Apriadi Gunawan, Medan, North Sumatra – Thousands of pigs believed to have died from cholera have littered rivers and streets across North Sumatra in the past few days after they were allegedly discarded by their owners, raising fears of contamination and further spread of the virus.

Jakarta – The Jakarta Police have arrested an Indonesian businessman named Giovani, his girlfriend Nola Aprilia and four police officers for allegedly conspiring to kidnap and to extort a British man identified as Matthew Simon Craib in Jakarta last week.

Jakarta – Liquid waste in the form of a traditional Javanese alcoholic drink called ciu has contaminated the Bengawan Solo River in Surakarta, Central Java, killing fish and disrupting the area's clean water supply for residents.

Theresia Sufa, Bogor, West Java – The Indonesia Biodiversity Index (IBI) was launched on Tuesday to provide a comprehensive database on the diversity of the archipelago's flora and fauna.

The Indonesian Biology Consortium (KOBI) unveiled the initiative at the Bogor Botanical Garden in Bogor, West Java, as part of National Plant and Animal Day.

Jakarta – As the investigation of the acid attack against Novel Baswedan appears to have stalled, the senior Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) investigator has been accused of faking his left eye injury, an allegation perpetuated by influential users, according to social media analysts.

Jakarta – Indonesian President Joko Widodo on Wednesday urged bank executives to help stimulate the economy with cuts in lending rates and loans to small and medium firms, as authorities vowed to support growth after feeble third quarter data.

Indonesia will meet social media companies to discuss its plans to impose fines up to about $36,000 if they allow pornography, violence or other "negative" content on their platforms, a communications ministry official said.

Amy Chew – The United States is remaining tight-lipped on whether it will lift an entry ban on Indonesia's new Defence Minister Prabowo Subianto over alleged human rights violations, as China and Russia publicly court the former special forces general.

Evan Laksmana – Since it was announced in August, Indonesia's plan to relocate its capital to East Kalimantan in Borneo has engendered much debate, but few have examined the potential military and strategic implications of the move.

Johnny Blades – A controversial land sale in New Zealand has met with disapproval from the West Papua solidarity movement.

The government has decided to allow Japanese firm Pan Pac to purchase 22,000ha of land without any scrutiny from the Overseas Investment Office, or OIO.

Jakarta – A pedestrian bridge near the heart of the capital Jakarta on Jl. Sudirman has a new, surprising look: it no longer has a roof.

Jakarta Bina Marga road agency head Hari Nugroho said the roof of the bridge had been removed so that pedestrians could enjoy the view while walking.

Jakarta – Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Mahfud MD has called on the public to beware of political propaganda aimed at inciting riots during commemorations of Free Papua Movement (OPM) anniversary on Dec. 1.

Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo has given Coordinating Maritime Affairs and Investment Minister Luhut Pandjaitan additional responsibilities with a new presidential regulation (Perpres) vesting greater authority in the office of an already powerful minister.

Dion Bisara, Jakarta – Indonesian companies are among the world's most optimistic when it comes to their business prospects next year and the medium term, and they have strong confidence in the government's macroeconomic policy, particularly in boosting investment and domestic consumption, according to the latest survey by multinational bank HSBC.

Jakarta – The national antigraft agency will assist police to investigate 56 fictitious villages in Konawe district, Southeast Sulawesi, allegedly used to siphon funds from the state budget.

Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo has revealed that he has dreams for the new capital bigger than those of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), he wants the soon-to-be developed city in East Kalimantan to be "the best on earth".

Antara, Jakarta – Twelve terror convicts have been transferred from the Nusakambangan prison island in Central Java to a deradicalization center in Bogor, West Java, under a reintegration program, an official said on Tuesday.

Diana Mariska, Jakarta – Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Mahfud MD said President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo deems it inappropriate to issue a presidential regulation in lieu of law on the Corruption Eradication Committee, or KPK, while a judicial review of a revised law on the national antigraft agency is still ongoing.

Dewi Nurita, Jakarta – The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) senior investigator, Novel Baswedan, expressed deep pessimism towards the revised KPK Law Constitutional Court lawsuit. He argues that it is made worse by the reluctance of President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo to side with the country's war on corruption.

Septinus George Saa, Birmingham, UK – In its second term, President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's government should learn crucial lessons from the political actions taken in Papua and in the rest of the country, led by students.

Apriza Pinandita, Jakarta – Indonesia and Norway are stepping up their commitment to continuing bilateral discussions on human rights, through which both sides seek to leverage more cooperation initiatives in the future.

Jakarta – Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) prosecutors have demanded a seven-year prison sentence for former Golkar Party lawmaker Bowo Sidik Pangarso for his alleged role in bribery and graft cases.

Jakarta – The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) and Southeast Sulawesi Police have teamed up to probe into the alleged corruption of village funds in Konawe regency.

Beritasatu TV, Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo has asked Indonesian banks to cut their lending rates to accelerate growth after Bank Indonesia, the central bank, gradually lowered their benchmark interest rate in the past four months.

Adi Ahdiat, Jakarta – Research and international digital rights advocacy institute Freedom House says that internet freedom in Indonesia has worsened compared with last year.

According to their rating, in 2018 Indonesia was rated as 54 out of 100, but in 2019 its position dropped to a ranking of 51.

Primus Dorimulu, Jakarta – Newly-appointed Health Minister Terawan Agus Putranto says he welcomes a greater role from the private sector in providing healthcare, given that most hospitals across Indonesia are run by business entities.

