Kyle Knight – In mid-December, Indonesia's Constitutional Court dismissed a petition that had sought to criminalize all consensual sex outside of marriage, as well as adult consensual s

Vedi Hadiz and Inaya Rakhmani, Jakarta – The first anniversary of the largest religiously-driven mass demonstration in Indonesia has just been celebrated by some of the organisations th

Michael Leach – Nearly six months after an election that left Timorese politics in a state of protracted uncertainty, the manoeuvrings in the young nation's parliament seem likely to re

Randi Julian Miranda – The nexus between climate change and economic development is complex.

Simon Philpott – John Ondawame greatly admired the independence struggle in East Timor, especially its ability to win active support from people in Europe, the United States and Austral

Jose Ramos-Horta – As the aftermath of the U.S.

Francis Chan, Jakarta – A recent decision by Indonesia's Constitutional Court to reject a bid by a local conservative group to criminalise sex outside marriage took many people here by surprise.

Bec Strating – Timor-Leste ends 2017 with great uncertainty over the future of the Greater Sunrise gas field, over the stability of its government and over its ambitions to become a member of ASEAN

Ken Ward – Indonesia's President Joko Widodo can look to next year in a far more relaxed way than he faced 2017.

Wataru Suzuki, Jakarta – "The Future is Here Today." This slogan is splashed across billboards all over Jakarta, advertising a massive satellite city project on the outskirts of the capital.

Hendri Yulius – After almost two years of intense debate, the Constitutional Court last week rejected a challenge to the Criminal Code (KUHP) that would have criminalised sex between people of the

John McBeth – The 100,000-strong crowd that turned out in downtown Jakarta for Sunday's protest over US President Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as Israeli's capital again demonstrates the

John McBeth, Jakarta – Billed as Indonesia's 'trial of the century', the formal arraignment on December 13 of Golkar Party chairman and former House of Representatives speaker Setya Novanto paves t

Luke Lischin – On December 2, alumni of the so-called "Aksi 212" protest that contributed to the downfall of former Jakarta governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama held a rally to commemorate the event at

Damien Kingsbury – As East Timor went to elections this year, the country was the most peaceful and united it had been in its short history.

Stewart Fenwick – Negotiations for a bilateral trade agreement between Australia and Indonesia continue, with little tangible progress so far.

Rui Graca Feijo – Almost nine months after the election of the fourth President of the Republic, the first to be won by a President affiliated to a political party (FRETILIN) and to benefit from a

Prashanth Parameswaran – On Monday, the Indonesian government confirmed that Indonesian President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo had nominated the country's air force chief, Hadi Tjahjanto, as its next milit

Jarryd de Haan – According to a press release published by Scoop, the Central committee of the Revolutionary Front for an Independent East Timor (Frente Revolucionaria do Timor-Leste Independente,

The people of the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste will today celebrate the 42nd anniversary of their Declaration of Independence.

Jakarta – Celebrations are moments of joy to commemorate milestones in a person's life, or a nation.

Chaula Anindya – Indonesian lawmakers are currently deliberating revisions to an existing anti-terrorism law which appears insufficient in facing the threat of Islamic State (IS).

In early November, police reported 1,300 people were "being held as hostages" by a "group of armed criminals" in the villages near Tembagapura, Papua, a district that holds one of the largest gold

Marwan Batubara – The long-running dispute between the Indonesian government and U.S.

Herlambang P Wiratraman – Every International Labour Day, workers across Indonesia conduct major protests against outsourcing, low wages, and workforce liberalisation policies.

The ridiculous controversy in Indonesia over "pornographic" GIFs accessible through popular messaging service WhatsApp might be winding down after the government blocked access to GIF search site T

Last week's big news in Jakarta was the closure of the Alexis Hotel, which recently inaugurated Governor Anies Baswedan said was just the beginning of a moral crusade to eradicate prostitution in t

Evan Laksmana – The Indonesian military (Tentara Nasional Indonesia or TNI) turned 72 years old on 5 October.

Todung Mulya Lubis – Last month saw an unprecedented attack on one of the oldest and most influential civil society organisations in Indonesia, the Legal Aid Foundation (LBH), which was hosting a d

Phelim Kine – Indonesia's Vice President Jusuf Kalla last week praised religious tolerance in Indonesia as "better than in other countries" and a model "for other countries to learn [religious] tol

Hellena Yoranita Souisa and Primatia Romana Wulandari – After banning Islamist organisation Hizb ut-Tahrir Indonesia (HTI) through a decree in July 2017, Indonesia has now moved to codify in law go

Denny Indrayana – Newly installed Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan sparked a fracas last week when he said in his inaugural speech that it was time for pribumi ('native or indigenous Indonesians') t

Michael Leach – In 2015, not long after the formation of the unprecedented national unity government between Timor-Leste's two largest parties, CNRT and Fretilin, senior CNRT Minister Agio Pereira

David Hutt – What a relief.

John McBeth, Jakarta – As calculated as it may have been, newly-inaugurated Jakarta Governor Anies Baswaden has started off on just the wrong foot by re-igniting the religious and ethnic controvers

Richard Chauvel – It is easy to over-interpret the body language of government officials in photographs, but Papua Governor Lukas Enembe (third from left) seems the least at ease in this meeting fr

Luke Hunt – The problems of Indonesian President Joko Widodo are many.

Hendri Yulius, Jakarta – Since 2016, minorities of gender and sexuality – "LGBT" (lesbians, gays, bisexual and transgender people) – have become among main targets by a conservative backlash.

Tom Clarke – Many Australians wouldn't think twice about putting their name to a petition to support a cause close to their hearts, but in Indonesia's Papuan provinces, where free speech is routine

Khoo Ying Hooi – After 15 years of its restoration of independence, Timor Leste is a country that remains unknown to many of us in the Southeast Asia region.

Leong Yee Ting, Jakarta – Many Indonesian children grow up listening to this Islamic proverb, "Heaven is at the bottom of your mother's feet."

The National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) established in 1993, near the end of Soeharto's regime, has become a model for the region.

Tim Lindsey – On 16 September, police broke up an academic discussion at the offices of renowned activist NGO the Jakarta Legal Aid Foundation (LBH).

Damien Kingsbury – In a move that is expected to whip Indonesia's military into a frenzy and will again start an Indonesian witch-hunt for Australian supporters, a West Papuan petition calling for

In an effort to unseat the president, Indonesian religious leaders are tapping into the bitter memories of an aborted coup in the hope it will drive voters to the polls, building on momentum from J

Vincent Bevins, Jakarta, Indonesia – Early on the morning of Oct. 1, 1965, members of Indonesia's armed forces kidnapped and killed six high-ranking generals in Jakarta.

Erwida Maulia, Jakarta – On Friday thousands of members of hardline Muslims groups – including the Islamic Defenders Front, the United Islamic People Forum and the Betawi Rembuk Forum – staged a ra

Khoo Ying Hooi – Led by Mari Alkatiri, secretary-general of the Revolutionary Front for an Independent East Timor (Fretilin) for the second time as the prime minister, the Seventh Constitutional Go

[The following opinion piece by Indonesian journalist and filmmaker Dandhy Laksono made headlines after he was reported to police under Indonesia's controversial online defamation laws for compa

Nurkholis Hidayat – The past two days have seen paranoia about communism result in unprecedented attacks on one of the oldest and most influential civil society organisations in Indonesia, the Lega