Jakarta – Alleged human rights violations in Papua that were among the commission's nine priority issues throughout 2023 continued to be a priority in 2024, National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) Chairperson Atnike Nova Sigiro stated.
While delivering the 2023 Komnas HAM Annual Report, Sigiro remarked that the issue is still a priority in 2024.
Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo and his successor Prabowo Subianto will celebrate Independence Day in the city of Nusantara in August, in a ceremony during which the outgoing leader is also expected to inaugurate the new capital city.
Djibril Muhammad, Jakarta – Renowned politician Grace Natalie was appointed as the new commissioner of MIND ID, a consortium of state-run mining companies, during the annual shareholders' meeting on Monday.
Grace is the founder and former chairwoman of the Indonesian Solidarity Party (PSI), now chaired by President Joko Widodo's son, Kaesang Pangarep.
Makassar – Protesters from the Greater Gowa branch of the Islamic Student Association (HMI) held a demonstration on Monday June 6 to oppose Government Regulation (PP) Number 21/2024 on Public Housing Savings (Tapera) in which they closed the Trans Sulawesi highway from late afternoon through to the evening.
Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo has refused a request from Syahrul Yasin Limpo to testify for the defense in his corruption trial, with the Presidential Palace saying that the President's testimony would be irrelevant to the case.
Resty Woro Yuniar – Indonesian President Joko Widodo has been accused of glorifying transactional politics after he passed a law that enables the government to grant mining licences to religious organisations.
Jakarta – Indonesia plans to run clinical trials of several vaccines to fight surging cases of tuberculosis (TB) this year, with concerns the disease might affect economic growth, ministers said on Monday (Jun 10).
Larius Kogoya, Jayapura – Hundreds of protesters from the Central West Papua National Committee (KNPB) together with KNPB Sentani and KNPB Port Numbay held a solidarity action supporting a referendum and the liberation of Kanaky, New Caledonia, from French colonialism.
Antara, Mojokerto, East Java – A policewoman in the East Java town of Mojokerto has been named a suspect for burning her police officer husband alive, leading to his death a day later.
Jakarta – A protest action to defend Palestine at the Horse statue in Central Jakarta on Monday June 9 managed to collect as much as 388 million rupiah in donations for Palestine.
Reiner Brabar, Sorong – Indonesian social media has been enlivened by the call "All Eyes on Papua" which has gone viral over the last few days and attracted an extraordinary amount of attention.
Jakarta – A list of dozens of literary works that the government recommends in all learning levels from elementary to senior high school is a welcome step forward. We join others who have lauded the plan, as we believe literature can help citizens to better understand our lives, ourselves and the world around us.
Zach Hope, Amilia Rosa and Nick McKenzie – An Indonesian people smuggler who helped transport 39 men on a boat to mainland Australia in February has revealed how he was caught by Australian authorities only to be released and sent home without charge.
Linda Yulisman, Jakarta – For many shoppers, the prices are hard to resist. In a small shopping centre in South Jakarta, one-piece sleepwear is sold for as low as 25,000 rupiah (S$2) each, while a two-piece set is 35,000 rupiah.
Kiki Siregar, Cirebon, West Java – Armed with headlamps, pails and thin wooden sticks, Mr Dody Hermawan and his colleagues embark on a mission most nights around the villages of West and Central Java.
As they move from house to house, they are typically met by residents glad to be rid of a source of annoyance.
Jamaah, Pati – The Criminal Investigation Unit of the Pati City Police is investigating a vigilante incident in Pati, Central Java, which resulted in the death of a car rental owner from Jakarta and left three of his friends critically injured.
Antara, Jakarta – Army Chief of Staff General Maruli Simanjuntak said that the Indonesian Military's (TNI) decision to revert to the original term "OPM" (Free Papua Movement) from "armed criminal groups" (KKB) in calling the separatist group would impact their peacekeeping strategy. The military would not hesitate to take action if they see an armed person in Papua.
Yessi Vadilla, Lili Yan Ing –- Think for a second, it can happen to you. Warsiah (not her real name), a 46-year-old single working mother, was involved in an accident at an intersection and fainted while riding her motorcycle home from work.
