Prisma Ardianto, Heru Andriyanto, Jakarta – Indonesia is stepping up efforts to widen its tax base and tap into the shadow economy as it seeks to raise Rp 2,357.7 trillion ($145.6 billion) in tax revenues by 2026. The target marks a 13.5 percent increase – or Rp 280.8 trillion – from projected 2025 collections of Rp 2,076.9 trillion.

Andi Adam Faturahman, Jakarta – The West Papua National Liberation Army-Free Papua Movement (TPNPB-OPM) has accused the Indonesian military (TNI) deployed in Yakuhimo regency of planting landmines to target the militias and individuals deemed affiliated with them.

Anastasya Lavenia Yudi, Jakarta – Bank Indonesia has decided to cut the benchmark interest rate, or BI Rate, to 5.00 percent. This decision was agreed upon during the Bank Indonesia Board of Governors Meeting held on August 19-20, 2025.

Sultan Abdurrahman, Jakarta – Several regions in Indonesia have staged demonstrations protesting the hike in the Rural and Urban Land and Building Tax (PBB-P2). Residents urged their local governments, which hold the authority to set the rates, to cancel the increases.

Anastasya Lavenia Yudi – The Forum Indonesia for Budget Transparency (Fitra) criticized the provision of a housing allowance amounting to Rp50 million per month for House of Representatives (DPR) members.

Hans Nicholas Jong, Jakarta – Asia Pulp & Paper, one of the world's biggest forestry groups, has effectively been given the green light to seek ethical certification from the Forest Stewardship Council a stamp of approval that it was stripped of 18 years ago for deforestation and other violations.

Ilham Oktafian, Alfida Rizky Febrianna, Jakarta – Indonesia's parliament is facing criticism over a Rp 50 million ($3,067) monthly housing allowance for each lawmaker, with analysts calling it out of touch with the economic hardships faced by most citizens.

Ade Ridwan Yandwiputra, Jakarta – Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) considered the housing allowance for parliament members as a form of budget extravagance, estimating the total cost at a staggering Rp1.74 trillion.

Sultan Abdurrahman, Jakarta – A journalist from CNN Indonesia, Zulkifli Natsir, was a victim of violence from authorities while covering a protest against a property tax hike in Bone Regency, South Sulawesi. The incident occurred on Tuesday, August 19, 2025.

Dinda Shabrina, Jakarta – Social Affairs Minister Saifullah Yusuf, or Gus Ipul, has uncovered significant issues within Indonesia's social welfare system, revealing that more than 2,000 social institutions are fictitious, existing in name only without any real activities.

The Timorese government announced the launch of formal negotiations with neighbouring Indonesia to delimit the maritime border between the two countries, reports Lusa.

Jakarta – Amass protest against a property tax hike on Tuesday turned violent in Bone regency, South Sulawesi, leaving four Public Order Agency (Satpol PP) personnel and two police officers injured in the line of duty for crowd control.

Washington – US health authorities announced Tuesday a recall of frozen shrimp potentially contaminated with radioactivity.

The seafood imported from a company in Indonesia has been marketed in 13 states by retail giant Walmart, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said on its website.

Abi S. Nugroho – The government of Pati Regency, in the northeast of Central Java, has always been proud of the slogan Bumi Mina Tani – an identity that appears in government symbols, on monuments, and even in the speeches of officials. 'Mina' refers to fisheries, 'tani' to farming: 'Fishing and Farming Land'. Historically, these two sectors are the lifeblood of local people.

Tyberius Seeto and Kayla Hill – On 17th August, Indonesia celebrated 80 years of independence, an end to a 350 year rule riddled with mass atrocities committed by the Dutch, as well as an eventual end to the Japanese empire during World War II.

Ema Ganivatu – In exile but unbroken, three West Papuan journalists are in Fiji calling on the Pacific to stand with them against Indonesia's ongoing media blackout and human rights abuses.

Jakarta – Tropical wood demand from some of America's top RV brands is fuelling deforestation in Kalimantan, home to Asia's last great rainforest, according to a new investigation by environmental NGOs.

Adelia Anjani Putri – It seems like everyone is trying to leave. On social media, over office lunches, in group chats filled with job openings in Singapore and guides to Australia's working holiday visa, the idea of starting over somewhere else feels more urgent than ever.

