Ilham Oktafian, Jakarta – Indonesia is moving closer to providing free basic education for all students, including those enrolled in private schools, following a landmark Constitutional Court ruling that partially grants a judicial review of the National Education System Law.

New York – An escalation in fighting between Indonesian security forces and Papuan separatist armed groups in West Papua has seriously threatened the security of the largely Indigenous population, Human Rights Watch said today. All parties to the conflict are obligated to abide by international humanitarian law, also called the laws of war.

CIVICUS discusses the devastating impact of palm oil extraction in West Papua with Tigor Hutapea, legal representative of Pusaka Bentala Rakyat, an organisation campaigning for Indigenous Papuan people's rights to manage their customary lands and forests.

Maidina Rahmawati and Erasmus AT Napitupulu – The Indonesian House of Representatives (DPR) is reportedly set to ratify amendments to Law No. 2 of 2002 on the National Police after starting deliberations in February this year.

Nandito Putra, Jakarta – Greenpeace Indonesia has criticized the recently introduced Electricity Supply Business Plan (RUPTL) 2025-2034 shared by the government. The international environmental organization contends that despite the urgent climate crisis and the shift toward clean energy, the plan still favors fossil fuels, particularly coal and gas.

Agencies, Jakarta – France and Indonesia have signed a preliminary defence pact that could lead to new orders of French military equipment including Rafale fighter jets and Scorpene submarines, French President Emmanuel Macron said on Wednesday.

Fuad Iqbal Abdullah, Yovanda Noni, East Kalimantan – Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka made a two-day working visit to Indonesia's new capital, Nusantara (IKN), on May 28 and 29, his first official trip to the site since assuming office.

Savero Aristia Wienanto, Jakarta – Middle East geopolitical analyst Dina Sulaeman shed light on the pro-Palestine movement in Indonesia, which tends to be less active compared to other parts of the world. Dina mentioned several reasons behind the less massive support for Palestine in Indonesia.

Andika Julia Perdana Putra – The government's move to block the archive.org website has attracted support and opposition from the public. The website known as a digital archive was created specifically to preserve and provide universal access to all information on the internet.

Manila – Timor-Leste deported an Interpol-wanted Filipino murder suspect on Thursday (May 29) whose case the government has linked to its aspirations to join the regional ASEAN bloc, after more than two years of political wrangling.

Ananda Ridho Sulistya, Jakarta – The Directorate General of Digital Space Supervision at the Ministry of Communication and Digital Technology (Komdigi) has confirmed the blocking of the website Archive.org. The move, described as temporary, targets a site widely known for providing historical digital archives and documentation.

Alif Ilham Fajriadi, Jakarta – Bara Muhammad Setiadi, a researcher from the Center for Economic and Law Studies (Celios), stated that online motorcycle taxi (ojol) drivers must put in extra hours to earn an income comparable to other workers.

Dyna Rochmyaningsih – Indonesia, one of the most biodiverse nations on Earth, appears to be gearing up to renew official estimates of its remaining wildlife populations, following nearly two decades without official updates on the status of some key species.

Louis Plottel – There's a notorious stretch of road in Indonesia, by the border of North Sumatra and Aceh provinces, that passes through kilometres and kilometres of oil palm plantations. There are few people there, besides the occasional plantation worker. Trees stretch in grids as far as the eye can see.

Max Lane – From two different May Day events in Jakarta, divergent approaches in negotiating workers' aims and rights in Indonesia can be discerned.

Lelilef Sawai, Indonesia – Sitting deep in east Indonesia's lush jungle, Bokum, one of the country's last isolated hunter-gatherers, has a simple message for the nickel miners threatening his home: "This is our land."

Police in Timor-Leste have re-arrested a former Philippine Congress member accused of masterminding the killing of a sitting governor and nine others back home in March 2023.

Donny Iqbal – Indonesia's highest court has overturned the acquittal of an accused translator who facilitated transactions in the international trade of poached rhino horns.

