Indonesia is addressing problems in Papua without prodding from other parties, Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Michael Tene told the Jakarta Globe on Friday after US Secretary of

The municipal government of Depok, one of Jakarta's satellite cities, banned advertisement billboards featuring 'sexy' women this month.

Jakarta – The plan to convert tea plantations in North Sumatra to palm oil plantations could be detrimental to local economies and the environment, a local councilor said.

Agus Triyono – Revealing that it had kept convicted Central Jakarta Commercial Court Judge Syarifudin Umar under surveillance for three years, the Judicial Commission says it has anothe

Ulma Haryanto & Anita Rachman – It's official: the media mogul-backed National Democratic Party will contest the 2014 elections.

Charles Scheiner, Dili – Tonight, I'm honored to be with so many young Timorese people who believe in justice and independence.

Ezra Sihite – With its new media and financial clout, the four-month-old NasDem Party is aiming for a top-three finish in the 2014 legislative elections, but it still isn't ready to tal

Jajang Jahroni, Boston, Massachusetts – The phenomenon of our mosques today reflects the idea of incongruity.

Jakarta – Despite its extensive media resources, the Nasdem Party remained a "young and small party", and its odds of a strong showing in the 2014 general elections were low, political

Jakarta – As political parties prepare for the 2014 general elections, many have started to project their presence through advertisements running in the media, raising suspicions that s

Honolulu, Hawaii – US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Thursday voiced alarm about human rights conditions in Indonesia's Papua and called for dialog to meet the aspirations of the

Indonesia rejected allegations of human rights violations in Papua province on Friday, hours after US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton criticized abuses in the restive region.

West Papua will be given the opportunity to apply for observer status within the Melanesian Spearhead Group.

Bagus BT Saragih, Jakarta – Amid various acts of discrimination and the persecution of followers of the Ahmadiyah sect, a UN official says blasphemy should not be categorized as a crime

Manuel da Silva, Dili – Education Minister Joao Cancio Freitas has recognized that monthly salary payments are still being made to teachers who have died.

Jakarta – The Communication and Information Technology Ministry has announced plans to begin screening media following an earlier finding that media reporting was prone to misinformatio

Jakarta – National Resilience Institute (Lemhanas) chief Budi Susilo Supandji has urged the government to avoid using a military approach to managing Papua, suggesting that monitoring t

Arientha Primanita & Markus Junianto Sihaloho – Jakarta has said it is ready to open a dialogue with Papuans, providing that it is not based on discussion of self-determination, con

Jakarta – Responding to mounting public concerns over a conflict of interests in its acceptance of US$14 million from US mining giant PT Freeport Indonesia, the National Police has agai

Jakarta – An official from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) has confirmed that party chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri is still interested in running for president in

Jakarta – The newly established Union of Independent People Party (SRI) says that it has no intention of following fellow newcomer Struggle Work Party (Pakar Pangan), which recently for

A disabled member of the Indonesian's minority Ahmadiyah religious sect survived a brutal attack by an unknown assailant but had both his ears partially severed with a machete, it was r

Jakarta – United Development Party (PPP) secretary-general M.

Southeast Asian Games organizers insist the event will be a roaring success, but a raft of problems including corruption and unfinished venues threatens to turn it into a laughing stock

Agus Maryono, Banyumas – The Central Java Corruption, Collusion and Nepotism Investigation and Eradication Committee (KP2KKN) is strongly criticizing government officials who hold concu

The Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) confirms a sharp rise in halal food products coming from China, but it remains skeptical over China's halal industry, which is presumed to still be in

Jambi – The Jambi provincial administration has decided to ban female students from wearing short skirts that reach above the knee, Governor Hasan Basri Agus said.

Yemris Fointuna and Elly Burhaini Faizal, Kupang/Jakarta – Women belong to a group which has thus far been frequently sidelined in human resources development in East Nusa Tenggara (NTT

I Wayan Agus Purnomo, Deddy S, Jakarta – Violence against women in Papua has remained high over the past two years.

Robert Finlayson – No one I know loves Soetta, aka Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, except me.

About 2,500 workers at Indonesia's largest mobile-phone carrier, Telkomsel, went on strike on Thursday demanding better pay and pensions, the latest dispute over labor in Southeast Asia

Jakarta – Home Minister Gamawan Fauzi said that West Java Governor Ahmad Heryawan should intervene in the imbroglio involving the GKI Taman Yasmin Church and the Bogor municipal governm

Elisabeth Oktofani – Danu Pratama (not his real name) has worked as a journalist for nearly seven years, covering beats ranging from technology and politics to human rights and legal is

Elisabeth Oktofani & Dofa Fasila – Environmental group Greenpeace has lashed out at the Jakarta administration's decision to seal off its office for zoning violations, calling the m

Agus Triyono – Supreme Court chairman Harfin A. Tumpa swore in six new judges on Wednesday to fill vacancies in the country's highest legal forum.

Ezra Sihite & Markus Junianto Sihaloho – The NasDem Party sent out a warning to its rivals that it aims to be a serious contender in the 2014 elections as it added the financial and

Markus Junianto Sihaloho – The Golkar Party is maintaining its support for Bogor Mayor Diani Budiarto who has already lost the backing of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle in

Jakarta – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has called for all law enforcement officials to settle security problems in Papua and West Papua firmly but proportionally and with full res

Ina Parlina, Jakarta – As one of the largest democracies in Asia, Indonesia has yet to ensure its citizens access to information, with lawmakers and the government devising legislation

Bagus BT Saragih, Jakarta – The arrival of former finance minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati in Jakarta has triggered speculation over a possible bid for president in 2014, despite her refu

Terrence Voon, Jakarta – The digital countdown clock in Palembang, located on a busy roundabout leading to the famous Ampera Bridge, says it all.

Jakarta – Commenting on the recent government claim that it was unaware of escalating tensions in Papua prior to a bloody crackdown at the Third Papuan Peoples Congress, lawmakers say i

Flip Prior, Broome – East Timor's ambassador to Australia Abel Guterres flew into Broome last week for a whirlwind round of meetings with Broome Shire councillors and tourism and hospit

Jakarta – The government is playing down reports made by the National Commission for Human Rights (Komnas HAM) that the police and the military may have committed human rights violation

Union workers at Freeport Indonesia Grasberg copper mine plan to extend a strike into a third month, which would make it the worst work stoppage in the history of the country's mining i

Hans David Tampubolon, Jakarta – More political parties are distancing themselves from Bogor Mayor Diani Budiarjo for his intransingence over the Taman Yasmin Indonesian Christian Churc

Rahmat, Makassar – Three members of the hardline Islamic Defenders Front appeared in court in Makassar on Tuesday to answer to charges of assault and property destruction stemming from

Jakarta – Another shooting occurred on Monday as a Freeport-owned car was attacked by unknown assailants in Mimika. Police officer First Brig.

Vento Saudale, Bogor – One of Bogor Mayor Diani Budiarto's former political allies will question him and his administration over the Supreme Court-defying decision to shut the GKI Yasmi

Camelia Pasandaran, Ronna Nirmala & Ulma Haryanto – A spate of violent incidents that led to two deaths during the weekend was partly caused by weak law enforcement, a sociologist s