Victoria Milko and Dita Alangkara, Damaran Baru, Indonesia – In a lush jungle at the foothills of a volcano in Indonesia's Aceh province, the song of gibbons in the trees mixes with the laughter of the seven forest rangers trekking below them. An hour into their patrol, the rangers spot another mammal in the forest with them.
Makassar, Indonesia – A woman has been found dead inside the belly of a snake after it swallowed her whole in central Indonesia, a local official said June 8.
The husband of 45-year-old Farida and residents of Kalempang village in South Sulawesi province discovered her on June 7 inside the reticulated python, which measured around 5m.
Jakarta – A district court in Banten sentenced a poacher to 12 years in prison Wednesday after he was found guilty of killing at least six critically endangered Javan rhinos.
The rhinoceros endemic to Java is one of the world's most endangered mammals, with authorities believing there are around 82 remaining in the wild.
Jakarta – Indonesia's president is rushing to reassure investors and bureaucrats about his US$32 billion (S$43 billion) new capital city in a malaria-prone pocket of Borneo, after the resignations of two officials overseeing the plan raised fresh doubts about its future.
Jakarta – The House of Representatives on Thursday approved a proposal to accept a South Korean donation of a corvette for its navy, despite concern from its defence committee that the ageing vessel needs about $85 million worth of maintenance.
Jakarta – It is with deep concern and alarm that we mourn the state of our judicial system during this most political of years.
Last week's Supreme Court ruling, which introduced a technicality in the age requirements for candidates running in the regional head elections, shows that dynastic politics, while ever pervasive across the country, has simply gone too far.
Indigenous communities in Kapiraya district, Deiyai Regency, Papua Tengah (Central Papua) Province, are actively protesting the operations of PT Zoomlion, a Chinese company, which entered the area in 2023 to extract gold with heavy machinery (excavators) without obtaining permits from either the customary right owners or the relevant government authorities.
Jakarta – Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi has condemned Israel's parliamentary bill seeking to label the United Nations refugee agency for Palestinians (UNRWA) as a terrorist group.
Ruth Dea Juwita, Jakarta – Indonesia's ambassadors to India and Russia say authorities there hope to see Southeast Asia's largest economy join BRICS to give the group of major emerging economies a stronger voice on the global stage.
The current situation in Indonesia reveals a potential threat to its democracy, reminiscent of the era under President Suharto.
Fuad Iqbal Abdullah, Jakarta – Preparations for Indonesia's 79th Independence Day ceremony, set to take place in the future capital, the National Capital of Nusantara (IKN), on Aug. 17, are in full swing, including enhancements to the internet network. However, there are still areas in IKN without internet coverage, known as blank spots.
Juan Ardya Guardiola, Jakarta – Ilham Akbar Habibie, the eldest son of Indonesia's third president B.J. Habibie, has decided to enter the 2024 West Java Regional Election with the endorsement of the National Democrat (Nasdem) Party.
Novie Fauziah, Jakarta – An Indonesian influencer has reportedly been detained by Saudi Arabian authorities for allegedly selling illegal Hajj packages to pilgrims using visit visas to Mecca.
"We are investigating the report," said Yusron B. Ambary, the Consul General of Indonesia in Jeddah, in a statement on Friday.
Jayanty Nada Shofa, Jakarta – A British diplomat said Thursday that bilateral ties between the UK and Indonesia had been going strong in the defense sector, among others, as seen in the business deals involving the state-owned shipbuilder PAL.
Ni Kadek Trisna Cintya Dewi, Jakarta – The African Swine Fever (ASF) virus has been detected in pigs in Indonesia. Antara reported that the Papuan government, through the local Livestock and Plantation Office, has declared an emergency status for an outbreak affecting pigs in the local area.
Savero Aristia Wienanto, Eka Yudha Saputra, Jakarta – Anies Baswedan, former governor of Jakarta, responded to issues about the possibility of several parties nominating him as a candidate for the Jakarta 2024 election. He was rather reluctant on the subject.
