Inge Klara Safitri, Safira Andini, Jakarta – The flooding that hit Jakarta early this year has damaged several roads in the city.

Kurnia Togar P. Tanjung – Disruptive innovations developed by ride-hailing companies have transformed the transportation market in Indonesia. Since GoJek was launched in 2010, ride-hailing services have won the hearts of customers, driving them away from conventional taxis.

Devina Heriyanto, Jakarta – Almost nobody gets it right on the first try. Since Ailen was in elementary school until university, people often misread her name as Alien. It does not help that she only has one name.

Jakarta – Indonesia will need to boost investment to ensure sustainable growth as household spending, currently the main driver of economic growth, is not expected to see any significant growth in the future, a senior economist has said.

Suherdjoko, Semarang, Central Java – In an effort to eradicate radicalism and intolerance at school, the Central Java Education and Culture Agency is to commence tolerance education pilot projects in 20 schools in Solo Raya, which includes Surakarta city and its surrounding regencies, starting next month.

Jakarta – Indonesia's largest Islamic organization Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) has highlighted the importance of social activism in addressing interreligious conflicts during a discussion with religious leaders held as part of the Abrahamic Faiths Initiative forum in Rome from Tuesday to Friday.

Jakarta – The Indonesian Military (TNI) said on Thursday that it discovered one of the bases of an armed criminal group (KKB) that has been active in Intan Jaya regency of Papua.

Cendrawasih Military Command spokesperson Lt. Col. Dax Sianturi said the soldiers found the group's base in a village in Tigi district on Tuesday.

Bangkok – An intelligence-sharing agreement signed by the army chiefs of Thailand and Indonesia is unlikely to significantly help Thailand end a separatist insurgency in its deep south, analysts said. More than 7,000 people have died since the insurgency flared up in 2004.

The Jakarta Metro Police are questioning the leader of a hardline organization over a banner put up in East Jakarta that was disturbingly both racist and bigoted.

Antara, Winda Ayu Larasati, Jakarta – The National Police have opened an inquiry into allegations of corruption in the Indonesian Armed Forces Social Insurance, or Asabri, taking the lid off another potential scandal in a financial industry already ridden with billion-dollar graft cases.

A 69-year-old laborer named Samirin might not have expected a prison sentence for taking a tiny bit of leftover rubber sap at a plantation he used to work at in North Sumatra.

The Simalungun District Court yesterday sentenced Samirin to two months and four days in prison for his crime.

Lea Citra, Adi Ahdiat, Jakarta – A gender activists from the group Indonesian Queer Feminist Activist, Lini Zurlia, says that the public should be critical of the Draft Law Against Sexually Deviant Propaganda (RUU Anti-Propaganda Penyimpangan Seksual).

Budiarti Utami Putri, Jakarta – A number of legislators in the House of Representatives (DPR) argue against the rule overseeing a legislator's maximum term in office following a request for judicial review in the Constitutional Court (MK) regarding the matter.

Dili – The parliament of Timor-Leste rejected the new proposal of the government for the state budget.

Dili – The Vatican Embassy in Dili is 'still optimistic' that Pope Francis will visit Timor-Leste this year. Recently president Francisco Guterres – Lu-Olo – sent an official invitation to the Holy Father. The bishops conference of Timor-Leste united itself behind the initiative.

Jakarta – Mount Semeru in Lumajang, East Java, erupted early Friday morning, spewing a column of ash and smoke at least 400 meters high.

Riza Roidila Mufti, Brunei Darussalam – The Tourism and Creative Economy Ministry formally introduced Indonesia's five super-priority tourism destinations to 43 international journalists attending the ASEAN Tourism Forum 2020 in Brunei Darussalam on Thursday.

Jakarta – A district military commander in South Kalimantan has banned his soldiers and their wives from using TikTok, a popular Beijing-based short-form video platform, and sharing footage with others on social media.

Diana Mariska, Jakarta – Indonesia plans to buy bigger boats to allow its coast guards to travel across the ocean, most notably the Natuna Sea, and expand their patrol reach, the government said on Friday.

The plan to buy ocean-going vessels was made after Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto had reportedly bought frigates for the Indonesian Navy from Denmark.

An online journalist was physically assaulted and threatened by gunpoint for his coverage of a transport company in Aceh on January 4. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and its affiliate the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) Indonesia denounce the threat on his life and urge the police to investigate the matter.

Marchio Irfan Gorbiano, Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo has called on law enforcers and intelligence agencies to approach "organizations" and communicate with them about an omnibus bill being drafted by the government.

Jakarta – Bus operators have complained that 20 percent blended biodiesel (B20) has caused their engines to run poorly, providing a cautionary message for future developments as Indonesia envisions a future with unblended pure biodiesel to fuel vehicles across the country.

Dedek Hendry, Rejang Lebong, Bengkulu – Four members of the Environment Care Women's Group (KPPL) Maju Bersama in Pal VIII village, Rejang Lebong regency, Bengkulu, walked slowly through the Kerinci Seblat National Park (TNKS) to look for food.

Marchio Irfan Gorbiano, Jakarta – At least five foreign investors have expressed their interest in developing Indonesia's new capital city in East Kalimantan, a minister has said, as the government seeks greater private sector involvement in financing the relocation plan.

Riska Rahman, Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo has called for reform in the country's financial services companies to improve the public's trust following cases that rocked the country's insurance industry.

Arya Dipac, Bandung, West Java – Environmentalists have urged against using incinerators as waste-to-energy power plants (PLTSa) to tackle garbage problem in cities across the country, saying that they would cause more environmental problems.

