Hestiana Dharmastuti, Jakarta – House of Representatives (DPR) legislative member Ade Daud Nasution has been dismissed from the house and his membership of the Star Reform Party (PBR) r

Aditya Suharmoko, Jakarta – A recent survey that says Indonesia has become less competitive is "odd", the government has declared, pointing to improvements in business regulations and a

Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – A power play within the House of Representatives has ensured the legislative body will pass the pornography bill, which critics deem a threat to citizens' privac

Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – Fatimah Azzahra, the daughter of a 1984 Tanjung Priok massacre victim, shook hands with Paramadina University rector Anies Baswedan after being awarded a scholar

Jakarta – The Talangsari incident in Lampung regency in February 1989 is threatened with the same fate as other cases of gross human rights violations.

Jakarta – The government published a statement on Thursday debating a conclusion of a survey by the World Bank's investment arm, International Finance Corporation, on Indonesia's invest

Aditya Suharmoko, Jakarta – Despite progress in certain areas, Indonesia overall is worse off now than the year before when it comes to doing business, a survey revealed Wednesday.

Trial by the press, or the press on trial?

Ni Komang Erviani, Contributor, Denpasar – As of August this year up to 10.16 million or 6.22 percent of the Indonesian population aged over 15 years old are still illiterate despite th

The Australian NGO, the Mineral Policy Institute, has welcomed the Norwegian Government's decision to cut its links with the multi national mining company, Rio Tinto, over concerns abou

Jakarta – The Legal Aid Institute Foundation (YLBHI) and its 14 subsidiaries have expressed concern that rampant violence by hard-liner groups is threatening freedom of religion in the

Aubrey Belford, Jakarta – The old faces of Indonesia's elite look set to dominate next year's presidential election but new blood is needed to end the poverty and corruption plaguing th

Aditya Suharmoko, Jakarta – Improved tax collection by extending the tax base and modernizing the tax system have boosted tax proceeds by 46 percent during the first eight months of thi

Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – A financial watchdog has submitted data on more than 400 traveler's checks allegedly belonging to Bank Indonesia senior deputy governor Miranda Swaray Gultom as

Some analysts have again expressed serious concern over increasing foreign ownership of banks in Indonesia, arguing this makes it more difficult for Bank Indonesia (the central bank) to

Timika, Papua – Hundreds of workers at heavy equipment maker PT Trakindo Utama staged a protest at the Timika Transmigration and Manpower Agency office on Tuesday.

Ignas Kleden, Jakarta – A political party is there, first of all, to transpose the needs and aspirations of its constituents into a political program.

Suherdjoko and Desy Nurhayati, Semarang, Jakarta – National Awakening Party (PKB) members affiliated with Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid have besieged a local elections commission office f

Erwida Maulia, Jakarta – The House of Representatives on Tuesday passed a long-awaited bill aimed at strengthening the authority of the National Ombudsman Commission (KON) in its superv

Dian Kuswandini, Jakarta – In what is being denounced as a major blow to press freedom in the country, a court – dubbed "the graveyard for press freedom" – on Tuesday found Tempo guilty

Defense Minister Juwono Sudarsono defended on Tuesday "brutal" actions committed by the military against insurgents in Talangsari village, Lampung, in 1989.

Dian Kuswandini, Jakarta – The South Jakarta District Court on Tuesday ruled it would continue with the trial of former top intelligence official Muchdi Purwopranjono, charged with prem

Ika Krismantari and Aditya Suharmoko, Jakarta – The Indonesian Composite Index slumped Tuesday to its lowest level in 17 months as investors pulled out their money over jitters that low

By Budi Wardoyo¹

Suwardiman – The image presented by elite leaders and a political party appears to be the main consideration that will increasingly be taken into account by prospective voters in the 20

Blamed for pushing orangutans out of their habitat, palm oil companies are being urged to help conserve the endangered species in Kalimantan.

Benget Besalicto Tnb., Contributor, Palangka Raya – Pressures are mounting to save endangered orangutans in Central Kalimantan, where most of the world's only great ape lives under incr

Jakarta – Indonesia and Australia have agreed to strengthen bilateral cooperation in defense field based on mutual trust to create a regional stability.

Skepticism has mounted over whether the Corruption Court bill will benefit the country's fight against white collar crime as some House of Representatives legislators debating it are im

Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – Attorney General Hendarman Supandji continues to defy public pressure to reopen a probe into a huge loan scandal, following the imprisonment of prosecutor Urip T

For millions of ordinary Indonesian people, it is difficult to understand how President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, the holder of a doctorate degree in agricultural economics from a prest

Yuli Tri Suwarni, Bandung – A number of non-governmental organizations in Bandung announced Monday an "anti-rotten" politician campaign, asking people not to vote for politicians who ha

Denpasar – In the campaign to eradicate illiteracy, women need special priority because the illiteracy rate among women is more than twice as high as men.

Last week's passage of the income tax law is the best Idul Fitri gift the country could provide to our businesses and fellow taxpayers.

Hamish McDonald – Younger Australians are less concerned about any security threat posed by Indonesia, according to a new poll, but it remains the country of most concern to all Austral

Aditya Suharmoko and Alfian, Jakarta – Businesses have praised the newly endorsed income tax law, saying it will boost the competitiveness of Indonesia's economy amid tougher global com

Jakarta – The national banking industry appears to be controlled by foreign interests.

Irawaty Wardany, Jakarta – The conviction of a state prosecutor for accepting bribes from a businesswoman close to tycoon Sjamsul Nursalim has paved the way for law enforcers to expand

Lilian Budianto, Jakarta – Public diplomacy used to introduce Indonesia as a democratic Muslim nation overseas had been hampered by the domestic social crisis with radical groups oversh

Jakarta – The Rp 100 billion (US$10.9 million) embezzled Bank Indonesia (BI) funds were used to promote certain people into certain positions for the central bank's benefit, the Corrupt

Suwardiman – The geo-political map in the 2009 general elections could be very different from previous elections.

Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – At least two development projects linked to the presidential office, which appear to have been hoaxes, have revealed nepotism and cronyism among President Susilo

[The following are notes intended to be the first in a series of informal commentaries on the 2009 Indonesian election campaign.

Jakarta – Former president Abdurahman "Gus Dur" Wahid says he will support former minister Yusril Ihza Mahendra in the presidential election next year.

Indra Harsaputra, Surabaya – The central government is sticking by its decision to dump mud from the Lapindo disaster into the Porong river despite protests from the local community and

Jakarta – Golkar Party politicians Hamka Yandhu and Antony Zeidra Abidin demanded money from Bank Indonesia (BI) officials to speed up the approval of the revised BI law and resolve the

Aditya Suharmoko and Ika Krismantari, Jakarta – The rupiah suffered its biggest daily drop in nearly 10 months on Friday, falling by 1.3 percent to close at 9,375 against the US dollar,

Erwida Maulia, Jakarta – One-half of the Rp 224.4 trillion (US$24.45 billion) in the education budget proposed for next year has been allocated for ensuring all Indonesian children comp

Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – The House of Representatives is set to push through the pornography bill in October, despite ongoing controversy over the draft law's vague definition of pornogr

Oyos Saroso H.N., Bandarlampung – Stigmatized as rebels, victims of the bloody Talangsari tragedy in East Lampung asked the government on Friday to rehabilitate their names and give the