Wahyudi Soeriaatmadja, Jakarta – President Joko Widodo, who was re-elected in April with a majority vote, has received the backing of defeated rival Prabowo Subianto, who on Monday (Oct 14) and Tuesday stressed that Indonesia needs to be united to face difficult times in years ahead amid rising global economic challenges.

Shotaro Tani, Jakarta – On the face of it, Indonesia's capital Jakarta, a sprawling megacity of 10 million people, and Sweden's Kiruna, a town of only 20,000, couldn't be more different. But they have one thing in common: Both are sinking.

Agus Pabika, Jayapura – The way government handling the humanitarian conflict in Papua has become a spotlight. Many people think the government are being discriminative in handling Nduga refugees compared to refugees from Wamena.

Aaron Fernandes – Golfrid Siregar dedicated his life to defending Indonesia's environment and exposing corruption. It's a role that his family fear may have cost him his life.

Since 2016, Golfrid Siregar worked as a lawyer in the North Sumatra chapter of WALHI – Indonesia's largest and oldest environmental advocacy NGO.

Friski Riana, Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo decided not to comment on questions about the Law on the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK Law) that will be effective on Thursday, October 17, 2019. The revised KPK Law was passed one month ago on September 17.

Didit Hariyadi, Makassar – The University of Hasanuddin's Student Executive Body (BEM Unhas) president, Fatir Kasim, deemed South Sulawesi Police Chief Insp. Gen. Mas Guntur Laupe had provoked students to stage a protest ahead of the presidential inauguration.

Friski Riana, Jakarta – President Joko Widodo or Jokowi claimed that he did not order police apparatus to prohibit public demonstration on the day of the presidential inauguration on October 20, 2019.

"No [such an order]," said the President shortly after the meeting with the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) speakers at State Palace, Jakarta, Wednesday, October 16.

Muh. Syaifullah, Yogyakarta – A total of 400 Indonesianists from 43 countries attend the World Indonesianist Congress held in Yogyakarta State University (UNY), on October 14-15.

Jakarta (Antara) – Commission for the Disappeared and Victims of Violence (KontraS) urged the Indonesian Police (Polri) to initiate legal process against police officers, who shot dead two Halu Oleo University students in Kendari and not merely accentuate ethics and procedures.

Nur Yasmin, Jakarta – Facebook said on Wednesday during its first-ever Facebook Summit in Jakarta that its myriad of applications – including the Facebook app, Instagram and WhatsApp Messenger – have made positive economic and social impacts on local businesses, the government and the Indonesian society as a whole.

Muhammad Aminudin, Malang – Seven young people in the East Java city of Malang took turns in reading out quotes from the Fact Finding Team (TPF) report on the assassination of Munir.

The event calls into question a government statement last year that the TPF Munir report has disappeared. The document titled "Quotes from the final TPF Munir Report" was 12 pages long.

Jon Afrizal, Jambi – Haze from ongoing forest and land fires continued to plague Jambi on Wednesday, despite the government's attempts to create artificial rain since Friday.

Norman Harsono, Jakarta – The government has given Japanese oil company Inpex Corp and Dutch energy giant Shell a 27-year extension to develop the Abadi gas field in the southeastern part of the Arafura Sea.

Jakarta – The Jakarta Police have decided not to issue protest permits from Oct. 15 until the presidential inauguration on Oct. 20

The decision was announced during a coordination meeting that involved the House of Representatives, the Jayakarta Military District Command (Kodam), the State Intelligence Agency (BIN) and the National Police.

Heru Andriyanto, Jakarta – The deputy chairman of the Corruption Eradication Commission, or KPK, Laode N. Syarif, maintains hope that President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo will change his mind about a new law that he says will "kill" the agency.

Jakarta – The Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) has reiterated its determination to remain an opposition party despite its former allies edging closer to joining the ruling coalition.

Jakarta – Indramayu Regent Supendi has been arrested in a raid by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) in Indramayu, West Java, in connection to a graft investigation.

