Yvette Tanamal, Jakarta – In hopes of bolstering Indonesia's ties with Papua New Guinea, President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo on Wednesday embarked on a one-day trip to Port Moresby to meet with his PNG counterpart Prime Minister James Marape, where the two discussed further collaboration on trade and higher education.

Jakarta – Indonesia has regained its status as an upper-middle income country in the latest assessment of the World Bank. Is it time to open the bubbly?

Not yet. The international financial institution classifies economies based on annual gross national income (GNI) per capita, and Indonesia's US$4,580 landed it at the low end of the class, which begins at $4,466.

Apriadi Gunawan, Medan – The Medan Prosecutor's Office in North Sumatra has put businessman Mujianto on its wanted list for fleeing after the Supreme Court overturned his corruption acquittal.

The Supreme Court found Mujianto guilty of corruption and money laundering at Bank Tabungan Negara (BTN), which caused state losses of Rp 39.5 billion (US$2.6 million).

Ryan Neelam – During Indonesian President Joko Widodo's visit to Australia this week, all eyes have been on government efforts to improve economic and security ties.

Guteriano Neves – A successful 21 May election in Timor-Leste saw the smooth and peaceful transition of power to a new government led by Xanana Gusmao – new, in the sense of being newly sworn in, but consisting of several old political figures such as Gusmao himself, Francisco Kalbuadi, Bendito Freitas, Mariano Sabino and Dulce Soares, to name a few.

Matthew Knott – Foreign Minister Penny Wong struck an apologetic tone towards Timor-Leste in comments about Australia's use of hardball tactics to stymie the fledgling nation's efforts to secure access to oil and gas riches in the Timor Sea after it won independence from Indonesia.

Interim Jakarta Governor Heru Budi Hartono has announced the city's plan to conduct a trial of staggered office hours as part of efforts to alleviate the persistent traffic congestion in the Indonesian capital.

Jayapura, Jubi – The Jayapura High Court has found Viktor Yeimo guilty of treason, according to their recent appeal decision. Yeimo, the International Spokesperson of the West Papua National Committee, is sentenced to one year of imprisonment.

Yogi Eka Sahputra, Batam – The Environment and Forestry (KLHK) Ministry's Director General of Law Enforcement Rasio Ridho Sani said the ministry has named a suspect in the illegal export of mangrove charcoal in Batam.

"We will soon release the name of the suspect," Ridho said after joining the inspection of illegal shrimp ponds in Batam City on Wednesday, July 5.

Riri Rahayu, Ghoida Rahmah, Jakarta – Secretary General of the Manpower Ministry Anwar Sanusi said digitalization changes the pattern of occupations. He predicted that demand for jobs in certain sectors will be rising and vice versa.

Ima Dini Shafira, Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo officially opened Papua Street Carnival in Jayapura today, July 7, 2023. The event is orchestrated by the Tourism and Creative Economy Ministry in tandem with the Papua Youth Creative Hub (PYCH).

Servio Maranda, Bangka – The Water and Air Police Directorate (Ditpolairud) of the Bangka Belitung Islands Police foiled attempts to smuggle oil through Tanjung Kalian Port, Muntok District, West Bangka Regency.

Pribadi Wicaksono, Jakarta – The Government of the Special Region of Yogyakarta (DIY) is preparing thousands of doses of livestock vaccinations to curb the spread of anthrax in Gunungkidul Regency.

Anisa Fauziah, Jakarta – Disgraced former customs official Andhi Pramono is alleged to have accepted bribes amounting to at least Rp 28 billion ($1.8 million) during his time in office, using the bank accounts of his parents-in-law to conceal a portion of the illicit funds, investigators revealed on Friday.

Max Lane – A small new party is sticking to its ideological guns but will probably not make much of a dent in the established elite's stranglehold on Indonesia's electoral politics.

Muhammad Ghafur Fadillah, Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo has nominated four candidates to fill two key vacant positions at the Financial Services Authority (OJK) to the House of Representatives, a senior lawmaker said on Thursday.

