Amy Heppy, Jakarta – The Indonesian government is campaigning for the support of International Maritime Organization (IMO) state members to be re-elected as members of IMO Council Category C 2024-2025.

M. Faiz Zaki, Jakarta – Director of General Crimes Investigation Metro Jaya Police Department Chief Commissioner of Police Hengki Haryadi stated that the estimated number of human trafficking victims to Cambodia currently reached 122 people.

Alexander R Arifianto – The 2024 Indonesian elections are fast approaching. Prospective presidential candidates are already on the campaign trail and holding 'horse-trading' negotiations to select their vice-presidential nominees.

Riani Sanusi Putri, Jakarta – Minister of Investment/Head of the Indonesian Coordinating Investment Board Bahlil Lahadalia claimed that he has accompanied President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo to meet Indonesian conglomerates to discuss Nusantara Capital City (IKN) investment.

Singgih Wiryono, Jakarta – Amnesty International Executive Director Usman Hamid says that the statements by Medan Mayor Bobby Nasution supporting begal (violent robbers) being shot dead reminds him of those made by former Philippines president Rodrigo Duterte who pursued a shoot to kill policy in his war against drugs.

Guntur Sutiyono – A range of measures to build closer economic ties between Australia and Indonesia were unveiled during Indonesian President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's well publicised visit to Sydney this month. Perhaps the most striking was proposed cooperation on the manufacture of batteries and electric vehicles (EV).

Singgih Wiryono, Jakarta – Indonesian Human Rights Watch (Imparsial) is advising the public to be careful about forming hasty opinions ahead of a political year, including over the controversy surrounding the Al Zaytun Islamic boarding school (pesantren) and its leader Panji Gumilang.

A notorious animal market once touted as a tourist attraction will stop selling dog and cat meat after a celebrity-backed campaign.

The Tomohon Extreme Market on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi has long sparked outrage, with pictures widely shared online showing the animals being bludgeoned and blow-torched while still alive.

Jakarta – The Supreme Court of Indonesia has ruled that lower courts cannot accept requests to register marriages between people with different religious beliefs.

Hidayatul Mustafidah Rohmawati Akhmad Hanan – The electricity cable system in Jakarta is estimated to be more than 80,000 kilometres long, which is sufficient to circle the Earth more than twice.

Divya Karyza, Jakarta – Indonesia's oil and gas investment in the first half of the year amounted to US$5.7 billion, just 36.67 percent of this year's $15.54 billion target, according to the Upstream Oil and Gas Regulatory Task Force (SKK Migas).

Yohana Belinda, Jakarta – The government's ban on the export of certain raw minerals has fueled demand for domestic shipping between mines and processing facilities, creating new opportunities for local companies, industry players say.

A. Muh. Ibnu Aqil, Jakarta – Climate activists have urged Indonesia to play a stronger role in ensuring the global carbon market will not undermine the real greenhouse gas emissions reduction efforts ahead of the upcoming United Nations Climate Change Conference, or COP28, later this year.

Yerica Lai, Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo hosted NasDem Party chairman Surya Paloh at the State Palace on Monday after having shunned the coalition member for months over his party's support for opposition presidential candidate Anies Baswedan, in a detente that analysts say could be aimed at influencing a possible runoff election.

Jayanty Nada Shofa, Jakarta – Indonesia has attracted Rp 678.7 trillion or about $45.2 billion in investment in the first half of 2023, putting the country almost halfway through its target for this year.

Herman, Jakarta – A halal-certified restaurant Baso A Fung recently destroyed all bowls in its Bali branch after influencer Jovi Adhiguna dipped pork crackers in his meatball soup.

Stevani Wijaya, Jakarta – The Indonesian Police presented on Thursday 12 suspects believed to be members of an illegal organ trade syndicate, accused of preying on at least 122 victims and selling kidneys to a Cambodian ring.

It remains unclear how many victims have actually had their kidneys harvested and sold by the syndicate.