Jakarta – The beleaguered Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) has not been asked to take part in the selection of President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's Cabinet, in what appears to be yet another indication of the rift between the antigraft body and the government.

Heru Andriyanto, Bayu Marhaenjati, Jakarta – A soap opera actor will go on trial for saying in a video that his former wife "smells like salted fish" and that she takes a bath only once every three days, a police spokesman said on Tuesday.

Triyan Pangastuti, Jakarta – Repatriated funds from the government's tax amnesty program have yet to leave Indonesia even though the holding period for some of the funds had ended, assuaging fears of a massive capital flight that may exacerbate the country's economic problems ahead of a possible global recession.

Ahmad Faiz, Jakarta – Several leaders of immigrant communities in Papua visited President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo at State Palace, Tuesday, Oct. 15. The head of South Sulawesi Community in Papua, Mansur, said their visit aimed to discuss the security situation post the riot last month.

Karina M. Tehusijarana, Jakarta – Former Jakarta deputy governor and losing vice presidential candidate Sandiaga Uno announced his return to the Gerindra Party with a tongue-in-cheek video on Tuesday.

Sandiaga posted the video on his Instagram with the caption, "I'M BACK."

Jakarta – Police have arrested 22 terrorist suspects following the stabbing of Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Wiranto last week.

Peter Guest – Heading north from the city centre to the coastline, Jakarta seems to be collapsing in slow motion.

The Indonesian capital sprawls, its black-glass business district giving way to a low-rise hinterland where the bones of the city jut out; long spines of pale concrete pillars bearing kilometres of knotted overpasses and raised highways.

James Massola, Jakarta – Indonesian police have arrested 22 suspected Islamist militants planning attacks across the country, just days after the country's security minister was wounded in a stabbing attack.

In addition to continually expanding the scope of traffic cameras in the capital, traffic police in Jakarta are utilizing another piece of technology that should, in theory, discourage bribing in lieu of tickets.

The Central Jakarta District Court yesterday absolved Ina Yuniarti, a woman who was accused of violating the Information and Electronic Transactions Act (UU ITE) for uploading a video containing an implied threat on President Joko Widodo's life.

A man named Ridwan Solihin has been accused of the murder of a sex worker, identified by her initials OS (28), who was found dead in a hotel room in Karawang, West Java last Monday.

A 24-year-old man, identified by his initials HN, has been arrested by police for allegedly sexually harassing a teenage girl aboard the KRL Commuterline train by rubbing his crotch against her.

Jakarta Metro Police Spokesman Argo Yuwono today confirmed the arrest and said that HN is still under investigation.

Halida Bunga, Jakarta – The Indonesian Legal Aid Institute (YLBHI) head Muhammad Isnur outlines three blunders of President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo in the aspect of law enforcement and human rights during his first term of office.

Nur Yasmin, Jakarta – Benoa Bay in Bali has been declared a maritime conservation area by Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Minister Susi Pudjiastuti, an official said on Tuesday. The decision by the minister has also put an end to a reclamation project inside the bay area that has drawn years of criticism from the public.

Diana Mariska, Jakarta – The United States Ambassador to Indonesia Joseph Donovan met with leaders of Indonesia's second-largest Muslim organization Muhammadiyah in Jakarta on Tuesday to discuss various current issues, including the recent unrest in Papua and Indonesia's reaction to the repression of Uighur Muslims in China.

Jakarta – Gerindra and Golkar, two of the country's largest political parties, have agreed to work together to maintain Indonesia's stability, following a meeting between Gerindra Party chairman Prabowo Subianto and Golkar Party chairman Airlangga Hartarto on Tuesday.

Deti Mega Purnamasari, Jakarta – The Draft Law on the Elimination of Sexual Violence (RUU PKS) has still not been ratified. The group Women's Solidarity believes that this is because lawmakers in the House of Representatives (DPR) have no immediate interest in doing so.

