Antara, Ibnu Malikh, Jakarta – Indonesia's provinces are processing the provincial minimum wage (UMP) hike of 6.5 percent for 2025, following a directive from President Prabowo Subianto. While the government ensures the increase will apply across the nation, provinces are working to finalize their specific wage adjustments amid some regional tensions and worker protests.

Maria Gabrielle Putrinda, Jakarta – President Prabowo Subianto said that achieving food self-sufficiency is a central strategy for controlling inflation in Indonesia. Speaking at a coordination meeting on inflation control at the Home Affairs Ministry in Jakarta on Monday, Prabowo emphasized that food security should extend to the sub-district level.

As Interim President of the ULMWP, I welcome the release of the judgment of the Permanent People's Tribunal (PPT) on West Papua.

After testimonies from West Papuans on the ground and legal and academic experts, the PPT found Indonesia guilty on all four counts:

Riandy Laksono – Prabowo has appointed 112 members to his Red and White Cabinet, comprising 48 ministers, 5 ministerial-level officials, and 59 vice ministers. His "bloated" cabinet reflects a strategy of rewarding loyalists, retaining trusted Jokowi aides, and placating political opponents.

Ami Afriatni, Jakarta – On the streets of Jakarta and other major Indonesian cities, Chinese electric vehicles (EVs) are becoming a familiar sight – a sign of their growing appeal in Southeast Asia's largest auto market.

Jakarta – A presidential spokesperson said on Monday that the status of state mosque held by Central Jakarta's Istiqlal Mosque would soon be transferred to a new place of worship being built in Nusantara, East Kalimantan.

Jakarta – Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI) vice chairman Arif Maulana urged the House of Representatives' Commission III to seriously evaluate the use of firearms by the National Police, saying that the officers are increasingly misusing the firearms.

Jakarta – Bank Indonesia (BI) reported a net foreign capital outflow in the domestic financial market amounting to Rp 5.13 trillion (US$323.4 million), based on transaction data from Dec. 2-5.

Chontida Auikool – 20 years have passed since the Aceh tsunami, which left deep scars on Indonesia, especially for those directly affected. Aceh was also recovering from a three-decade armed conflict between the Free Aceh Movement and the national government

Jakarta – President Prabowo Subianto and his administration owe the public an explanation regarding the push and pull of his plan to consolidate the tax office and the customs and excise office into the revenue agency.

Jakarta – Authorities plan to launch a cloud seeding operation to mitigate flooding in the disaster-hit Sukabumi regency in West Java following a series of hydrometeorological hazards striking the area over the last few days.

Nur Janti, Jakarta – Indonesian volunteers who were providing medical assistance in a humanitarian mission in a hospital in northern Gaza Strip have been taken to safety following a recent assault by the Israeli military in and around the medical facility, the Foreign Ministry reports.

Ni Made Tasyarani, Jakarta – The wedding industry is feeling the pinch of demographic change as the number of marriages in Indonesia has plummeted in recent years.

Last year, the archipelago only saw 1.57 million couples tying the knot, according to Statistics Indonesia (BPS), a fall from over 2 million in 2018.

Tria Dianti, Jakarta – The appointments to key government positions of figures linked to past human rights abuses in Indonesia have alarmed rights advocates, who warn the country may face a deepening culture of impunity under new President Prabowo Subianto.

Widy Wicaksono, Semarang – Semarang police officer Robig Zaenudin has been fired and his status upgraded to that of a criminal suspect for shooting a student from SMK Negeri 4 Semarang.

Thomas Rizal, Jakarta – Former President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo is expected to remain a significant political figure in Indonesia, with many productive years ahead at the age of 63. A political analyst suggests that Jokowi's influence could be further solidified by establishing his own political party.

Governor Powes Parkop of Papua New Guinea's capital Port Moresby has appealed to West Papuans living in his country to carry on the self-determination struggle for future generations and to not lose hope.

