Hamish McDonald – With popular uprisings turfing out rulers in Tunisia, Egypt and perhaps elsewhere in the Arab world, a lot of analysts have focused on fears of "contagion" in other re

Elaine Pearson – Last July, violence erupted when municipal police and hundreds of people organized by militant Islamist groups tried to break into an Ahmadiyah mosque in Manis Lor vill

In the foreword to the Indonesian translation of "Suharto and His Generals: Indonesian Military Politics 1975-1983," the author, veteran Australian journalist David Jenkins, described a

Idries de Vries – The Indonesian Armed Forces recently announced it had accepted a grant of 24 F-16 jet fighters from the United States, and that during the course of 2014 it plans to b

Katherine Demopoulos, Jakarta – Indonesia's status as a thriving pluralist democracy is under threat as the country's religious minorities face increasingly violent persecution and Pres

Elaine Pearson – Last July, when the United States lifted its ban on military assistance to Indonesia's elite Special Forces, Kopassus, US Defense Secretary Robert Gates praised the Ind

The murder of three Ahmadiyah followers in Banten on Sunday is a concrete example of state-sponsored terrorism against the country's own citizens.

Dalih Sembiring – East Timor, officially known as Timor-Leste, is experiencing an economic boom.

Gary LaMoshi, Denpasar, Bali – After three decades of unchallenged rule, the president clings to power amid massive street protests calling for his resignation and reform.

Nick Chatterjee – A booming economy, falling debt and market-friendly reforms could see Indonesia secure an investment grade credit rating as early as this year, putting it on a par wit

Al Araf, Jakarta – The Jayapura Military Court sentenced three Army soldiers to between eight and 10 months of imprisonment for their role in the torture of civilians in Puncak Jaya, Pa

Alex Walls – "Do you sell child pornography?" I ask the bewildered sales girl at the DVD store politely.

Vidhyandika D.

Testriono – Two studies on religious life in Indonesia released at the end of 2010 showed significant increases in the number of religiously motivated attacks and discrimination against

Ron May – In his Independence Day address to the Indonesian Parliament in 2005, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said he wished to resolve the Papua question in a just, peaceful and d

Aleksius Jemadu – When President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono told senior officials from the military and police last week that he had not received a pay raise in seven years, the statement

Joe Cochrane – I've been spending a lot of time in my front yard lately. Not that I'm an avid gardener, mind you.

The horrific torture of two Papuan men by military officers last year caught the nation by surprise and sullied the image of the Indonesian armed forces.

There are two conventions in this country that obstinately evade a resolution.

Desi Anwar – Now that we're becoming a nanny state, set on protecting our citizens by filtering all sorts of unsavory stuff, why stop at just BlackBerry?

Jia You – Many things could come to mind when one imagines a hospital; but could livestock be one of them?

Rinaldi Ridwan, Jakarta – Communications and Information Technology Minister Tifatul Sembiring's plan to ban BlackBerry service in Indonesia unless it filters pornographic content is a

In a decision that not only upholds the Constitution but also sends a strong message to all Indonesians, the Supreme Court has struck down the Bogor administration's request to uphold t

Local military chiefs in two regencies in East Java set an unwanted political precedent last week by heavily – and effectively – demanding two local TV stations cancel the scheduled bro

Oktovianus Pogau – It's been almost 10 years since the 2001 Law on Special Autonomy in Papua came into being.

Donny Syofyan, Padang – The newly revised Law on Political Parties has sparked public concern after the House of Representatives recently passed it.

Joe Cochrane – Black it out, Indonesia, black... it... out.

Jakarta – A booming economy, falling debt and market-friendly reforms could see Indonesia secure an investment grade credit rating as early as this year, putting it on a par with BRIC n

Nicholaus Prasetya – As the euphoria of New Year celebrations draw near and we begin to reflect on the events of the past year, one trend in particular should add a sobering touch to ou

It has been more than a decade since Indonesia bid farewell to Soeharto's authoritarian regime and dove into the pool of democracy.

Tom Allard – In September, Indonesia's leader Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was moved to put pen to paper, composing a letter to Barack Obama.

Andrew Thornley – Information, as the axiom goes, is the oxygen of democracy.

Neles Tebay, Abepura, Papua – The year 2010 has been very special for Papuans. It is in this year that the central government has turned its attention to Papua.

Peter Alford, Jakarta – Densus 88, the Indonesian counter-terrorism police, used every day of the four months available to substantiate its charges against Abu Bakar Bashir before deliv

Heru Andriyanto, Jakarta – The job of any defense lawyer is to prove his client innocent, or failing that to ensure the lightest punishment possible.

Tom Allard, Jakarta – The Australian and US governments have urged Indonesia to bring to justice soldiers who tortured two Papuan men in May, in a case that has emerged as a key test of

Gary LaMoshi, Denpasar, Bali – An Indonesian tax official who claims he helped some of Indonesia's most powerful companies reduce their tax bills through millions of dollars in bribes p

In the continuing struggle against terrorism, the nation must employ every resource at its disposal.

Vincent Lingga – It has indeed not been without strong reason that national and international surveys have consistently singled out the National Police as the most corrupt public instit

Teguh Surya – Climate change has brought forest protection into the forefront of the global agenda.

The seven-month imprisonment given to a junior Army officer in Papua, who was shown on YouTube leading the torture of Papuan civilians, defies the sense of justice of any decent and san

Trefor Moss – Indonesia has long been the individualist of Asian geopolitics – a big country that behaved like a small one when all those around it were trying to do the opposite.

Robin Lee Santoso – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's speech against the persecution of minorities last month received much acclaim.

Walter Balansa – This month, Indonesia will celebrate National Health Day. For the second year in a row, it will pass with the Health Law's tobacco control regulation still pending.

Zoe Kenny, Yogyakarta – Thousands of mainly student protesters took to the streets in cities across Indonesia – including Jakarta, Palu, Makassar, Medan, Ternate, Samarinda, Bandung, Su

It doesn't get any lower than this. Or does it?

Trefor Moss – Southeast Asia's sleeping giant has begun to make some surprisingly wakeful noises.

Torture has no place in a modern, civilized society. Period.

Aubrey Belford, Jakarta – To millions, Suharto, the military strongman who ruled Indonesia for 32 years, was a tyrant, a thief and a murderer.

Peter Alford, Jakarta – Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono finished the first year of his second term yesterday beset by criticism from every direction.