Farouk Arnaz & Telly Nathalia, Jakarta – Jamaah Ansharut Daulah, or JAD, an Islamic State-affiliated terror group based in Indonesia, has been making bombs using not only high-explosive materials but also poisonous ingredients, police said on Tuesday following a series of arrests of the group's members.

Jakarta – Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) Chairperson Abdul Manan predicts that violence against journalists by security forces will still represents a real threat under the next administration of president and vice president elect Joko "Jokowi" Widodo and Ma'ruf Amin.

Egi Adyatama, Jakarta – Administrative and Bureaucratic Reform Minister Syafruddin has emphasised that state civil servants or ASN are not allowed to criticise the government in public. If they do, he assured them that they will have to be prepared to face criminal charges.

Telly Nathalia, Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo has been meeting with chairmen of opposition parties in the past few days to – as he said – "discuss future challenges for the country." Nevertheless, he did not rule out the chance that the parties might join his coalition government after his inauguration on Oct. 20.

Dewi Nurita, Jakarta – Gerindra deputy chairman Arief Poyuono has declared that his party's possibility to join Joko Widodo or Jokowi's coalition reaches 98 percent. The party led by Prabowo Subianto has almost certainly got close to the government.

Gangsar Parikesit, Jakarta – The satisfaction rate of Jakartans with Anies Baswedan in the second year of his governorship declined. This set out a result of the survey "Jakarta untuk Siapa?" posted by a pollster Populi Center, Monday, Oct. 14.

Jakarta (Bisnis) – The Ministry of Finance announced that it will soon issue a number of policies specifically to demolish illegal textile imports and products related to it classified as TPT. One of which is by mobilizing state intelligence agency.

Jakarta – The government warned the people of more choking smoke from forest fires on Tuesday, Oct. 15, as several provinces closed schools due to worsening air quality.

An El Nino weather pattern this year has intensified annual dry-season fires, often caused by the slash-and-burn clearing of forests and bush for farming, including plantations.

Jakarta (Antara) – Head of the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) Doni Monardo confirmed that July 2019 was the hottest month in the past century owing to global warming."July of this year's dry season is the hottest month in history, meaning we are experiencing quite extreme climate change," Monardo revealed on Saturday.

Jakarta (Antara) – The National Police (Polri) are urged to reveal the actual identities of the people who are currently still under arrest following the students' protests at the end of September at the House of Representatives (DPR).

Dewi Nurita, Jakarta – The meeting of NasDem and Gerindra Party chairmen, Surya Paloh and Prabowo Subianto, resulted in several political agreements. The two agreed that the 1945 Constitution must be amended completely.

Jakarta – The People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) Speaker Bambang Soesatyo seems unburdened by the MPR's big agenda of amending the 1945 Constitution for the fifth time, for the purpose of reviving the State Policy Guidelines (GBHN) and reinforce the MPR. Bambang also did not set a completion target for the amendments to.

Jakarta – Jakarta Metro Jaya regional police chief Gatot Eddy Pramono has emphasised that they will not issue permits for people wanting to hold protests in Jakarta. The ban will remain in place from Tuesday October 15 through to the inauguration of President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo and Vice President elect Ma'ruf Amin on Sunday October 20.

Dyaning Pangestika & Marchio Irfan Gorbiano, Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo continued his agenda of meeting with erstwhile opposition party leaders on Monday as he welcomed National Mandate Party (PAN) chairman Zulkifli Hasan for a talk at the Presidential Palace in Jakarta.

Beritasatu, Jakarta – The Indonesian government has completed the construction of a massive, nationwide internet network using fiber-optic wires called the Palapa Ring, President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo said on Monday.

Jakarta – The AMAR Law Firm and Public Interest Law Office says that 37 tertiary education institutions have threatened to sanction students who take part in #ReformasiDikorupsi (Reform Corruption) demonstrations to coincide with the inauguration of President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo on October 20.