Andi Adam Faturahman, Jakarta – The West Papua National Liberation Army-Free Papua Organization (TPNPB-OPM) has accused the Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI) of using unmanned aerial vehicles or drones to attack villages and areas considered to be the TPNPB militia's base.

Jakarta – The Center for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation (PVMBG) has reported that Mount Semeru, situated on the border of Lumajang and Malang districts in East Java, erupted several times on Wednesday morning, spewing thick ash plumes up to 1,200 meters above the Mahameru peak.

Agencies, Jakarta – President Prabowo Subianto on Wednesday said he would be willing to establish diplomatic relations with Israel if it recognised a Palestinian state, as he held talks with French President Emmanuel Macron in Jakarta.

Indonesia has no formal ties with Israel and has consistently called for a two-state solution to the decades-long conflict.

Aditya Hadi, Jakarta – Tensions have risen between flag carrier Garuda Indonesia and its pilots over disputes regarding the new leadership's hiring policy.

Eka Jaya Saputra, Bekasi, West Java – More than 25,000 job seekers crowded the President University Convention Center on Tuesday for a large job fair organized by the Bekasi Regency Government. The event featured 2,517 job openings from 64 companies across various industrial zones in Bekasi.

Widi Agustian, Jakarta – Jakarta Governor warns that students who smoke at school or in public places could lose their Jakarta Smart Card (KJP) Plus financial aid.

KJP Plus is a financial assistance program from the Jakarta Provincial Government that provides monthly stipends to help underprivileged students cover education-related expenses.

Jakarta – The Attorney General's Office (AGO) investigation into the management of oil imports by Pertamina increasingly confirms the fact that it involves many people and careful planning from upstream to downstream. The questioning of Adaro Minerals Indonesia Finance Director Heri Gunawan shows that losses to the state also occur in the sale of oil to industry.

Salman Mardira, Jakarta – The Indonesian Armed Forces (TNI) have appointed Major General Edwin Adrian Sumantha as the new commander of the Presidential Security Force (Paspampres), replacing Maj. Gen. Achiruddin, who has been promoted to lead the Diponegoro Regional Military Command.

Arnoldus Kristianus, Jakarta – President Prabowo Subianto's flagship free meal program could balloon to hundreds of trillions of rupiah and put significant pressure on the state budget, a senior economist warned on Wednesday.

Antara, Jakarta – Manpower Minister Yassierli announced on Wednesday the issuance of a new circular prohibiting all forms of discrimination in the job recruitment process.

Agung Dharma Putra, Surabaya – The Indonesian government has made it mandatory for all landowners to convert their paper-based land certificates into a digital format, as part of a sweeping modernization effort in the country's land administration system.

Agnes Valentina Christa, Jakarta – CEO of sovereign wealth fund Danantara, Rosan Roeslani, and CIO Pandu Sjahrir firmly deny reports that American investor Ray Dalio has withdrawn from Danantara's advisory board.

Budhy Nurgianto, Halmahera – Dozens of blood samples from workers at the Weda Bay Nickel Industrial Park, and the residents around the nickel industrial area located in Weda, Central Halmahera, North Maluku, Indonesia, were found to be contaminated with two heavy metals, mercury and arsenic, exceeding the safe limits.

Dian Rahma Fika, Jakarta – Chairperson of the Central Executive Board of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDIP), Puan Maharani, asked Minister of Cooperatives Budi Arie to clarify allegations of the involvement of the party with a bull logo in a case of online gambling at the Ministry of Communication and Informatics.

Melynda Dwi Puspita, Jakarta – Thousands of job seekers crowded the Bekasi Pasti Kerja 2025 Job Fair, organized by the Bekasi District Manpower Office at President University's Jababeka Convention Centre, Cikarang, Bekasi, West Java, on Tuesday, May 27, 2025. A viral video on social media showed applicants jostling for space.