The president's nominees are Hasan Fawzi, Erwin Haryono, Agusman, and Adi Budiarso.

Indah Handayani, Jakarta – The number of investors in crypto assets has increased by 23 percent to 17.4 million as of May when compared to the same month last year, according to data from the Commodity Futures Trading Regulatory Agency, or Bappebti.

In May alone, 15,000 new investors were recorded by the agency.

Jayanty Nada Shofa, Jakarta – Indonesia's recent promotion to the upper-middle income rank does not mean that the Southeast Asian country should be complacent especially if it aims to be a developed nation by 2045, according to an expert.

Linda Yulisman, Jakarta – The Indonesian authorities are probing allegedly illegal shipments of nickel ore to China worth 14.5 trillion rupiah (S$1.3 billion) over 2-and-a-half years from early 2020.

Nur Janti, Jakarta – A government task force has rescued nearly 2,000 victims of human trafficking across the country over the past month, but this could be "the tip of the iceberg", an official has said, as more people fall prey to employment scams.

Jakarta – The Attorney General's Office (AGO) is expanding its investigation into the graft-ridden 4G base transceiver station (BTS) project to look into other related crimes and perpetrators as three more suspects in the case are indicted.

Jakarta – The agreement on the 2023-2025 Action Plan between the State Government of Western Australia and the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin) on the development and processing of critical minerals, notably nickel and lithium, is quite strategic.

News Desk, Jakarta – The Nusantara Capital City (IKN) Authority has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Astana administration to allow for future collaboration on urban development, infrastructure and other projects.

Wamena, Jubi – The Jayawijaya branch of the Indonesian Midwives Association (IBI) is facing a challenge as they have only 150 midwives available to serve the population of 328 villages and 40 districts in Jayawijaya.

Basten Gokkon, Jakarta – Most of Indonesia's carbon-rich peatlands aren't protected, according to a new study that calls for prioritizing much-needed restoration efforts for these areas.

Nicola Smith – Three people have died after an anthrax outbreak in Indonesia that reportedly infected more than 90 people who consumed contaminated meat.

Health officials in Yogyakarta province, in the south of the country's most populous island, Java, confirmed this week that three people had died from the bacterial infection.

One person has been killed and almost 300 houses destroyed due to the severe weather that has affected Timor-Leste in the past week.

Nabire, Jubi – The West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB) claims to have shot several Indonesian Military (TNI) soldiers in Intan Jaya. According to TPNPB leader Ndulamo Aibon Kogoya, the incident took place at Titigi Post, Titigi Village, Sugapa District on the afternoon of Tuesday, July 4, 2023.

Aron Corbett – Indonesian President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo unveiled an ambitious vision for an expanded economic partnership with Australia during his three-day visit to Sydney this week.

Roy Triono, Bandar Lampung – At least seven construction workers died after a construction hoist collapsed at a school building in Bandar Lampung, located in the southern tip of Sumatra, on Wednesday. However, initially, a security guard told visiting journalists that nothing had happened.

The incident also resulted in severe injuries to two workers.

An Australian human rights author and poet has accused successive federal governments of "deliberately aiding and abetting" the 1969 annexation of West Papua by Indonesia and enabling the "stifling" of the Melanesian people's right to self-determination.

Amy Heppy, Najla Nur Fauziyah (Translator), Jakarta – A thousand protestors consisting of farmers and workers are reported to demonstrate in front of the Constitutional Court of Indonesia on Thursday, July 6, 2023.

Nabila Azzahra, Najla (Translator), Jakarta – Cybersecurity expert Teguh Aprianto revealed that 34 million of Indonesia's passport data has been leaked and sold. Hackers often easily cracked the cyberdefense of Indonesia's government agencies, as proved by the data breaches in Pedulilindungi and MyPertamina applications.