Parkop, a staunch supporter of the West Papua cause, reminded Papuans at their Independence Day last Sunday of the struggles of their ancestors, reports Inside PNG.

Adil Al Hasan, Jakarta – Minister of Agrarian Affairs and Spatial Planning/Head of the National Land Agency (ATR/BPN), Nusron Wahid said that his ministry is currently drafting Government Regulations on Sustainable Food Agricultural Land (LP2B). This is done to address the issue of paddy field conversion totaling up to 100 to 150 thousand hectares each year.

Reiner Brabar, Sorong – The All Nusantara leadership board of the Nduga High School and University Student Association (IPMNI) and the families of victims are urging the central government to resolve the human rights violations that occurred on December 7, 2000 in Abepura, Jayapura city, Papua.

Reiner Brabar, Sorong – International Human Rights Day will be commemorated on December 10. This year is the 76th anniversary of Human Rights Day since the Universal Human Rights Declaration was issued by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948.

Antara, Jakarta – The Communication and Digital Affairs Ministry has shut down three Instagram accounts with a combined following of over one million for promoting online gambling activities. The accounts – @mimin_storyy (774,000 followers), @awcogans (430,000 followers), and @meme.kocakk25 (177,000 followers) – have been removed.

Ervana Trikarinaputri, Jakarta – The Commission for the Disappeared and Victims of Violence (KontraS) recorded 62 cases of torture with a total of 128 victims from December 2023 to November 2024, spread across Indonesia. This data was collected through the Human Rights Monitoring conducted by KontraS over the past year.

Marchio Gorbiano, Jakarta – Fruit seller Budi was seeking better prospects when he signed up for an IT job in Cambodia. But he found himself detained in a heavily guarded compound where he was forced to carry out online scams.

Yustinus Paat, Jakarta – Amid growing public resistance to the planned increase in value-added tax (VAT), a close ally of President Prabowo Subianto clarified on Friday that specific goods and services will remain exempt from the tax.

Antara, Yustinus Paat, Jakarta – As former President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo distances himself from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), two of Indonesia's major political parties, Golkar and Gerindra, are vying for his allegiance.

Medikantyo Adhikresna, Jakarta – The government's plan to implement a 12 percent value-added tax (VAT) in 2025 is feared to reduce automotive sales due to price increases.

Several automotive manufacturers are considering measures to address this challenge, as the policy is expected to reduce consumer purchasing power and affect vehicle sales in the coming year.

Vinnilya, Jakarta – The textile industry is bracing for further hardship as a planned increase in Value Added Tax (VAT) to 12 percent takes effect in January 2025, potentially exacerbating an already difficult situation.

Indonesia, West Papua – On 15 November 2024, thousands of Papuans went to the streets after the West Papua National Committee (KNPB) called for peaceful Papua-wide demonstrations against the central Government's plan to relaunch the transmigration program, with West Papua being one of the target areas.

Jakarta – Situ, as small lakes in the western part of Java are known, are part of the freshwater ecosystem, but often escape attention. These curved bodies of water have never been recorded as state assets because they formed naturally, without any proof of ownership. As a result, many of them are not maintained, and sediment builds up until they become ordinary land.

Ervana Trikarinaputri, Jakarta – The Commission for the Disappeared and Victims of Violence (KontraS) has revealed that there were 45 extrajudicial killings by state apparatus in the past year. This data was collected by KontraS monitoring between December 2023 and November 2024.

Olena Wibisana, Iman Rahman Cahyadi, Jakarta – Islamic preacher Miftah Maulana Habiburrahman, popularly known as Gus Miftah, announced Friday that he would resign from his position as the president's special envoy for religious harmony.

The 43-year-old preacher's resignation came after a video of him and an iced tea seller went viral on the internet.

Jakarta – At least seven people are missing following floods and landslides that hit Sukabumi regency, West Java in the past week, while authorities said at least five villagers lost their lives during the disaster.

Ichsan Ali, Jakarta – President Prabowo Subianto hinted on Friday that he would warmly welcome his predecessor, Joko "Jokowi" Widodo, should the latter choose to join the Great Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra).