Pribadi Wicaksono (Contributor), Yogyakarta – The Yogyakarta Culture Agency expressed objection to the extravagant 'wedding' of a pair of Alaskan Malamutes dogs using Javanese traditional customs in Pantai Indah Kapuk (PIK), North Jakarta.

Amelia Rahima Sari, Caesar Akbar, Jakarta – The Oil and Gas Companies Association (Aspermigas) claimed that the government has not yet discussed the plan to ban the export of liquefied natural gas or LNG. "No communication yet [between the government and related companies]," Aspermigas chairperson Moshe Rizal told Tempo on Thursday, July 20, 2023.

Ima Dini Shafira, Jakarta – Gerindra Party Secretary General Ahmad Muzani denied the saying that the meeting between the 1998 activist Budiman Sudjatmiko and the party's chief patron Prabowo Subianto was aimed at scrapping the label attached to the Defense Minister regarding the 1998 incident. Muzani said that the meeting did not discuss the matter at all.

Jakarta – The 2024 general elections will likely go down in history as Indonesia's first TikTok election, given the rising popularity of the Chinese video-hosting service in the country.

Jakarta – Indonesia's upstream oil and gas industry recorded a "significant" 21 percent increase in investment to US$5.7 billion during the first half of 2023, from the $4.7 billion recorded in the same period of 2022.

Villagers once had to rely on their own resources to light their homes. The well-off households bought mobile diesel generators, but the less fortunate had to make do with makeshift oil lamps, locally known as lampu tonggok.

Jayanty Nada Shofa, Jakarta – Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair on Friday met with State-Owned Enterprise (SOE) Minister Erick Thohir in Jakarta to discuss the government's 2024-2034 roadmap that aims to slash the number of Indonesian SOEs to just 30.

Hreeloita DS, Nabil Ihsan, Jakarta – The National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) has reported that, based on data collected from June 17 to July 17, 2023, it has identified 490 hotspots in Jambi province that could potentially trigger forest and peatland fires.

Septia Ryanthie, Solo – The United Arab Emirates (UAE) government planned to build a cardiology hospital in Solo, Central Java. Solo Mayor Gibran Rakabuming Raka said that the healthcare center will be opened in the Solo Technopark or STP area.

Antara, Manado – Mount Karangetang in Siau Tagulandang Biaro or Sitaro Islands, North Sulawesi, is still releasing lava avalanches as of Thursday morning, July 20, 2023. Head of the Karangetang Volcano Observation Post, Yudia P. Tatipang, said that the lava keeps pouring out from the volcanic crater during the observation period on Thursday from 00:00 to 06:00 local time.

M. Julnis Firmansyah, Jakarta – Research organization SETARA Institute criticized Supreme Court's decision to prohibit Indonesian courts from granting any request to legalize interfaith marriage.

Antara, Jakarta – Bulog Public Corporation, Indonesia's logistics bureau, said it secured 750,000 tonnes of Government Food Reserve rice stocks distributed across all Bulog warehouses in Indonesia to face El Nino.

Jayanty Nada Shofa, Jakarta – Chinese glass giant Xinyi Group seeks to make an $11 billion investment in the quartz sand downstream industry that lies in Rempang eco-city in Batam, Riau islands, according to Investment Minister Bahlil Lahadalia.

Jayanty Nada Shofa, Jakarta – A new toll road connecting the capital city of Bengkulu Province, which carries the same name, and Taba Penanjung was inaugurated on Thursday, and President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo expressed his expectations for it to boost the economic growth of the province.The total cost of constructing the Bengkulu-Taba Penanjung toll road was Rp 4.8 trillion (approxim

Arnoldus Kristianus, Jakarta – The Indonesian government is actively pursuing membership in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) as part of its ambition to become a high-income country, a senior official said on Thursday.

Currently, Japan and South Korea are the only Asian members of this intergovernmental organization.

Aditya Hadi, Jakarta – Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati and her Indian counterpart, Nirmala Sitharaman, discussed a proposal to settle bilateral transactions with local currencies and link the fast payment systems of both countries, according to a report from Bloomberg.

