Jakarta (AFP) – No one was more surprised to learn that Dimas Prayitno owned a Rolls-Royce than the 21-year-old Indonesian himself, who was baffled when told he owed US$15,000 (S$20,800) in taxes on the luxury vehicle.

Jakarta – The Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) has refused an invitation from the Presidential Staff Office (KSP) for a meeting to discuss the Draft Omnibus Law on Job Creation.

Jakarta – Several nongovernmental organizations are joining forces to monitor the government's policies on the fisheries sector and to make sure they would not harm the security and ecological sustainability of fish stocks and of the livelihoods of traditional fishermen.

Adrian Wail Akhlas and Esther Samboh, Jakarta – The government is working to finalize eight measures that will be incorporated in a second stimulus package aimed at easing rules for exports and imports as supply chains continue to be disrupted by the spread of COVID-19, Coordinating Economic Minister Airlangga Hartarto said on Wednesday.

Jayapura – On Tuesday March 3 the Balikpapan District Court rejected a demurer presented by seven Papuan political prisoners (tapol) who are defendants in a treason case currently being tried in Balikpapan, East Kalimantan.

Jakarta – State electricity company PLN will set aside Rp 90 trillion (US$6.3 billion) in capital expenditure (capex) in 2020 to finance the development of new electricity infrastructure, the company's top executive has said.

Esther Samboh, Jakarta – Bank Indonesia (BI) is predicting that weakening economic activities, especially involving tourism, exports and imports, would drag down the country's economic growth to 4.9 percent in the first quarter before picking up again in the following months.

Jakarta – The Jakarta Police seized 350 boxes of face masks during a raid on the residence of a suspected hoarder in Tanjung Duren, Grogol Petamburan, West Jakarta in the wake of panic buying that hit the capital city on Monday following the announcement of the country's first confirmed COVID-19 cases.

Nur Yasmin, Jakarta – The government has been working on new policies that will allow it to foot Covid-19 patients' hospital bills, something that would come as a relief for a worried population facing the real possibility of an outbreak, Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati said.

Nina Loasana, Jakarta – Panic buying hit supermarkets and drugstores across Jakarta on March 2 following President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's announcement on the country's first two confirmed cases of COVID-19.

Nina Loasana, Jakarta – Nine shophouses at the Jompo shopping complex in Kaliwates district, Jember regency, East Java, collapsed on Monday morning after a nearby river overflowed due to heavy rainfall.

Riska Rahman, Jakarta – Indonesian stocks jumped by more than 3 percent on Tuesday morning, reversing deep losses in recent days due to the spread of COVID-19, as market players regain confidence following authorities' efforts to calm the market down.

Sausan Atika, Jakarta – The Jakarta administration will reduce the number of mass gatherings as a precaution after two residents of Depok, West Java – located on the outskirts of the capital city – tested positive for the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), marking the country's first confirmed cases.

Marchio Irfan Gorbiano and Eisya A. Eloksari, Jakarta – Indonesia' manufacturing industry is showing signs of strength despite indications of plunging business activity in neighboring countries amid the spread of the coronavirus.

Norman Harsono, Jakarta – Indonesia's retail and shopping center associations were urging consumer restraint after news about the confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Indonesia triggered panic buying sprees.

A 26-year-old woman in the East Java capital of Surabaya has reported a pastor at her church to the police for sexual abuse, which she claims went on for 17 years.

Vic Parsons – Indonesia is proposing legislation that would force LGBT+ people into treatment to "cure" their sexuality or gender identity.

The "Family Resilience Bill" would force LGBT+ people into government-sanctioned "rehabilitation centres", which would give religiously-based "treatment" for being lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender.

Jakarta – Members of the House of Representatives have demanded that the government enact stronger coronavirus containment measures following the confirmation of two cases of the novel coronavirus disease (Covid-19) in Indonesia.

Jakarta – Overloaded and oversized freight trucks will be prohibited from using the toll roads between Jakarta and Bandung starting this month to reduce congestion and prevent damage to the roads, the Transportation Ministry has announced.

Rizki Fachriansyah and Muh. Ibnu Aqil, Jakarta – Activists and lawmakers have called for more considerate reporting on the country's first confirmed coronavirus cases following the unprecedented disclosure of the patients' personal information on social media platforms on Monday.

Made Anthony Iswara, Jakarta – Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati has appointed Eddy Abdurrachman as the new Indonesian Oil Palm Estate Fund (BPDP-KS) president director, replacing Dono Boestami.

Christopher Knaus – Lawyer Bernard Collaery says Australia had direct knowledge of the dangers facing the murdered Balibo Five journalists, citing a damning report suggesting Australian intelligence knew Indonesia viewed reporters as a "hurdle to be got over" in keeping its invasion of East Timor secret.

Jakarta – Several non-government organisations (NGOs) have rejected an invitation to hold a joint meeting at the Presidential Staff Office (KSP) to discuss the Draft Omnibus Law on Job Creation.

Jakarta – The government plans to ease licensing procedures for importing raw materials as the country's manufacturing industry begins to feel the impact of the disruption to the supply chain from China caused by the coronavirus outbreak.

Adrian Wail Akhlas and Marchio Irfan Gorbiano, Jakarta – The Asian Development Bank (ADB) will provide around US$2.7 billion in loans this year to support Indonesia's human capital, infrastructure and green energy development.

Hengky Ola Sura, Maumere – Eleven people have died due to dengue fever in Sikka regency, East Nusa Tenggara, while up to 1,057 people have been infected since the beginning of the year, the Sikka Health Agency reported.