Harumbi Prastya Hidayahningrum, Jakarta – The government is finalizing a new wage subsidy program that will provide Rp 150,000 ($9.23) per month to workers earning less than Rp 3.5 million, including non-permanent (honorary) teachers. The scheme is part of a broader economic stimulus package set for rollout in the second quarter of 2025.

"During the second semester of 2024, BPK successfully saved state finances from actual losses, potential losses, and revenue shortfalls totaling Rp 43.43 trillion," BPK Chairperson Isma Yatun said on Tuesday.

Arnoldus Kristianus, Jakarta – The government is launching a series of economic stimulus programs to coincide with the June-July 2025 school holiday period, aiming to support economic growth, boost consumer spending, and maintain purchasing power.

Benedicte Jeannerod and Meenakshi Ganguly – French President Emmanuel Macron will soon meet in Jakarta as well as in the Borobudur temple, Central Java, with Indonesia's President Prabowo Subianto to further strengthen relations between their two countries, including on energy transition, military cooperation, and enhancing a digital economy.

Timor-Leste is one step closer to achieving full membership in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), a new announcement putting its accession as soon as October if requirements are fulfilled, according to multiple media reports.

Yogyakarta, Indonesia – Rahayu Oktaviani revered the work of Canadian primatologist Birute Galdikas while a student in the mid-2000s, aspiring to join her hero in protecting the Bornean orangutan, which would be classified several years later as a critically endangered species.

Kuala Lumpur – Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh had a meeting with his Timor-Leste counterpart Xanana Gusmao in Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday, within the framework of his official visit to Malaysia and his attendance at the 46th ASEAN Summit and related Summits.

Jakarta – For the majority of people in Indonesia, street hustlers, known as preman, are an integral part of their lives.

From directing traffic to looking for parking spots, these preman, derived from the Dutch word vrijeman, are all eager to lend a hand, in exchange for petty cash or loose change in your glove compartment.

Muhammad Aulia Rahman, Jakarta – The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) is investigating a suspected extortion scheme at the Ministry of Manpower involving the approval of foreign worker permits. The illegal practice is believed to have started in 2019 and may have generated up to Rp 53 billion (about USD 3.3 million).

Addin Anugrah Siwi, Jakarta – Despite Indonesia's commitment to a cleaner energy future, efforts to transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy remain slow and largely symbolic, an executive at state-owned energy giant Pertamina said on Monday.

Oyuk Ivani Siagian, Jakarta – The Indonesian Mother's Voice Movement has submitted a formal letter to Jakarta Metro Police Chief Inspector General Karyoto, urging the immediate release of 16 Trisakti University students who were arrested and named as suspects following a protest that turned chaotic during the 27th anniversary commemoration of the Trisakti Tragedy at Jakarta City Hal

Every year from May 26 to 31, the international community commemorates Enforced Disappearance Week.

Freedom of self-determination is one of the most valuable principles, higher than other values that should be enjoyed by every person in their life, especially people who live on a certain land.

Hanifah Salsabila, Faieq Hidayat, Jakarta – Police raided a gay sex party at a hotel in the Setiabudi area of South Jakarta on Sunday May 25.

Vedro Imanuel Girsang, Jakarta – Human rights organization Lokataru Foundation reported that as many as 200 protesters have been detained throughout May. The arrests took place during numerous rallies across the country, from Java to Maluku.

Muhammad Aulia Rahman, Jakarta – The Attorney General's Office (AGO) has launched an investigation into alleged corruption in the Education Ministry's Rp 10 trillion ($615 million) Chromebook procurement project, which was intended to support the digitalization of schools nationwide between 2019 and 2023.

Jakarta – Perhaps President Prabowo Subianto is making use of Winston Churchill's popular quote: history is written by the victors. Established after winning last year's presidential election, the Prabowo administration is rewriting the 'official history' of Indonesia.