Indonesia ranks first among 23 lower-middle-income countries in establishing effective limits on governmental power, a recent report has said.

House Speaker Marzuki Alie is criticizing the Berlin-based Indonesian Students Association (PPI), saying that the group has ridiculed the House of Representatives (DPR).

Jakarta – The progress of democracy in the country remains stagnant as some groups and individuals remain in control of the economy and politics, a survey has shown.

Bagus BT Saragih, Jakarta – In a fall from grace, Golkar Party chairman Aburizal Bakrie has failed to appear on Forbes magazine's 2012 list of the country's 40 richest men for the first

Rabby Pramudatama, Jakarta – Less than two weeks after the resignation of Justice Achmad Yamanie, allegedly for forging a document, the Supreme Court has begun proceedings that could en

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Jakarta – The issuance of new lending regulations by the central bank last week will result in fiercer competition to extend loans to local small and medium enterprises (SMEs), bankers

Margareth S.

Jakarta – Research conducted by the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) found that local values impede women's progression and participation in the country's politics.

Jakarta – Hundreds of residents of Kampung Sawah in Cilincing, North Jakarta, staged a rowdy protest on Jl.

Ezra Sihite – Efforts to oust Vice President Boediono have hit another snag, with only two lawmakers on a key House of Representatives committee urging the legislature to undertake a ma

SP/Anastasia Winanti – Political parties tied to former Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati and Suharto family member Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra have been given a lifeline to stand

Jakarta – National Development Planning Minister Armida S.

Jakarta – Long known as a soft-spoken technocrat who rarely loses his cool, Bank Indonesia (BI) Governor Darmin Nasution exploded in anger when dealing with legislators from House of Re

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Amir Tejo, Surabaya – A coalition of indigenous tribes urged the Indonesian government to omit a citizen's religion from national identification cards on Wednesday, arguing that an adhe

Ezra Sihite – A House of Representatives member confirmed that some of her peers were trying to strip the Corruption Eradication Commission of its wiretapping power, and a recent meetin

Ronna Nirmala – Jakarta will be the pilot site of a corruption prevention project under a new agreement between Jakarta Governor Joko Widodo and the Corruption Eradication Commission (K

Jakarta – Head of the State Administration Institute (LAN) Agus Dwiyanto has blamed the poor law-making process for the high number of mediocre laws, many of which need revisions to ada

Washington – A senior US official says Washington should expand its military ties with Indonesia, befitting a relationship between two robust democracies.

Bagus BT Saragih, Jakarta – Bowing to pressure from businesspeople, the government has decided to allow labor-intensive firms including textile, garment and shoe manufacturers, to seek

Jakarta – A ruling from the Election Organizers Ethics Council (DKPP) has added to the woes of the General Election Commission, which has been dogged by allegations of irregularities in

Oyos Saroso HN, Bandar Lampung – The Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi) has urged Forestry Minister Zulkifli Hasan not to hesitate in enforcing the licensing policy in nationa

Bagus BT Saragih, Jakarta – Jusuf Kalla's announcement that he may run on a presidential ticket under Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) chairperson Megawati Soekarnoputri

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Jakarta – The Indonesian Employers' Association (Apindo) has said that at least 10,000 workers could lose their jobs when the Jakarta administration implements the new minimum wage at R

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Margareth S.

Camelia Pasandaran – East Java's beleaguered Shiite community have struggled to support themselves since the Indonesian government cut off supplies to the 60 families taking shelter at

Farouk Arnaz – A senior official from the hard-line Islamic group Islamic Defenders Front who became the target of an assault on Sunday afternoon said he was not the one who riled up fe

Urgent Appeal Case: AHRC-UAC-197-2012

Dear friends,

Amid their efforts to curb gun violence in the city, the Jakarta Police arrested on Monday two of its former officers for allegedly supplying weapons used in a series of robberies in Ja

Rabby Pramudatama, Jakarta – Former vice president Jusuf Kalla said he is ready to join the ticket of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle's (PDI-P) Megawati Soekarnoputri as a v

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Rizky Amelia – The anticorruption agency has yet to formally name as suspects two former Bank Indonesia deputy governors who were potentially involved in the Bank Century bailout that c

Ezra Sihite – Cabinet Secretary Dipo Alam said on Monday said that collusion between Indonesian ministry officials and lawmakers were not only limited to the three ministries he had rec

Indra Harsaputra, Surabaya – Beleaguered minority Shia Muslim refugees from Sampang, Madura, East Java, are now facing further uncertainty as the local government stops supplies of thei

Jakarta – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said on Sunday that there was no contradiction between Islam and democracy and Indonesia was a living proof that the two entities could go h

UA: 336/12 Index: ASA 21/043/2012

Tito Summa Siahaan & Francezka Nangoy – Profit for many Indonesian companies rose in the third quarter, with banks and consumer-related manufacturers leading the way, amid an increa

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Rangga Prakoso – The National Commission on Human Rights will resubmit its landmark findings of past rights abuses by the state to the Attorney General's Office this week, after prosecu

Andi Hajramurni, Makassar/Jakarta – The Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) has attributed increasing violence against journalists to escalating political tension ahead of the 201

Jakarta – A maneuver at the House of Representatives will unlikely lead to the ouster of Vice President Boediono but rather serve as a political bargaining chip in anticipation of a pos

Arya Dipa, Bandung – Thousands of members of the Indonesian Ahlul Bait Association (IJABI), which represents minority Shia Muslims, observed Asyura Day peacefully in Bandung, West Java,

Pitan Daslani – Shortly after retired military generals were reported to be preparing for a "Star Wars" in the 2014 presidential election, former chief of State Intelligence Agency (BIN

AI Index: ASA 21/042/2012

Fuska Sani, Yogyakarta – Indonesia should rethink its involvement in a free trade pact among Southeast Asian Nations, a Yogyakarta academic has warned.

Amahl S.