Linda Yulisman, Jakarta – Indonesia has stepped up the health screening of inbound travellers at airports and seaports after the Wuhan pneumonia-like virus was detected in a Chinese visitor flying into Thailand, with those from Singapore being more closely examined at the nearby holiday islands of Batam and Bintan.

The 79 member states of the Africa Caribbean Pacific (ACP) group are seeking international action over human rights abuses in West Papua.

A resolution was passed by the group at its 9th ACP Summit of Heads of State and Government, calling for urgent attention to be paid to the rights situation in Indonesia-ruled Papua region.

Jakarta – The Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI) believes that violations against human rights (HAM) and civil freedoms have worsened in 2019.

Hellena Souisa and Michael Walsh, wires – An Indonesian mayor's planned crackdown on his city's LGBT community, including through the use of police raids and a so-called "crisis centre", has spread fear and outrage among local sexuality- and gender-diverse people and their supporters.

Marvela, Safira Andini, Jakarta – Sinta Nuriyah, the wife of the 4th Indonesian President Abdurrahman Wahid (Gus Dur), said that Muslim women are not obliged to wear the jilbab (Islamic headscarf). She also said that many people are still mistaken about the definition of two terms; jilbab and hijab.

Jakarta – Speculation is rife in Indonesia after President Joko Widodo appeared to have suggested that Mr Sandiaga Salahuddin Uno, a vice-presidential hopeful in the 2019 election, would "very likely" become his successor.

Maikel Jefriando, Jakarta – Indonesian President Joko Widodo said on Thursday that a planned sovereign wealth fund to finance infrastructure projects in Southeast Asia's biggest economy will raise at least $20 billion once established.

Riska Rahman, Jakarta – The government is making assurances that the big investment losses suffered by the state insurer and pension fund for the military, police and defense ministry, Asuransi Sosial Angkatan Bersenjata Republik Indonesia (Asabri), would not affect its ability to pay out insurance claims.

Suherdjoko, Semarang, Central Java – The Central Java Police have named Totok Santoso Hadiningrat and Fanni Amanadia, who proclaimed themselves to be the "king and queen" of Keraton Agung Sejagat, suspects of fraud over the so-called kingdom that they claimed to be the successor to the ancient Majapahit Empire.

Lona Olavia, Jakarta – Indonesian banking loan expansion is set to recover this year after experiencing a significant slowdown in 2019, with completion of key infrastructure projects and the government's continuing structural reform providing a supportive environment for loan demand to pick up.

Jakarta – The Jiwasraya scandal is a reflection of how atrocious monitoring of financial services in this country. Investor trust in financial markets could rapidly dissipate.

M Julnis Firmansyah, Jakarta – Governor Anies Baswedan's proposal to purchase 6 sets of loudspeakers worth Rp4 billion functioned as Jakarta's flood early warning system is met with firm rejection from a member of the Jakarta Legislative Council (DPRD), William Aditya.

Antara, Banda Aceh – The deforestation rate in Aceh Province may have reached 35 thousand hectares (ha) in the last three years and will decrease further in the next two years, the Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi) has predicted.

Telly Nathalia, Jakarta – At least five hectares of forest land inside the Giak Siam Kecil conservation in Bengkalis, Riau, were destroyed by fire on Thursday.

By the afternoon, firefighters were still trying to extinguish the fire that has engulfed peatland and palm groves in the area, the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) said.

Jakarta – Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) Coordinator Yati Andriyani has slammed a statement by Attorney General ST Burhanuddin who declared that the Semanggi I and II student shootings in 1998 were not gross human rights (HAM) violations.

Jakarta – After years of holding Kamisan (Thursday) actions every week, a mother of one the students killed in the Semanggi affair in 1998, Maria Sumarsih, admits that things are becoming more difficult.

When she was attending the commemoration of 13 years of Kamisan Actions on Thursday January 16, she claimed that they were blocked by police.

Marchio Irfan Gorbiano and Made Anthony Iswara, Jakarta – The government will ease permit requirements for the construction of small-scale buildings under a new omnibus law, Coordinating Economic Minister Airlangga Hartarto said on Wednesday.

Yeremia Sukoyo, Fana Suparman, Jakarta – The Attorney General's Office says corruption has left state-owned life insurer Asuransi Jiwasraya on the brink of bankruptcy and names five suspects in the case, including former executives and a prominent local investor.

Emma Connors, Jakarta – The Indonesian government is betting three high-profile figures from the UK, the United Arab Emirates and Japan will help it win global backing for its plan to shift the nation's capital.

Norman Harsono, Jakarta – A misfired explosion during the drilling of the YYA-1 oil well caused a massive oil spill in West Java in July last year, according to an Energy and Mineral Resources investigation team.

Jakarta – Floods triggered by heavy rainfall in Samarinda, East Kalimantan, have submerged three districts and six subdistricts since Tuesday morning, affecting at least 7,213 residents.

Jakarta – The Purworejo Police arrested on Tuesday afternoon Totok Santoso Hadiningrat and Fanni Aminadia, residents of Purworejo regency in Central Java, who recently declared themselves the "king and queen" of the so-called Keraton Agung Sejagat kingdom. The couple was immediately taken to Purworejo Police headquarters for questioning.

Adrian Wail Akhlas, Jakarta – Indonesia booked a smaller trade deficit in December as exports of non-oil and gas products picked up while imports fell, Statistics Indonesia (BPS) announced on Wednesday.

Riska Rahman, Jakarta – Bank Indonesia (BI) recorded a slower foreign debt growth last November as the government and private sector repaid the principal due during the month while the latter also borrowed less.