Eisya A. Eloksari, Jakarta – Communication and Information Minister Johnny G. Plate said that the ministry had found 148 hoaxes related to the COVID-19 spread as of Monday.

The reported number of false and fake information came after Indonesia confirmed its first two confirmed cases.

Adrian Wail Akhlas, Jakarta – Headline inflation in Indonesia rose to 2.98 percent in February from 2.68 percent in January, driven by higher prices of garlic and cayenne, among other commodities.

Beritasatu, Jakarta – The Indonesia Stock Exchange, or IDX, stopped short selling at the local burse on Monday, seeking to stave off a further decline in the stock market caused by panic selling as the novel coronavirus outbreak shows no sign of stopping and the Indonesian government announced the first two cases of the Covid-19 infections in the country.

Jakarta – Gas distribution company PT Perusahaan Gas Negara (PGN), part of state-owned oil and gas holding company Pertamina, will spend about US$2.5 billion on the construction of liquefied natural gas (LNG) receiving terminals and gas distribution facilities to support the gasification program of state-owned electricity company PLN, an executive of the company has said.

Sausan Atika, Jakarta – The Jakarta administration has established a fast-response team to handle the fast-spreading and fatal respiratory coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in the wake of two confirmed cases of Indonesians infected with the virus.

Ahmad Faiz Ibnu Sani, Jakarta – The general secretary of the Indonesian Ulama Council (MUI), Anwar Abbas, says that the participants of the 7th Indonesian Islamic Ulama Congress see the Draft Omnibus Law on Job Creation as only prioritising the interests of employers and business.

Denpasar (AFP) – Bali's Galungan festival celebrates the triumph of good over evil, but a new enemy is threatening that cosmic balance this year – coronavirus.

Arys Aditya – Bank Indonesia lowered banks' reserve requirement ratios, seeking to shore up liquidity after concerns over the economic impact of coronavirus triggered a selloff in the nation's stocks, bonds and currency.

Jakarta – Indonesia Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati said on Monday the government will ease rules on the import of capital goods to assist the economy amid a trade slowdown due to the global coronavirus outbreak.

"Stocks of raw material for manufacturing industry are thinning, so the president has asked to ease imports of materials," Indrawati told reporters.

Hans Nicholas Jong, Jakarta – A top Indonesian official has declared a halt to new oil palm plantations in the country's heavily forested Papua region in favor of other, "greener," crops, apparently contradicting his vigorous earlier defenses of the industry.

Rebecca Ratcliffe – Two Indonesian citizens have tested positive for the new coronavirus after being in contact with an infected Japanese national, the country's president said on Monday, the first cases to be reported in the world's fourth most populous country.

The confirmation follows mounting concern that the country is failing to identify transmission of the virus.

The House of Representatives (DPR) published in January its list of priority bills (National Legislative Program, Prolegnas) for 2020.

Jakarta – The State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) Ministry has demanded a full assessment of the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway project over environmental and human concerns.

Jakarta – The Communications and Information Ministry is collaborating with more than 100 communities in Indonesia to run digital literacy programs nationwide.

The ministry's program emphasizes individual capacity building in its program as it believes that each person should be on the front line in educating their communities about digital literacy.

Jakarta – Indonesia still deserves special treatment in global trade despite the United States recently taking the archipelago off its list of developing countries, local economists have said.

Riska Rahman and Esther Samboh, Jakarta – Indonesia's stock index extended losses before reversing to gains on Monday morning trade, after a market rout sent the gauge to its worst month in six years as coronavirus cases outside China grow rapidly, potentially dampening the global economy.

Ardila Syakriah, Jakarta – Calls are mounting for the government to form a national outbreak committee that involves experts to help the Health Ministry in the battle against the COVID-19 coronavirus as questions abound about the country having zero confirmed cases.

Beritasatu, Jakarta – Indonesia has confirmed two novel coronavirus cases in its territory after diagnosing two women living in Depok, a West Java suburb just outside Jakarta, who came in contact with a Japanese man coming from Malaysia who was already infected with the virus several days ago.

Thresa Sandra Desfika, Jakarta – National flag carrier Garuda Indonesia and its budget airline Citilink began implementing flight fare cuts on 10 tourist destination on Sunday to follow a government directive aimed at keeping the tourism industry afloat amid the global coronavirus fears.

Adrian Wail Akhlas, Jakarta – Bank Indonesia (BI) will "intensify intervention" to stabilize the local financial market by buying government bonds and the rupiah amid heavy selling pressure caused by coronavirus fears as Indonesia reports its first two cases.

Adrian Wail Akhlas, Jakarta – Bank Indonesia (BI) announced Monday five measures to stabilize the rupiah as foreign investors sold off Indonesian financial assets from stocks to bonds and after Indonesia officially reported its first coronavirus cases.

Apriadi Gunawan, North Tapanuli, North Sumatra – Bukit Barisan Military Command (Kodam) 1 has removed Capt. Ridwan, company commander of Infantry Battalion (Yonif) 123/Rajawali, from his post following an attack on Pahae Julu Police station in North Tapanuli regency, North Sumatra.

Beritasatu, Jakarta – Inflation accelerated in February thanks to rising prices of cigarette and tobacco products, the Central Statistics Agency, or BPS, said on Monday.

The composite price index, a broad measure of all the prices of goods and services being sold in the country, rose 2.98 percent last month from 2.68 percent in January.

Beritasatu, Diana Mariska, Jakarta – The government revealed on Monday at least 48 people have been put under observation after coming into direct contact with the first two confirmed Covid-19 patients in Indonesia and admitted the number could grow.