Jayanty Nada Shofa, Jakarta – Indonesia recently urged countries to stop supplying weapons to Israel during an emergency special session on the Gaza crisis at the UN General Assembly.

Andrew Johnson – I have a friend Julian King, who Duncan Graham reports has been subjected to a stun grenade as our Australian Federal Police burst through his door to seize his PhD research, phone and computers. Reportedly, the AFP are concerned about OPM (Organisasi Papua Merdeka _Free Papua Organisation), the indigenous independence movement in West Papua.

Jakarta – Femicide, or the killing of a woman or girl by a man, typically because of her gender, and other incidents of gender-based violence regularly make national and local headlines in the country.

Mita Amalia Hapsari, Jakarta – President Prabowo Subianto already has a plan to help Jakartans breathe cleaner air, according to his senior economic advisor Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan.

Mita Amalia Hapsari, Jakarta – The government is now trying to find the middle ground following huge backlash to the 12-percent value added tax (VAT) plans, according to President Prabowo's economic advisor Mari Elka Pangestu.

Ruth Dea Juwita, Jakarta – The foremost global conference on climate change resulted in a commitment from developed nations to fund climate change initiatives in developing nations to the tune of US$300 billion a year, but it is unclear how exactly Indonesia might avail itself of that funding.

Dio Suhenda, Jakarta – Teachers' associations remain skeptical about President Prabowo's recent announcement to significantly increase the remuneration of educators, noting that the new leader might have confused the plan with the prevailing certification program that has been in place for over a decade.

Jakarta – Foreign Minister Sugiono acted calmly on Monday when House of Representatives Commission I legislators overseeing defense and foreign affairs bombarded the new chief diplomat with questions about several of President Prabowo Subianto's contentious decisions, including his controversial joint statement with Chinese President Xi Jinping last week.

Jakarta – The Aceh Transition Committee (KPA) raised the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) flag during a ceremony that drew hundreds of attendees to commemorate GAM's 48th anniversary in Lhokseumawe, Aceh, on Wednesday.

Zulfakriza Z. – 20 years have passed since the Aceh tsunami, which left deep scars on Indonesia, especially for those directly affected. Aceh was also recovering from a three-decade armed conflict between the Free Aceh Movement and the national government

Yustinus Paat, Jakarta – All political parties in the House of Representatives confirmed on Thursday the appointment of five commissioners for the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) and five members of its oversight body.

Yogi Eka Sahputra, Batam – Recent statements made by the Batam Development Authority or BP Batam during a hearing with the House of Representatives (DPR) have ignited strong opposition from residents who continue to vehemently reject the Rempang Eco-City project.

M. Raihan Muzzaki, Martha Warta Silaban, Surabaya – The Minister of Industry, Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita, stated that the Domestic Component Level or TKDN policy has received much criticism from various countries. Although he did not mention which country criticized it, he said such criticism is common for the Ministry of Industry.

Bella Evangelista, Jakarta – Religious Affairs Minister Nasaruddin Umar said on Wednesday that no school is allowed to reject students with special needs.

Nasaruddin reiterated the Ministry of Religious Affairs' commitment to ensuring equal access to education for all students, including those with special needs.

Bella Evanglista Mikaputri, Jakarta – The government will proceed with plans to increase the value-added tax (VAT) rate from 11 percent to 12 percent on January 1, 2025, despite growing objections from businesses and the public, a senior lawmaker confirmed on Thursday.

Jayanty Nada Shofa, Jakarta – The business deals that President Prabowo Subianto had secured from his first-ever foreign trip had totaled $21.36 billion, much bigger than the previously announced figures, a spokesman said on Thursday.

Alfida Rizky Febrianna, Jakarta – The planned increase in Indonesia's value-added tax (VAT) rate from 11 percent to 12 percent could reduce the country's gross domestic product (GDP) by Rp 21 trillion ($1.3 billion), an economist warned on Thursday.