Jakarta – The enduring maritime boundary dispute between Indonesia and Malaysia over the Ambalat block has resurfaced, this time with a twist.

Rather than reigniting legal tensions or public nationalist outrage, both governments have signaled a preference for joint development over a final, binding resolution.

Yvette Tanamal, Jakarta – "If you run, you are shot. If you don't, you are beaten," a 20-year-old Acehnese man said about life in the region, as reported by Human Rights Watch (HRW) in 2003, two years after president Megawati Sukarnoputri declared martial law to maintain order in the province following years of failed peace negotiations.

Laurensia Yame is a mother of seven in her 50s who, with her Indigenous community, the Awyu, lives deep in the forests of South Papua Province, Indonesia. In late 2020, she heard from women traders that workers were surveying the community's forest for a company's commercial use, including Wagaban hamlet, where she farms.

Aimee Gabay, Karawang/Jakarta, Indonesia – At 55, Warno has spent the past quarter of a century making a living from a fish farm that he manages in Karawang district, in the Indonesian province of West Java. Here, in ponds spanning a combined 2 hectares (5 acres), he raises milkfish and shrimp, and grows seaweed.

Ervana Trikarinaputri, Jakarta – The People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) Speaker Ahmad Muzani has affirmed that there is no plan to change the presidential term limit. The Gerindra Party politician also stated that the rumors suggesting a change to the presidential term are not part of the discussions on the Basic Guidelines of State Policy (PPHN).

Dian Rahma Fika, Jakarta – Deputy Speaker of Indonesia's House of Representatives (DPR) Adies Kadir said the Rp50 million monthly housing allowance for legislators is still reasonable.

He explained that rental prices around the Parliament Complex in Senayan, Jakarta, start at Rp3 million per month.

Addin Anugrah Siwi, Jakarta – Indonesia's Financial Services Authority (OJK) has shut down more than 1,800 unlicensed financial entities, including illegal online lenders and fraudulent investment schemes, as part of a nationwide crackdown on financial crimes.

Hans Nicholas Jong, Jakarta – Indonesia's courts have ordered plantation companies to pay more than 21 trillion rupiah ($1.3 billion), an amount 28 times the environment ministry's entire annual budget, for forest and peatland fires – yet almost none of that has been collected.

Ruth Dea Juwita, Jakarta – Tumbling electric motorcycle sales in the first half of 2025 have left manufacturers with increasing inventories, prompting production cuts as the industry awaits clarity on government subsidies.

Erfan Maruf, Jakarta – Indonesia's government under President Prabowo Subianto will sharply scale back state funding for toll road construction starting next year, marking a departure from the infrastructure-heavy policies of his predecessor, Joko "Jokowi" Widodo.

Novali Panji Nugroho, Jakarta – Indonesia's new capital city, Nusantara Capital City (IKN), located in Penajam Paser Utara, East Kalimantan, has recently become a hotspot for commercial sex workers offering their services.

One of the main reasons is that the rates for sexual services in IKN are higher than in other areas of East Kalimantan.

Novali Panji Nugroho, Jakarta – Joko Widodo or Jokowi entrusted the Nusantara Capital, or IKN, a priority project of his presidency, to his successor, President Prabowo Subianto. However, there may be a difference in priorities between the two leaders regarding the development of IKN in Penajam Paser Utara, East Kalimantan.

Singgih Wiryono, Ardito Ramadhan, Jakarta – The National Commission on Violence Against Women (Komnas Perempuan) has revealed that reports of violence against women throughout 2024 increased compared to the previous year.

Dede Leni Mardianti, Jakarta – The free nutritious meal program (MBG) is one of the initiatives funded through the health budget. The Ministry of Finance has allocated Rp24.7 trillion for MBG from the total health budget of Rp244 trillion.

Sui-Lee Wee – Word spread fast that heavy machinery had arrived in the ancient rainforest near the Indonesian village of Sungai Mata-Mata, an expanse on the western edge of the island of Borneo that is home to orangutans, clouded leopards and sun bears.

Intan Setiawanty – Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) criticized President Prabowo Subianto's speech at the Annual Session of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) on Friday, August 15, which touched on his commitment to eradicating corruption.