Jakarta – The Attorney General's Office (AGO) plans to send another subpoena for Coordinating Economic Minister Airlangga Hartarto to be present for questioning as a witness next Monday in its investigation into a corruption case that has been blamed for contributing toward a domestic cooking oil shortage last year.

Jakarta – The government will soon enforce a regulation that requires companies exporting mining, plantation, forestry and fishery products to repatriate their export earnings and keep a portion of them in the domestic financial system for at least three months. Failure to comply with the new policy will result in the government suspending their export licenses.

Jakarta – The government's goal of reaching its net-zero emission (NZE) target is a challenging one, given how much the country relies on the abundant resources of natural gas and oil. It is projected that once NZE is achieved, the absolute need for fossil energy in the form of oil and gas will continue to increase, but with a decreasing proportion of the total energy mix.

Riani Sanusi Putri, Jakarta – A special staffer of Finance Minister Sri Mulyani for Strategic Communications, Yustinus Prastowo, rebutted the statement that Indonesia is a systemic failed state. He asserted that it is a baseless argument because the country records stable and high economic growth.

Mutia Yuantisya, Jakarta – Statistics Indonesia (BPS) of Jakarta Office recorded that the city's poverty rate in March 2023 stood at 4.44 percent, down 0.09 percent compared to March 2020 at 4.53 percent. When compared to September 2022, or the end of Governor Anies Baswedan's term which was on October 16, the poverty rate dropped by 0.17 percent.

Rr. Ariyani Yakti Widyastuti, Jakarta – Indonesian Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan questioned the World Bank Logistics Performance Index (LPI) 2023 which placed the country in 63rd position from previously 46th in 2018 out of 139 countries across the globe.

Papuan people throughout the territory of West Papua have held huge demonstrations of support for full membership of the United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP) in the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG).

Delighted with the response but disappointed with the delay, organisers appealed to supporters to "keep going" with the solidarity.

Joshua Walker – A bold development in Prabowo Subianto's 2024 presidential campaign has been his promise that if he wins, he will invite his vanquished election rivals to join his government.

Jayapura, Jubi – On Tuesday, July 18, 2023, three students who participated in a protest at the University of Science and Technology Jayapura (USTJ) on November 10, 2022, were charged with treason and sentenced to 18 months in prison by the public prosecutor.

Jayapura, Jubi – Following a clash that resulted in the shooting of civilians, casualties, and the destruction of numerous buildings in Dogiyai Regency, Central Papua Province, joint patrols were conducted by Indonesian Military (TNI) and Police on Monday, July 17, 2023.

M Julnis Firmansyah, Jakarta – The Bengkulu Regional Association of Islamic Students (HMI) planned to stage a protest when President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo visited Bengkulu today, July 20, 2023.

Zacharias Wuragil, Jakarta – Scorching hot weather and the absence of clouds will sweep across Greater Jakarta or Jabodetabek again today, July 20, 2023. The Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) predicted all areas in Jakarta, Bogor, Depok, Tangerang, and Bekasi will be sunny this morning.

Singgih Wiryono, Jakarta – The Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) says it deplores a statement made by ruling Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) politician Budiman Sudjatmiko who said that Greater Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra) Chairperson Prabowo Subianto does not need to be held hostage (digunduli, left hanging) by past human rights

Hans Nicholas Jong, Jakarta – The Indonesian government has justified a sweeping amnesty for millions of hectares of oil palm plantations established illegally in forest areas, saying there are so many of them that it simply has no other option than to legalize them.

Jakarta – The government's efforts to make changes to the existing governance system should have an impact on the people, according to Minister of Administrative and Bureaucratic Reforms of the Republic of Indonesia Abdullah Azwar Anas.

Anisa Fauziah, Jakarta – The government has taken down 11,333 gambling websites in recent crackdowns during the past week alone and issued a warning to social media platforms on Thursday, stating that they must remove such content if they wish to continue operating in Indonesia.

Arief Ikhsanudin, Jakarta – Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan has asked why the number of sting operations (OTT) conducted by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) continues to be showcased as a measure of performance.