Eka Yudha Saputra, M Zulnis Firmansyah, Jakarta – Indonesian Military (TNI) spokesperson Rear Admiral Julius Widjojono stated that his side is offering figures who would become a mediator for negotiations with the Free Papua Organization (OPM) in the release of New Zealand pilot Philips Max Mehrtens.

Riani Sanusi Putri, Jakarta – Director General of Foreign Trade at the Trade Ministry, Budi Santoso, emphasized that the export of sea sand is still prohibited albeit Government Regulation (PP) No. 26 of 2023 concerning the management of sedimentation products in the sea is issued on May 15.

Antara, Jakarta – Director General of Railways of the Transportation Ministry, Mohamad Risal Wasal, stated that the construction project of the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed train will be extended to Surabaya and will pass through Yogyakarta.

Amelia Rahima Sari (Antara), Jakarta – The World Bank listed Indonesia in the group of upper-middle-income countries again. President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo announced this when opening the Cabinet Plenary Meeting at Jakarta State Palace on Monday, July 3, 2023.

Bill Birtles and Hellena Souisa – Philip Mark Mehrtens – a pilot for a charter plane company – was ambushed by rebels after he flew to a remote airstrip to drop off some passengers and pick up a group of construction workers.

News Desk, Jakarta – The Transportation Ministry has unveiled a plan to build an extensive railway network that would connect Nusantara in East Kalimantan with major cities around the planned capital city.

Fuad Iqbal Abdullah, Balikpapan – Sinarmas Land Group's property development subsidiary, Grandcity Balikpapan, is set to be awarded a project to construct 1,500 houses for civil servants in the future national capital, Nusantara, located in East Kalimantan.

Jayanty Nada Shofa, Jakarta – Australian investors are still in a wait-and-see mode before they decide to invest in Indonesia's new capital city Nusantara, according to the economic think-tank INDEF.

Theressia Silalahi & Heru Andriyanto, Jakarta – The Indonesian Air Force on Thursday received the second of five C-130J Super Hercules aircraft the government has purchased from US defense company Lockheed Martin.

Jakarta – In an effort to release New Zealand pilot Philip Mehrtens, taken hostage by Papuan separatists, the interim Nduga regent Edison Gwijangge will hold negotiations with the rebels, according to the Indonesian Military (TNI) commander Adm Yudo Margono.

Reuters, Najla, Jakarta – Indonesian President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo met his Papua New Guinean counterpart, Prime Minister James Marape in Port Moresby on Wednesday, July 5, 2023. Jokowi is the latest leader to visit the island nation as major powers compete for influence in the strategically-located region.

Vitorio Mantalean, Jakarta – The National Human Rights Commission (Komnas HAM) has highlighted that human rights issues that do the rounds ahead of elections are never concrete or discussed in a substantive manner.

Indonesia's President Widodo's visit to Australia has ignited a pressing demand for an open and honest conversation about the ongoing West Papua crisis. With the 25-year anniversary of the Biak Massacre on 6th July, it serves as a stark reminder of the need for truth and accountability.

David Livingstone – The charismatic leader of the world's third-largest democracy, fourth-largest country by population, and likely fourth-largest economy by 2050, has just visited Australia.

Celvin Sipahutar, Jakarta – Indonesia is planning to establish a coast guard to bolster maritime border security and effectively combat smuggling and other illicit activities, Chief Security Minister Mohamad Mahfud MD said on Wednesday.

Lee Ying Shan – Mining giants Australia and Indonesia have signed a "win-win" EV battery deal, said Sabrin Chowdhury, head of commodities analysis at BMI, a research unit of Fitch Solutions.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo met his Australian counterpart Anthony Albanese on Tuesday during a three-day state visit to Australia.

Today, the 6 July marks 25 years since the Indonesian security forces massacred scores of people in Biak, West Papua. The victims, included women and children who had gathered for a peaceful rally. They were killed at the base of a water tower flying the Morning Star flag. Other Papuans were rounded up and later taken out to sea where they were thrown off naval ships and drowned.