Yophiandi Kurniawan, Jakarta – The general chairperson of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), Megawati Sukarnoputri, is pessimistic that the implementation of the memor

Overprescribed and overpriced.

Hera Diani, Jakarta – There is much to enjoy from overseas trips, but Vice President Jusuf Kalla says the praise he hears heaped on Indonesia's democratic transition has begun to grate.

Several regional administrations have introduced bylaws that support the implementation of sharia, which observers fear could upset relations between religious groups in the pluralistic

Adriana Nina Kusuma, Jakarta – The world's biggest gold miner, Newmont Mining Corp., is paying Indonesia $30 million to settle a civil suit over pollution, but will still face criminal

Jakarta – The economy expanded 5.6 percent last year, higher than 2004, with increased government spending compensating for sagging private consumption and investment hit by the rise in

Maruli Ferdinand, Jakarta – The Indonesian Human Rights Monitor (Imparsial) opposes the Indonesian military (TNI) being given the right to vote in the 2009 general elections.

Fitraya Ramadhanny, Jakarta – The Draft Law on Pornography has received support and opposition from the public.

Iqbal Fadil, Jakarta – The murder of human rights activist Munir will never be solved.

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta – House of Representatives legislators voiced their opposition Tuesday to a series of government regulations on broadcasting, which took effect on Feb.

Oyos Saroso H.N., Bandarlampung – Ignoring public criticism, Bandarlampung and West Lampung councillors are moving ahead with proposals to give themselves each a Rp 60 million (US$6,451

Kupang – Hundreds of students and activists grouped in the Kupang Education and Health Awareness Forum staged protest Monday against the 2006 provincial draft budget, which is slated to

Indra Harsaputra, Surabaya – Reni (not her real name), 25, was puzzled as she looked at a vending machine to be installed in a red-light district here in February – a device previously

Tony Hotland, Jakarta – If you are one of the millions awaiting a response after sending a letter or SMS of complaint to President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, don't take it personally.

Jakarta – The Islam Defenders Front (FPI) has dropped its charges against an actor who appeared nude in photographs featured in an exhibition last year at the Bank Indonesia Museum, Cen

Jakarta – The government will go ahead with its plans to repay Indonesia's debts to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) ahead of schedule, the finance minister said, citing a prelimin

ST Pramono, Jakarta – An Acehnese member from the Joint Forum of the National and Regional House of Representatives, Ferry Mursyidan Baldan, says that the National Intelligence Agency (

Nethy Dharma Somba, Jayapura – In a high-profile illegal logging trial, the Jayapura District Court on Monday returned the case against Papua Forestry Office head Marthen Kayoi to the p

Rendi Akhmad Witular, Jakarta – The government may take legal action against PT Freeport Indonesia, a local unit of US giant Freeport-McMoran Copper & Gold Inc., if the gold and cop

Tangerang – Hundreds of protesters blocked the rear entrance to Soekarno-Hatta International Airport on Monday, causing traffic congestion from Tangerang to the airport.

Padang, West Sumatra – More than 200 sidewalk vendors staged a protest at Padang City Hall on Monday, demanding that the city's public order personnel stop abusing them during raids.

Jakarta – The conflict between Supreme Court justices and Judicial Commission officials has taken a new twist with a report the judges are plotting to destroy the commission.

Hera Diani, Jakarta – If you are a health consumer in Indonesia some of these situations may be familiar to you.

Salim Osman, Jakarta – Even before parliament starts its deliberation today, the Aceh Government Bill has already been slammed by critics for not sticking to the spirit of the Helsinki

Dili – A crisis among East Timor's Armed Forces that erupted last week after hundreds of disgruntled troops left their barracks is still a long way from being resolved, military sources

Lisbon – East Timor will not seek compensation from Indonesia after the publication of a report blaming Jakarta for over 100,000 deaths during its occupation, East Timor's Prime Ministe

Sonny Inbaraj, Dili – Jose Ximenes, news editor of the popular 'Timor Post' daily, shook his head in disgust. "East Timor's independence and peace were achieved at great cost.

Jakarta – The government has promised to heed Acehnese leaders' demand for a greater say in a future law that will be used to guide how Aceh will be governed.

Saiful Bahri, Banda Aceh – Wilayatul Hisbah officers (Syariah/Islamic law police) detained five women that were considered to have violated Islamic law on the afternoon of Monday Februa

Anissa S. Febrina, Jakarta – The stark reality of the bandied-about terms "high-cost economy" or "increased operating costs" may come down to the resulting worker layoffs.

A. Junaidi – The 81st birthday of internationally acclaimed writer and multiple Nobel Prize nominee Pramoedya Ananta Toer was celebrated with zest and spirit on Feb. 6.

[Meutia Sudah Henti Bertanya (Meutia Has Stopped Asking). Written by T.I. Thamrin Foreword by Otto Syamsuddin Ishak. 155 pp.

Tom Hyland – The struggle for East Timor was played out in the battle for its children, a landmark report has found.

Tom Hyland and Lindsay Murdoch, Dili – Thousands of East Timorese children were shipped to Indonesia during Jakarta's occupation and the fate of many is unknown, says a report that echo

Lindsay Murdoch, Dili – Siti Bariah buys bananas and sells them in Dili's crowded markets, barely making enough money to feed eight of her children and her ailing husband.

Jakarta – When it comes to the problems faced by Indonesian industry, the same words crop up again and again: smuggling and soaring imports.

Tiarma Siboro, Jakarta – Vice Marshall Herman Prayitno has been appointed as the new Air Force chief of staff, replacing his boss Marshal Djoko Suyanto, who will soon head the Indonesia

Jakarta – About 500 Muslim protestors rallied in the Indonesian capital to denounce caricatures depicting the Prophet Mohammed, calling the cartoons part of a "war on Islam".

Jakarta, Antara – Former Army chief of staff, retired General Tyasno Sudarto, says that the Draft Law on a Government for Aceh or RUU-PA will endanger the Unitary State of the Republic

Rendi Akhmad Witular, Jakarta – PT Freeport Indonesia should increase the revenue it shares with the government from its Papua mines amid lucrative prices of copper and gold, Vice Presi

Oyos Saroso H.N., Bandarlampung – Illegal logging and land clearance around Bukit Barisan Selatan and Way Kambas national parks have destroyed the water catchment area for the Batutegi

There is no doubt that almost nobody in Indonesia openly agrees with pornography.

Tony Hotland, Jakarta – Establishing a Truth and Reconciliation Commission to probe and resolve past human rights abuses here is unnecessary, Vice President Jusuf Kalla says.

Ratna Nuraini, Jakarta – TNI (Indonesian military) chief General Endriartono Sutarto has revealed that there has been no increase in security disturbances in Papua.

Gede Suardana, Bali – The controversy over the draft law (RUU) on pornography is growing stronger.

Several groups of demonstrators vied Thursday with people lining the streets in Bandung, West Java, to get the attention of visiting President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

Jakarta – The government and lawmakers have agreed on a plan to revise the 2003 Law on Terror before ratifying two international conventions aimed at strengthening national efforts to r

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta – The Indonesian media received a welcome gift for National Press Day on Thursday, when the Supreme Court cleared Tempo weekly chief editor Bambang Hary

Ibrahim Zuhdhy Fahmy Badoh, Jakarta – Every year, from November to December, the budgeting process in local governments enters its final stages.

Thousands of officials and politicians across the country, including 200 executives of state companies, are currently embroiled in corruption investigations, as the government escalates