Aisyah Amira Wakang, Jakarta – President Joko Widodo or Jokowi has granted a special mining permit area or WIUPK to religious organizations, including the Nahdlatul Ulama or NU. The NU Executive Board, or PBNU, claimed that the license had been promised since 2021.
Antara, Bandar Lampung – The recent widespread power outages in many regions of Sumatra have provided a lucrative opportunity for traders selling a portable power source, commonly known as a generator set, or genset. Several shops in Bandar Lampung, for example, reported that they ran out of stock within two days of the blackout.
Jakarta – Like a rat dying in a rice barn. This saying is a very good illustration of the condition of Indofarma these days. The state-owned pharmaceutical company is bankrupt at a time when other companies in the health sector, both in Indonesia and overseas, are making profits as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic and increasing public demand for health products and services.
Jeremy Hance – A court in Indonesia has sentenced a man to 12 years in prison for poaching six critically endangered Javan rhinos, in what's been hailed as the harshest punishment handed down for wildlife crime to date.
Hans Nicholas Jong, Jakarta – A campaign calling for the protection of Indigenous peoples' customary forests in Indonesia's easternmost region of Papua has gone viral, with the campaign's poster shared nearly 3 million times on Instagram.
Aryo Putranto Saptohutomo, Jakarta – A statement by TNI (Indonesian military) commander General Agus Subiyanto, who said that currently they are not dwi-fungsi (dual-function) but are multi-functional, is considered wrong because it deviates from the practice of separating military and civilian roles in a democratic system.
Jakarta – People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) Speaker Bambang Soesatyo urged the Defense Forces (TNI) and the National Police (Polri) to catch members of the Armed Criminal Group (KKB) who shot a soldier in Yahukimo, Papua Highland.
Bambang expressed his condemnation of the shooting incident and urged the TNI and Polri to take firm action against the KKB.
Arnoldus Kristianus, Jakarta – The Indonesian government will grant Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), the country's largest Muslim organization, the concession to manage coal mines previously operated by Kaltim Prima Coal (KPC), according to a minister's announcement on Friday.
The local Government of Sorong Selatan Regency has officially recognized the indigenous peoples and customary territories of four sub-tribes in Konda District through a Regent Decree. The decree was presented by Regional Secretary on behalf of the Regent, Mr Samsudin Anggiluli.
Jayapura – Solidarity and support against the expropriation and destruction of customary forests in the land of Papua is broadening, with several groups, including soccer players joining in supporting the movement to save Papua's forests.
Jakarta – The sudden and simultaneous exit of the head and deputy head of the Nusantara Capital City (IKN) Authority is no small matter that can be brushed aside with the acknowledgement that everyone is replaceable.
Hans Nicholas Jong, Jakarta – In 2015, Indonesian forestry giant Asia Pulp & Paper announced it would retire thousands of hectares of its commercial timber plantation in Sumatra, with the ultimate goal of restoring the land back to the tropical peat swamp it once was.
Maulani Mulianingsih (Intern), Jakarta – Director of the Center for Economic and Law Studies (CELIOS), Bhima Yudhistira, observed that Bambang Susantono and Dhony Rahajoe, the former Head and Deputy Head of the Nusantara Capital or IKN Authority, were under pressure due to the financial situation of the new capital project, which is related to the government's inability to lure inve
Adil Al Hasan, Jakarta – Thousands of workers from the Labor Party are ready to demonstrate in front of the palace on Thursday, June 6. They will urge President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo to revoke the policy on the public housing savings or Tapera program, which deducts 3 percent of workers' salaries per month. The new rule is stipulated in Government Regulation (PP) No.
Max Lane – Last week, while in Dili, I had the opportunity for a chat over coffee with the Cuban Ambassador to Timor Leste, Alina Aldama. I had met the Ambassador briefly at the State Restoration of Independence Day Celebrations on 20 May.
Natasya Salim – Thousands of workers in Indonesia have rallied in front of the Presidential Palace in Jakarta to protest a new plan to take from their salaries to support a national housing scheme.
The Public Housing Savings Program, known in Indonesia as Tapera, was brought in late last month by outgoing President Joko Widodo.