Eko Ari and Cunding Levi, Jakarta – West Papua Religious Community Forum chairman, Bram Maudoma, will urge voters in his region not to vote in the 2009 Elections.

Martin Lundqvist, Hong Kong, China – "Witch hunting" has historically been, and still is, a common phenomenon in Papua among the indigenous people.

Kompas – The families of missing activists hope that President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono will not take conventional measures in completing the investigation of the forced disappearance o

Ni Komang Erviani, Denpasar – Members of Bali's tourism industry declared their support Tuesday for efforts to legally challenge the recently passed pornography bill, calling the bill a

Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – A national task force has recommended the Indonesian Military (TNI) hand over control of cooperatives and companies it runs, worth Rp 3.1 trillion (US$281 millio

Kupang, East Nusa Tenggara – Churches in East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) have rejected the passage of the anti-pornography bill, saying it neglects people's aspirations and could trigger disin

Nethy Dharma Somba, Papua – Around 100 protesters from the International Parliament for West Papua (IPWP) staged a rally Monday against an alleged increase in militarism in Papua outsid

Pandaya, Jakarta – Last week's passage of the controversial antipornography law, a symbolic victory for conservative Muslims, can further undermine Indonesia's increasingly fragile reli

Andra Wisnu, Denpasar – Following calls made by their Balinese leaders, many members of the island's public declared their intention to have the pornography bill reviewed or revoked jus

Tom Allard, East Java – Family and supporters of the Bali bombers are using the time before their executions to peddle anti-Australian conspiracy theories and praise the condemned men a

Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – It is unlikely the recently passed anti-pornography bill will be enacted in several provinces as top officials there have announced they will not enforce it, leg

Aditya Suharmoko, Jakarta – Inflation eased in October, according to the Central Statistics Agency (BPS), providing leeway for the central bank to hold its interest rate steady after ra

Aboeprijadi Santoso, Banda Aceh – The top leader of former rebel group the Free Aceh Movement (GAM), Teungku Chik Hasan Muhammad di Tiro, may be the founder of Indonesia's longest proac

Mustaqim Adamrah and Aditya Suharmoko, Jakarta – The manufacturing sector grew slower in the third quarter of the year, due to a decline in output in some of the country's top industrie

Irawaty Wardany, Jakarta – Human rights groups have cast doubt on the effectiveness of the newly enacted law against racial and ethnic discrimination, citing its narrow coverage.

Indah Setiawati – The Bali Manpower and Transmigration Agency will unlikely be able to meet its target unemployment rate of 3.5 percent due to the global economic slowdown caused in par

Irawaty Wardany, Jakarta – New political parties are stepping up pressure for a revision of the newly passed presidential election bill, with potential candidate Wiranto vowing to lead

Jakarta – A series of three explosions, damaging administration and council buildings, occurred about 02:30 a.m. local time in Ternate, North Maluku on Monday, Antara reported.

Jakarta – People swarmed the East Jakarta Immigration office, jostling in and out of different rooms just to get a small yet important gateway book, the passport.

Jakarta – A Malaysian council has detected activities of the Indonesian Islamic State Movement (GNII, Gerakan Negara Islam Indonesia) in Selangor State.

Susan Harris Rimmer – Will the date October 30 mark the last best chance for justice for survivors of occupation in East Timor?

Laurencius Simanjuntak, Jakarta – Leaders from the Communion of Christian Churches (PGGK) covering five regencies and municipalities in West Papua province went to the House of Represen

Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – Senior politician Theo L.

John Lyons – John Howard braced himself for the possibility of up to 30 Australian soldiers being killed by the Indonesian military when he made his decision to send troops to intervene

Muhammad Nur Abdurrahman, Makassar – Scores of students from Papua demonstrated in front of the Mandala monument on Jl.

Simon Montlake Simon Montlake, Jakarta – Once a byword for corruption, Indonesia has begun to fight back against the well-connected bribers, brokers, and embezzlers who have for decades

Irawaty Wardany, Jakarta – New political parties are stepping up pressure for a revision of the newly passed presidential election bill, with potential candidate Wiranto vowing to lead

The world's "post-conflict" areas are a living laboratory with ever changing experiments, the Aceh Reintegration Agency (BRA) and the local population being among its guinea pigs.

Jakarta – Presidential hopefuls retired generals Wiranto and Sutiyoso expressed their disappointment Sunday against the newly passed presidential election bill, saying they would suppor

For centuries Jakarta has been plagued by floods because of its geographical position. For centuries the rainy season has begun in the same month every year.

Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – For Santi, a 29-year-old staffer at a Jakarta law firm, the fun and carefree days of hanging out at a mall in a shoulder-exposing tank top may well be over.

Andra Jackson – Jill Jolliffe knows that often in wars it is the heroes who are remembered while the suffering of ordinary people goes unnoted.

Andra Wisnu, Denpasar – In a move of defiance against the controversial pornography bill, Bali's governor and speaker of the provincial legislative council declared Friday the province

Tom Allard, Jakarta – For three men who say they welcome death, the Bali bombers have spent a lot of time trying to avoid it.

Tom Allard, Jakarta – The Bali bombers have been isolated in their prison wing, separated from the nine other convicted terrorists who live with them, as preparations intensify before t

Richard Macey – On the eve of their executions, the Bali bombers have called for revenge against the West and have warned the US to expect defeat.

Ika Krismantari, Jakarta – The stock market main index extended gains Friday for the third day this week, hovering above 1,200 on the back of good sentiment from global markets and the

Fadli, Batam – Limited transportation and communication between remote islands and the main island of Batam in Riau Islands province is responsible for the low skills of the workforce i

Tifa Asrianti, Jakarta – Several provinces have announced a significant rise in workers' minimum wage, but the amount of the increase is facing opposition from certain business groups.

Adianto P.

Ruth Ratcliffe – "They've been trying to solve problems by using only money, but not to solve the political problems through political means, that they've failed", Fretilin leader Mari

Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – The House of Representatives on Thursday passed the contentious anti-pornography bill, defying months of protest from artists, pluralists and human rights groups

Dicky Christanto and Ni Komang Erviani, Denpasar – Bali Governor Made Mangku Pastika expressed concern about the House of Representatives' decision to pass the controversial porn bill i

Jakarta – Hundreds of members of the Islam Defenders Front (FPI) clashed with police outside a Central Jakarta court and attempted to force the closure of a nearby Ahmadiyah mosque afte

Dian Kuswandini, Jakarta – Two police detectives testified Thursday at the trial of former State Intelligence Agency (BIN) deputy head Muchdi Purwopranjono, denying pressuring witnesses

Nana Rukmana, Cirebon – Thousands of street children in Cirebon are at risk of physical and sexual abuse and often subject to exploitation that forces them to become scavengers and begg

Ridwan Max Sijabat, Surabaya – Army Chief Gen. Agustadi Sasongko Purnomo has asked the newly appointed chief of the Brawijaya Military Command, Maj. Gen.

Jakarta – The Jakarta stock exchange's main index rose 5.4 percent on Thursday as the rupiah gained against the dollar, showing signs of life following a heavy battering for most of the

Preventing the sexual exploitation of children and protecting women's rights are societal duties of surpassing importance. There can be no qualms about that.

The deadline for the Indonesian Military (TNI) to relinquish its businesses is only one year away.