Erwida Maulia and Irawaty Wardany, Denpasar/Jakarta – State Secretary Hatta Radjasa acknowledges the country's debt has increased over the past five years, but says the public should no

Jakarta – Despite recent opposition from a number of the party's elites, the Prosperous Peace Party (PDS) says it would stick to its decision to support the re-election of incumbent Pre

Dicky Christanto, Jakarta – Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's choice of former Bank Indonesia governor Boediono as running mate in the upcoming presidential elections has led him to declining

Jakarta – On July 3 the House of Representatives will take its final recess, putting the fate of a number of long awaited bills in uncertainty.

Muninggar Sri Saraswati – The government of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Vice President Jusuf Kalla has failed to satisfactorily uphold human rights as it has only implemented

Camelia Pasandaran & Ferry Irwanto – The recent release of survey results from polling institutions linked to political campaign teams has brought into sharp focus the purpose behin

Heru Andriyanto – An unusually high number of complaints and scandals involving public prosecutors reflected the poor leadership of the Attorney General's Office, the head of the Commis

The dispute between the rival camps of presidential candidates Jusuf Kalla and Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono over who brought peace to Aceh continued on Sunday, with claims that Kalla was be

Eras Poke, Kupang – The leader of a remote subdistrict bordering East Timor says his people are ready to take up arms if the ownership of a disputed piece of land isn't settled.

Jakarta – Hundreds of street children marched through the crowded streets of East Jakarta to protest child exploitation.

Jakarta – The government has failed to strictly enforce the Child Protection Law in regards to the increasing number of underage workers, despite the law having been passed nine years a

Endy M. Bayuni, Jakarta – Remember voting for your class leader in school? Did you vote for him because of what he promised to do or more because of what he had done for you?

Stephen Fitzpatrick, Jakarta - Jakarta's sophisticated set has a joke about why Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono will win the presidential election next month – and it has nothing to do with hi

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Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa, Analyst – First quarter GDP data is rather weak. Nevertheless, it appears that the economy will not deteriorate further.

Bandung – More than 200 students from 10 elementary schools in Bandung Barag regency, West Java, were poisoned Thursday after consuming free milk packaged with a plastic logo of the Pro

Jakarta – Vice presidential candidate Wiranto still defended his past performance in the military and the government, despite being bombarded by questions and condemnations from human r

Nurfika Osman – The financial downturn combined with cultural prejudices that favor boys over girls is likely to cause an increase in the number of young females dropping out of school,

Jakarta – The global economic crisis has forced a greater number of children into the workforce, particularly girls, many of whom are exploited for commercial sex, the International Lab

Pekanbaru – The number of forest fires raging in Sumatra has increased, with winds carrying choking smoke over parts of Malaysia and slashing visibility, officials said on Friday.

Jakarta – Reminiscent of the Snow White tale, the Indonesian Corruption Watch (ICW) Friday presented House of Representatives lawmakers with mirrors that will speak only the truth.

Police in Indonesia's Papua province have named and charged three men in relation to a month-long airstrip occupation by 150 armed people in Memberamo regency.

Muhamad Al Azhari, Ardian Wibisono & Dion Bisara – Credit rating agency Moody's Investors Service has upgraded Indonesia's sovereign credit rating outlook to positive from stable, c

Ni Komang Erviani, Denpasar – Dozens of local journalists, bloggers and human rights activists staged a peaceful rally Thursday at Denpasar District Court to express their support of Pr

Nivell Rayda – US-based Human Rights Watch expressed outrage on Friday over the Ministry of Justice and Human Rights' decision not to investigate the alleged torture of prisoners at a s

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Markus Junianto Sihaloho – Megawati Sukarnoputri's party appeared to court former President Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid on Thursday for a political alliance as she ramped up her challen

Jakarta – Money politics is difficult to eradicate in Indonesia, but it is not appropriate to blame the poor for receiving money from campaigning parties, a political expert says.

Tangerang – Thousands of employees of the shoe manufacturer, Jatake Industrial Plant, staged a rally in Tangerang demanding the company pay their workers.

The three presidential hopefuls have kicked off their campaigns with heavy contributions from retired top brass from the intelligence community.

The "jockeys" in the three-horse race for the Presidential Palace are exploring different strategies to reach the finish, ranging from military-style campaigns to luring sympathy from k

Stephen Fitzpatrick, Jakarta – Five Australians jailed in Papua for illegally flying into the Indonesian province without visas last year have won their freedom in the country's Supreme

Guido Goulart, Dili – The UN population agency is urging predominantly Catholic East Timor to soften laws that criminalize abortion and to promote contraceptives, saying in a report rel

Megawati Wijaya, Jakarta – Indonesia's presidential election campaign has swung towards economic policy debate, with challengers to incumbent and frontrunner Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono ra

Jakarta – Despite efforts to reform the judiciary and improve its overall performance, corrupt practices enforced by a "judicial mafia" are here to stay, a discussion was told Wednesday

Five middle-aged Australians held for nine months in West Papua for immigration offences have been cleared by Indonesia's Supreme Court, clearing the way for their return home.

Stephen Fitzpatrick, Jakarta – Five Australians jailed in Papua for illegally flying into the Indonesian province without visas last year have won their freedom in the country's Supreme

Andi Hajramurni, Makassar – Around 50 people representing over 3,000 migrants who were displaced following the East Timor debacle in 1999 staged a rally outside the South Sulawesi gover

Luh De Suriyani, Denpasar – Local anti-World Trade Organization (WTO) activists continued their protest Tuesday by staging a noisy rally in front of the Australian Consulate as well as

Multa Fidrus, Tangerang – Thousands of workers of shoe manufacturer PT Prima Inreksa in Tangerang, west of Jakarta staged a rally Wednesday at the company's plant to demand that their e

Indra Harsaputra, Surabaya – Mud dumped into the sea from the Lapindo mudflow through the Porong river will impact coastal ecosystems from eastern Surabaya to Pasuruan on Madura Island,

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Jakarta – Hundreds of farmers, mostly from West Java and Banten, gathered recently at Ragunan Sport Center to support Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

The other two presidential hopefuls may be suspicious of the rosy projection for the Indonesian economy made Friday by the International Monetary Fund and its high commendation of incum

Nana Rukmana and Fadli, Cirebon, Batam – The Cirebon City Council is demanding the city administration stop issuing development permits for modern retailers, as their mushrooming presen

Reporter: Peter Cave

Infrastructure in Indonesia remains a crucial problem hampering growth, the government admitted recently in response to an assessment conducted by the Swiss-based International Institut

Aditya Suharmoko, Jakarta – Indonesia's economy in the next six months will be supported by strong consumption and more investment, acting Coordinating Minister for the Economy Sri Muly

Hotli Simnjuntak, Banda Aceh – More than 5,000 homeless tsunami victims, who have lived in barracks since the 2004 disaster, have threatened to boycott the upcoming presidential electio

Debnath Guharoy, Consultant – The series of special polls keeping a finger on the pulse of the Indonesian consumer continues.