Cat MacLennan – In 1994, New Zealand sent a cross-party delegation of five MPs to Timor-Leste on a fact-finding mission.

Deasy Simandjuntak – At a time when electoral democracy has retreated in the region, Indonesia successfully held one of the world's largest and generally considered free and fair presi

Erin Cook – If 2019 was the Year of Living Excitedly, with the world's biggest-ever one-day polls returning President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo to his post, 2020 will be the Year of Quietly

Emma Kluge – Activism and protests marked West Papua's 50th anniversary last year of the so-called Act of Free Choice, which formalised Indonesia's control over the territory, with the

John McCarthy – Every country has its legends. They may be important to national self-esteem, but they're not necessarily good history.

Yohanes Sulaiman – Indonesia has been sending mixed signals in responding to China's breach of its exclusive economic zone around the Natuna Islands, near the South China Sea.

Hal Hill – Viewed in the long sweep of history, Indonesia's first two decades of democracy have been quite remarkable.

Syafiq Hasyim – In Indonesia, there has been an increasing tendency to incorporate sharia into the legal and public sphere (shariatisation) in the post-reform era since 1998.

Jakarta – When the clock struck midnight yesterday night, we waved goodbye not only to 2019, but also to the 2010s, a tumultuous decade so emotionally taxing that many would certainly

Dian Septiari, Jakarta – At the start of the week, two native Papuans entered a courtroom in Jakarta shirtless but adorned in their traditional attire, complete with feathered headdres

Kate Grealy – The targeting of 'Islamic extremism' for national security purposes has long been an area of safe bipartisan consensus in Indonesia – as it is in most countries.

Edward Aspinall and Marcus Mietzner – Indonesia's 2019 elections confirmed both the country's status as a competitive electoral democracy and the trend of decreasing democratic quality

Donald Greenlees – Joko Widodo begins his second term contemplating the legacy he will bequeath as Indonesia's seventh president and with precious little time to do it.

The Indonesian government is in the process of introducing policies to both purge "radicals" from the public service and government, and to enforce commitment to the state ideology, Pa

Luke Lischin – With the announcement of President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo's latest cabinet on 23 October 2019, prospects for liberal government reforms have all but vanished.

Jakarta – The Finance Ministry has twice revised upward the estimated fiscal deficit for this year, first from 1.8 per cent of the gross domestic product to 1.9 per cent and lately up

Alicia Izharuddin – Less than two weeks after Indonesian President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo installed his cabinet for his second term, one of his ministers stirred controversy last month w

Ary Hermawan, Jakarta – The Red Scare may not be entirely over in Indonesia more than 50 years after the 1965 anticommunist hysteria that led to the massacre of thousands if not millio

By Max Lane, Singapore

Executive Summary

Richard Javad Heydarian – When Joko Widodo, affectionately known as "Jokowi", pulled off a shocking victory in Jakarta's 2012 gubernatorial race, many, especially the country's youth a

Hafiz Noer – Last month, Joko "Jokowi" Widodo was inaugurated as Indonesia's seventh president for his second and final term.

Maire Leadbeater – Since August 17, Indonesia's national day, West Papua has been in the grip of an unparalleled uprising.

Editorial Board, ANU – After he won re-election last April, Indonesian President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo was eager to emphasise the liberating effects of not having to worry about re-elec

Dave McRae and Robertus Robet – When Indonesian President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo triggered mass protests in September over his support for regressive amendments to the Criminal Code and

Burhanuddin Muhtadi – Unlike the euphoria that surrounded his first electoral victory in 2014, Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo's second term is starting on a sombre mood.

Noory Okthariza – Recent protests and riots in Papua and West Papua have reinvigorated the question of how capable the Indonesian government is of addressing problems in the east of th

Jakarta – As a former Indonesian Military (TNI) general, defence minister Prabowo Subianto should have known that today's warfare is no longer fought on beaches, in trenches or in jung

Thomas Paterson – Three days after being inaugurated as the president of Indonesia for a second five-year term, Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo announced his new cabinet.

Jakarta – The government looks set to realize its plan to form two new provinces in Papua, or at least one of them, after hearing what it claims as "grassroots aspirations".

Jakarta – The plan to divide the province of Papua by establishing a new province in the southern part proves the inability of the central government to understand the roots of the pro

Septinus George Saa, Birmingham, UK – In its second term, President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's government should learn crucial lessons from the political actions taken in Papua and in the

A second and final term can free a leader, as Joko Widodo has acknowledged. The question is how he will use his new liberty.

Aaron Connelly, Evan A.

Max Lane – In announcing his new cabinet on Oct 23, Indonesian President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo has underscored a desire for continuity, both for economic policy as well as political str

James Guild – On 23 October, Indonesian President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo announced the cabinet for his second term in office, after two days of theatrically staged visits to the presiden

Jakarta – In a show of his care for Papua, President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo visited the easternmost territory Monday for his first outing since assuming office for his second term on Oct

David Fickling – If the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result, what is Indonesia playing at?

Jakarta – The wave of student protests last September spurred adrenaline rush in Edward Aspinall.

Damien Kingsbury – After half a century of incorporation as part of Indonesia and following a period of generally declining violence in the half island of West Papua, the past year has

Camellia Webb-Gannon – Last weekend, the Indonesian police took 43 West Papuan students into custody for allegedly disrespecting the Indonesian flag during an independence day celebrat

James Massola, Jakarta – When Prime Minister Scott Morrison flies in to Jakarta this weekend to attend the second inauguration of President Joko Widodo, he'll heap praise on Indonesia'

Tassia Sipahutar, Viriya Singgih and Arys Aditya – Indonesian President Joko Widodo is unfazed by the biggest student protests to hit the nation in over two decades against his governm

Sydney Jones – Violence has swept across Indonesian Papua in the last six weeks, starting with racist taunts against Papuan students in East Java, and moving back to Papua where protes

Eve Warburton – Over the last week, tens of thousands of students and activists have poured on to the streets of Indonesia's major cities.

Jakarta – Many of the newly sworn-in 575 House of Representatives and 136 Regional Representatives Council members might feel relieved as they can finally begin their terms on Tuesday,

Max Lane – Since Sept 23, there have been student demonstrations in almost every province of Indonesia against numerous new Bills being tabled and passed by the outgoing Parliament.

James Massola, Jakarta – On October 20, Indonesian President Joko Widodo will finally be sworn in and begin his second and final term in office, six months after winning re-election.

Aninda Dewayanti and Deasy Simandjuntak, Singapore – Over the past week, tens of thousands of university students and activists gathered in some of the biggest simultaneous rallies acr

Eka Kurniawan, Jakarta, Indonesia – In an ideal Indonesia, a Papuan man would live in Jakarta and become a civil servant. He would marry a Padang woman from western Indonesia.

Bytamara Soukotta – Amid the loud yells celebrating freedom during the Indonesian Independence Day celebration last month, West Papuan students in Surabaya were attacked in their own r