Communication and Informatics.

Arnoldus Kristianus, Jakarta – The State Finance Accountability Committee (BAKN) of the House of Representatives (DPR) has proposed an excise on sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) at 2.5 percent starting in 2025, with a gradual increase to a maximum of 20 percent.

Arnoldus Kristianus, Jakarta – Prabowo Subianto's free nutritious meal initiative aims to benefit 15 million students across Indonesia starting January 2025, with the National Nutrition Agency overseeing the program's implementation.

Rights activists have criticized the Timor-Leste government for arresting activists who expressed solidarity with West Papuans' independence struggle during Pope Francis' visit.

Police arrested physically disabled Nelson Barros Pereira Xavier on Sept. 10, a day after Pope Francis arrived in the national capital for a three-day visit.

Yogi Eka Sahputra, Jakarta – The Batam Authority (BP Batam) has once again delayed the planned relocation of hundreds of families residing on Rempang Island, Batam City, Riau Islands Province. Initially scheduled for September 1, 2024, the relocation of 189 families has been postponed to September 25.

Ilona Estherina, Jakarta – An economist from the Institute for Development of Economics and Finance (Indef), Eko Listyanto, asks President-elect Prabowo Subianto to shelve various policies burdening the middle class.

Antara, Jakarta – Prosecutors have charged a father and his son, the caretakers of an Islamic boarding school (pesantren), with sexually abusing students. The father is charged with 10 years in prison, his son with 11 years, and both are required to pay a fine of Rp 100 million, which can be replaced by an additional six months in prison.

Andi Adam Faturahman, Daniel A. Fajri, Jakarta – The Deputy for Press and Media Protocol at the Presidential Secretariat, Yusuf Permana, denied the allegation that a young man was getting punched by a presidential security forces (Paspampres) member when he was taking a picture with President Joko Widodo or Jokowi.

Irsyan Hasyim, Jakarta – Heavy rainfall that swept Binjai North Sumatra, on Sunday, September 8, 2024, caused three rivers to overflow and flood to inundate several residential areas. These rivers are the Bingai River, Mencirim River, and Bangkatan River.

The National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB) mentioned the height of the flood varies from 30 to 100 centimeters.

Syafiq Hasyim – There is a lot more going on behind the scenes between the leadership of Indonesia's largest Muslim organisation and the party which sprung from its roots. What might be personal has certainly become political.

Yustinus Paat, Jakarta – Puan Maharani has indicated the possibility of a meeting between her mother, Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) Chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri, and President-elect Prabowo Subianto to discuss a potential coalition.

Jayanty Nada Shofa, Jakarta – A top brass at the Bank of America recently said that Indonesia should have no problem attracting trillions of rupiah of investments, including from foreign investors, as long as the government remains consistent with its policies.

Jayapura – The arrival of Pope Francis in Dili, the capital of East Timor, on the afternoon of Monday September 9, was welcomed by the Catholic community. The flag of the struggle of the West Papuan nation, the Morning Star flag, was also flown in Dili.

The Morning Star flag was raised by a West Papuan solidarity group in East Timor.

After a decade in power, Joko Widodo leaves Indonesia a changed country – one that has benefited from healthy economic growth and has greater international standing.

Antara, Jakarta – A number of high schools in Jakarta are set to take part in the trial test of President-Elect Prabowo Subianto's policy of the free nutritious school meal next week.

Yustinus Paat, Jakarta – Guntur Soekarnoputra, the eldest son of Indonesia's founding father Soekarno, has called on the government to restore his father's reputation, which was tarnished by accusations of supporting the Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) and betraying the nation. Guntur emphasized that these claims were unfounded and never proven.

Divya Karyza, Jakarta – The government has reiterated that it will pursue the energy transition at its own pace and in ways that match the country's economic goals and fiscal ability, stressing that the strategies of advanced economies will not work for developing countries.

Nina A. Loasana, Jakarta – The Finance Ministry has proposed changing the mandatory education budget from 20 percent of state expenditure to 20 percent of state revenue, raising concerns among experts that the new mechanism would cut funding overall for solving the perennial problems plaguing national education system.

Jakarta – Think before you post: This piece of advice has been repeated by the Communications and Information Ministry to urge people to be careful when posting on social media because of the legal and social repercussions.

Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo and defense minister Prabowo Subianto have gone to great lengths these past weeks to publicly dismiss rumors of a growing rift between them ahead of the Oct. 20 transfer of power.

Dili – When Pope Francis becomes the first pontiff to visit Timor Leste, he will confront a clergy beset by child abuse scandals that have been largely ignored by the deeply Catholic country's freedom heroes.

Jakarta – Outgoing President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo is scheduled to spend the remainder of his term in office in the country's future new capital in Nusantara, in the jungles of East Kalimantan.

Ilham Oktafian, Arnoldus Kristianus, Jakarta – Marimutu Sinivasan, a prominent debtor in the Bank Indonesia Liquidity Support (BLBI) scandal, was arrested by immigration officials on Sunday as he attempted to flee to Kuching, Malaysia.

Nusa Dua, Indonesia – Indonesia is still waiting for cheaper financing to hasten early retirement of coal-fired power plants under a pact with the rich nations of the G7 grouping, senior government officials said on Monday, in the transition to cleaner electricity.

Denny Armandhanu, Jakarta – Several newly inaugurated Indonesian lawmakers have resorted to pawning their appointment letters (SKs) in exchange for bank loans, to relieve some of the high costs of political campaigning for the regional elections.

Jakarta – Indonesia's tourist resort island of Bali has proposed a ban lasting a year or two on the construction of hotels, villas and nightclubs in some areas, as it grapples with the problem of over-development of land, its governor told media.

David Fogarty and Linda Yulisman, Singapore/Jakarta – If there is one thing that worries Indonesia's neighbours, it is choking haze. The felling of forests and slash-and-burn agriculture are often associated with fires and the toxic clouds of smoke that envelop swathes of Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia and Brunei.

Shannon Brincat – Timor-Leste has had much to celebrate recently. August 30 marked 25 years since the Popular Consultation – or "The Referendum", as many call it – when more than 98% of the population braced themselves against brutal repression to vote for their freedom.

Dili – Pope Francis arrived on Sept 9 in Timor-Leste – a predominantly Catholic nation in South-east Asia – for a three-day visit that will include an open-air celebration of mass, which the Vatican says may include more than half the population of 1.3 million.