Suherdjoko, Semarang – Conservation group Save Sharks Indonesia has said Indonesia is the largest supplier of shark fins in the international market, and this has led to an increase in shark fishin

Margareth S.

Eveline Danubrata & Cindy Silviana, Jakarta – Indonesian companies are shedding jobs as they grapple with the weakest economic growth in six years, adding to the troubles facing President Joko

Haeril Halim, Jakarta – The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) has pointed out that surveillance played a significant role in its recent arrests of politicians suspected of accepting bribes in

Nic Maclellan, Honiara – Indonesian officials are lobbying for an upgrade to associate membership of the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG), while a renewed membership application by a united West Pa

Jakarta – A coalition of rights groups are urging President Joko Widodo to stay true to his campaign promises to protect minority groups and ensure the safe return of a Shiite community to their ho

Jakarta – The incoming head of Indonesia's intelligence body has admitted that his appointment was a political favor from President Joko Widodo, who his party endorsed in last year's election.

Indra Budiari, Jakarta – A week after being blocked from their Friday prayers in the An Nur Mosque in Bukit Duri Tanjakan, Tebet, South Jakarta, around 50 members of the Bukit Duri Ahmadi congregat

Jakarta – Seventy percent of Indonesian smokers are teenagers, an expert said on Friday.

Jonas Cullwick – The United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP)'s Ambassador to the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) Secretariat, Amatus Douw, is in Port Vila with a petition containing the

Ina Parlina, Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo has rejected a plan by the House of Representatives to amend the 2002 Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) Law, saying that the government h

Rosalia Sciortino, Bangkok – The judicial review of the proposed change to the marriageable age stated in Article 7(1) of the 1974 Marriage Law, which was filed by the Women's Health Foundation (Ya

About 200 people gathered at a rally in the Solomon Islands capital, Honiara, this afternoon calling on the government to support full membership for West Papua in the Melanesian Spearhead Group.

A Solomon Islands MP has questioned the government's announcement about exploring greater representation of Indonesia in the Melanesian Spearhead Group.

Tama Salim and Dylan Amirio, Jakarta – The House of Representatives is divided over the so-called constituency funds as the ruling Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) has indicated its

Tama Salim and Dylan Amirio, Jakarta – Faced with the prospect of its authority being stripped by the House of Representatives, the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) called on lawmakers to am

No matter how we slice and dice the issue of West Papuan independence, it always comes down to this: Do the indigenous peoples of a distinct and discrete land mass have the democratic right to self

Jakarta – The Constitutional Court (MK) on Tuesday rejected a judicial review of two articles in the Marriage Law, maintaining its current provisions on the minimum age requirement and interfaith m

Kennial Laia, Basten Gokkon & Erwin Sihombing, Jakarta – Human rights activists have lambasted the Constitutional Court for rejecting a judicial review calling for official recognition of inter

Imanuddin Razak, Jakarta – The country's president constitutionally has the prerogative and the liberty to nominate and appoint candidates for top posts in the government and the military, includin

Gaad Piranid Tabuni grew up in a village in the Papuan highlands of Indonesia too remote for any government – colonial Dutch or Indonesian – to maintain a presence.

Jakarta – A bill submitted to parliament and aimed at defanging the national antigraft commission has served to highlight the growing rift between President Joko Widodo and his political backers.

A Dutch journalist who has been travelling in Indonesia's Papua region says the depth of local support for a West Papuan application to join the Melanesian Spearhead Group is huge.

Arya Dipa, Bandung – The National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) says the current regulation on building houses of worship contributes to religious conflict.

Jayapura, Jubi – Exports from Papua nearly doubled in May, compared to the previous month, the head of the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) of Papua Province Didiek Koesbianto said.

The Solomon Islands Government says it will not back the United Liberation Movement for West Papua as a full member of the Melanesian Spearhead Group.

Usmin, Bengkulu – Concerned about the spread of HIV and AIDS, lawmakers in Bengkulu are working on a directive to limit the sale of condoms and other contraceptives, arguing that the availability o

Leong Tsu Quin, Bangkok – From June 4 to 5, the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) held a workshop with Indonesian lawyers that we would much rather not have had at all.

Erwin Sihombing, Jakarta – Indonesia's Constitutional Court on Thursday rejected a petition for a judicial review of Indonesia's law on marriages, which, among other things, does not recognize inte

Jakarta – A group that advocates for the rights of mixed-nationality couples is filing a judicial review on the Marriage Law and the Agriculture Law, arguing that both are discriminatory to Indones

Astrid Zweynert, Hong Kong – Indonesia's proposed ban on sending domestic workers to the Middle East will force women seeking an escape from poverty to migrate illegally, and put them at greater ri

Haeril Halim and Tama Salim, Jakarta – Efforts to weaken the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) continued apace with the House of Representatives announcing its plan to revise the 2002 Corrupt

Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama says Fiji will stand with Indonesia on the West Papua issue. "My stance on West Papua has never changed," he said.

Tassia Sipahutar, Jakarta – The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has slashed its estimate on Indonesia's economic growth to 4.7 percent for 2015, a growth revision similar to that made by the Worl

Bengkulu, Jubi – Two Papuan indigenous languages, Saponi and Mapia, are among 14 Indonesian tongues that have gone extinct.

Dylan Amirio, Jakarta – House of Representatives Deputy Speaker Fadli Zon said that revising the 2002 Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) Law was necessary to prevent the antigraft body's leade

Hans Nicholas Jong and Ina Parlina, Jakarta – With faith-based opposition to vaccination drives having contributed to outbreaks of diphtheria in some provinces, physicians are calling on parents to

Robert Isidorus, Jayapura – A military court in Papua on Wednesday discharged two soldiers and ordered them imprisoned after they were found to have sold ammunition to a separatist militia.

Samoa says it will be looking into supporting a West Papua request for membership in the Pacific Islands Forum.

Jakarta – Indonesia's most notorious hard-line Islamic group says its members will give a strong reprimand to streetside food vendors who remain open for business during daylight hours of the Musli

George Roberts, Indonesia – Indonesian police have provided new details about how Australian authorities allegedly intercepted an asylum seeker boat, transferred the passengers onto two boats and s

Jewel Topsfield and Amilia Rosa – The asylum seeker boat captain has spoken publicly for the first time, confirming he received a cash payment from an Australian official on the condition he never

Ruslan Sangadji and Apriadi Gunawan, Palu/Medan – The nationwide simultaneous regional elections scheduled for December this year are unlikely to see much participation by independent candidates.

Michael Bachelard – Thanks to a brutal history, an Indonesian Government that restricts journalistic access, and a group of committed activists in Australia and New Zealand, most people only ever h

Nethy Dharma Somba, Jayapura – Around 100 volunteers and social workers have been deployed to distribute free condoms in 180 known areas for sex transactions such as hotels, dormitories, rental roo

Bengkulu/Makassar – As many as 5,500 bottles of liquor seized in Bengkulu were destroyed on Tuesday under the watchful eye of local administrators and police and military commanders, as authorities

Jakarta – A bid by Indonesian politicians to channel Rp 20 billion ($1.5 million) in pork-barrel funds to every national legislator has met its most powerful detractor yet in former president Susil

Jakarta – Conservative politicians and clerics have lashed out at Religious Affairs Minister Lukman Hakim Saifuddin over his seemingly benign call for mutual respect and understanding between Musli

Grace D. Amianti, Jakarta – Exports continue to drop in May with little sign of improvement in the future as the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) predicts less trade surplus later this year.

Iwan Dzulvan Amir, Jakarta – Once again, Aceh has become a national laughingstock and an international embarrassment.