Michael Leach – Relations between Australia and Timor-Leste appear to be back on track following the March 2018 treaty which created permanent maritime boundaries between the two states for the first time. Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison's visit to Dili in late August 2019 saw notes exchanged marking the formal ratification by both parliaments.

Dion Bisara & Faisal Maliki Baskoro, Jakarta – Indonesia's economy expanded at its slowest pace in two years in the third quarter as investment continued to taper and economic activity in Papua and Maluku shrank.

Antara, Jakarta – Indonesia's national election organizing agency said it has received budgetary approval for Rp 9.8 trillion ($701 million) to hold next year's regional elections in nine provinces.

It has been almost a century since the novel Sitti Nurbaya was published. In the book, Sitti Nurbaya ends up agreeing to marry a much older and abusive businessman, Datuk Maringgih, so that he will forgive her father's debt.

Rosseno Aji, Jakarta – Researcher for the Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW), Kurnia Ramadhana was openly discontent by the exoneration of graft defendant and former president director of state-owned electricity firm PLN Sofyan Basir.

Jakarta – Born in 1996, William Aditya Sarana, a politician from the nascent Indonesian Solidarity Party (PSI), is the youngest and only Generation Z (Gen-Z) member of the City Council. His older colleagues seem to be struggling with his way of doing things.

Aman Rochman, Pasuruan. East Java – A girl and a teacher died while 14 others were injured when the roof of their school in Pasuruan, East Java, collapsed on Tuesday morning.

State elementary school SDN 1 Gentong was built only in 2017, the police said. He said the roof fell into four classrooms.

Indonesia posted another quarter of slowing growth Tuesday, its weakest pace in two years, as Southeast Asia's biggest economy feels the sting of slumping commodity prices.

The economy expanded 5.02 percent in the July-September period, slipping from 5.17 percent in the same period last year, and the weakest since 2017.

Karlis Salna, Rieka Rahadiana and Viriya Singgih – Indonesia's economic growth has barely moved in three quarters, prompting some analysts to cast doubt about the data.

Beh Lih Yi, Kuta, Indonesia – Standing on her surfboard as it was lifted by a wave, Zahwa Ardika Utami is one of a small but growing number of girls breaking with Indonesian tradition to take up the macho sport.

Jakarta – Civil freedoms under the administration of President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo are seen as having declined. Based on the results of a Saiful Mujani Research Center (SMRC) survey between May and June 2019, 43 percent of respondents said they were afraid of expressing an opinion in public.

Riza Roidila Mufti, Jakarta – The government plans to build more than 5,000 kilometers of new roads in the next five years to improve connectivity to seaports, industrial zones, tourist destinations and isolated areas.

Jakarta – Administrative and Bureaucratic Reform Minister Tjahjo Kumolo has banned employees of the ministry from wearing niqab at the office, reasserting his stance that all staff must abide by the rules.

Marchio Irfan Gorbiano, Jakarta – Indonesia's economic growth reached 5.02 percent in the third quarter, the lowest level in more than two years, with investment failing to contribute to the economy, which has been hit by a global economic slowdown driven by the trade war between the United States and China.

Lani Diana Wijaya, Jakarta – A volunteer for former presidential and VP candidates Prabowo Subianto-Sandiaga Uno, Lieus Sungkharisma said that he is able to accept the fact that the opposition father-figure he backed throughout the election has now entered President Jokowi's Cabinet.

Medan, Indonesia – Two men have been arrested in connection with the brutal murder of a pair of Indonesian activist journalists who were mediating in a land dispute between a palm oil company and locals, authorities said Tuesday (Nov 5).

M Rosseno Aji, Jakarta – Senior Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) investigator Novel Baswedan firmly denies the Twitter allegation accusing that he staged his own attack, which has permanently scarred his eye.

Jakarta (Bisnis) – Retail businesses have voiced concerns about involving Bekasi's minimarket parking service management woes, which allegedly is controlled by local thugs. An internet video that spread on November 4 showed members of a mass organization persuading minimarket organizers to leave parking services under their control.

Budiarti Utami Putri, Jakarta – The reappointed Law and Human Rights Minister Yasonna H. Laoly announced the ministry's plan to evaluate controversial articles in the revised criminal code (RKUHP) bill. One of those to be revised is the article on cohabitation or adultery.

Andita Rahma and Friski Riana, Jakarta – The police stated that they did not set a deadline for the investigation of the attack on Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) investigator Novel Baswedan. The police's sole agenda is to solve the case immediately.

Ayat S. Karokaro, Medan, Indonesia – Two Indonesian journalists who had reported on an illegal oil palm plantation in Sumatra while also allegedly trying to gain control of the crop have been found dead at the plantation.

Novy Lumanauw, Jakarta – Indonesia has reasserted its stance to reject shipments of hazardous and toxic waste from abroad and called for its peers in East Asia to establish an official cooperation in preventing the illegal dumping during the 14th East Asia Summit in Bangkok.

A new report alleges officials across Indonesia's West Papua have inflated population figures for personal gain.

The Institute for Policy Analysis of Conflict, or IPAC, is calling on the government to improve conditions ahead of next year's census.

A second and final term can free a leader, as Joko Widodo has acknowledged. The question is how he will use his new liberty. Five years ago, he was widely hailed as "Indonesia's Obama". His rise was seen as another step forward for the world's fourth most populous country and biggest Muslim-majority nation.