Intan Setiawanty – Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto mentioned that there is an unresolved illegal palm oil plantation which has not been executed despite having a legally binding decision 18 years ago. The Indonesian Forum for the Environment (WALHI) suspects that Prabowo was referring to the case of palm oil businessman Darianus Lunggguk (DL) Sitorus.

Anastasya Lavenia Yudi, Jakarta – Indonesian government plans to raise new debt of Rp781.9 trillion in 2026, with the debt-to-Gross Domestic Product (GDP) ratio projected at 39.96 percent next year.

According to Book II of the 2026 Financial Note, the debt comprises State Securities (SBN) issuance worth Rp749.2 trillion and loans totaling Rp32.7 trillion.

Nabiila Azzahra, Jakarta – Gender-based violence against women in Indonesia has not been addressed with an appropriate gravity. Coinciding with the country's 80th Independence Day, the National Commission on Violence Against Women (Komnas Perempuan) warned that there have been over 2 million cases of violence against women in the past nine years.

M. Raihan Muzzaki, Jakarta – Herdiansyah Hamzah, a legal expert in constitutional law at Mulawarman University, criticized the government's decision to release Setya Novanto, the convicted e-KTP corruption case defendant, on conditional terms.

He argued that the government should not easily release corruptors if corruption is still considered an extraordinary crime.

Vedro Imanuel Girsang, Jakarta – The Secretary General for the mass organization Gerakan Rakyat Indonesia Bersatu Jaya (GRIB Jaya), Zulfikar, spoke out about the demolition of its North Sumatran headquarters. On August 14, 2025, the Secretariat of the North Sumatra Regional Board (DPD) of GRIB Jaya was recently demolished on suspicion of being a lair for drug transactions.

The Committee for the Safety of Journalists (KKJ) strongly condemns the Israeli military's continued premeditated killing of journalists in Gaza. The KKJ's stance was issued in response to the planned and flagrant murder of members of the Al Jazeera reporting team in Gaza.

Surabaya – Hundreds of students from various campuses in Surabaya held another demonstration in front of the East Java Regional House of Representative (DPRD) building on Tuesday August 19. During the rally they flew the Jolly Roger flag from the Japanese anime One Piece and called themselves the Nakama Action Movement.

Jakarta – Of all the members of the military elite in the early days of independence, Abdul Haris Nasution was the key figure in shaping the military's role in Indonesian politics. He was a founding father of guerrilla warfare. According to his doctrine, civilians and the military should fight side by side, with no separation between them.

Rama Sukarta, Addin Anugrah Siwi, Arnoldus Kristianus, Jakarta – Indonesia's economy is still expanding at a respectable pace. Growth reached 5.12 percent in the second quarter of 2025, according to the Central Statistics Agency (BPS). Output stood at nearly Rp5,947 trillion ($374 billion) at current prices, up from 4.04 percent in the previous quarter.

Jamaah, Blora – A total of 800 residents of Gandu Village, Bogorejo District, Blora Regency, Central Java, were forced to evacuate following an oil well fire in Gendono Hamlet on Monday night.

Erfan Maruf, Jakarta – State-owned construction company Hutama Karya has completed construction of the 9.3-kilometer Section 3A of the Nusantara Capital City (IKN) toll road, linking Karangjoang to KKT Kariangau. The project is now undergoing a provisional handover process before entering an operational trial phase to strengthen access to Indonesia's future capital.

Tama Salim – When I was growing up in the 1990s, history was something to be memorized, not understood.

Muhammad Ghafur Fadillah, Jakarta – Losses from scams and illegal financial activities in Indonesia have surged sharply, reaching Rp 4.6 trillion ($283 million) in just 10 months, authorities said Tuesday.

Associated Press, Jakarta – Two men held rubber bands at chest height while a woman hopped over them from side to side, earning cheers and applause from onlookers impressed by her leaps.

Antara, Jakarta – Primary and Secondary Education Minister Abdul Mu'ti highlighted a worrying trend: many Indonesian children struggle to read analog clocks, reflecting broader challenges in numeracy skills.

Sultan Abdurrahman, Jakarta – The Jakarta Environment Agency collected tens of tons of waste following the 80th Anniversary of Indonesia celebration in the capital on Sunday, August 17, 2025.