Indonesia's Health Ministry is defending the relatively steep price of PCR swab tests in the country, following protests triggered by recent reports showing how other countries have made the tests significantly more affordable for the general public.

Dio Suhenda, Jakarta – Rights groups have welcomed the abolishment of the controversial "two-finger test", a virginity test that had long been a requirement for female recruits to join the Indonesian Army.

Sudibyo Wiradji – As the dry season continues, heed must be given to peatland forests in Indonesia, especially on Kalimantan Island. Hot spots are expected to rise, which will potentially lead to forest fires.

Illegal blazes to clear land for agricultural plantations have been cited as one of the causes of the annual forest fires.

Zacharias Wuragil, Jakarta – Indonesia instantly jumped to the top three in the world for the number of new Covid-19 cases over the past 28 days, according to Johns Hopkins University Covid-19 data dashboard.

Jakarta – The regulations imposed during strict social restrictions are a guide to help people adapt to risks, according to Reisa Broto Asmoro, the government's Covid-19 handling spokesperson.

Heru Asprihanto, Jakarta – Indonesia's capital reopened its retail malls this week to an exclusive crowd – shoppers vaccinated against coronavirus.

Police officers have allegedly been extorting bus drivers and travelers passing through Bali's Gilimanuk Port, with reports suggesting that authorities are taking at least IDR50,000 (US$3.48) from each traveler and allowing them to circumvent entry requirements.

Anwar Siswadi (Contributor), Jakarta – Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB) maritime expert, Hamzah Latief, said in an online seminar held on August 10, 2021, that 30 percent of Indonesian coastal regions are facing the threat of being submerged under seawater similar to Jakarta.

Human rights advocates continue to voice concern for the welfare of West Papuan political prisoner Victor Yeimo.

Indonesian police arrested the West Papua National Committee's foreign spokesman in May over his alleged role in anti-racism protests that turned into riots in 2019.

Senator the Hon Marise Payne
Minister for Foreign Affairs
PO Box 6100
Senate, Parliament House
Canberra ACT 2600

12 August 2021

Dear Foreign Minister,

International pressure is mounting on Indonesia to free West Papuan activist Victor Yeimo, the international spokesperson for the peaceful civilian West Papua National Committee (KNPB), as concern grows over his worsening state of health.

Grace Nadia Chandra, Chairul Fikri, Tangerang, Banten – The police have named a pregnant 30-year-old woman as the prime suspect in the burning shophouse case that killed three people on Saturday morning. The victims were identified to be the woman's boyfriend, LS (35), and both his parents, ES (63) and LT (55).

Markus Junianto Sihaloho, Heru Andriyanto, Jakarta – Central Java Governor Ganjar Pranowo is slightly ahead of Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto in the latest presidential survey that indicates a potential three-horse race in the 2024 election.

An ailing Papuan activist detained in an Indonesian police detention center for the last three months has called on authorities to move him to a prison in Jayapura, the capital of Papua province.

Victor Yeimo, 37, says his health is worsening and his legal rights are being violated by being kept in isolation for so long.

Anna Henderson – The federal opposition has committed to hold an inquiry into claims Australian spies were eavesdropping on the government of Timor-Leste during highly sensitive oil and gas negotiations.

But it would firstly have to change the law that underpins Australia's top secret spy agencies.

Erika Nugraheny, Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo has bestowed the Bintang Jasa Utama (1st Class Star of Service) award for civil bravery and courage in times of adversity on former pro-integration East Timorese militia leader Eurico Guterres. The award ceremony was held at the State Palace in Thursday August 12.

Jakarta – The Civil Society Alliance – which is made up of a number of organisations in Indonesia and East Timor – is urging President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo to revoke the Bintang Jasa Utama (1st Class Star of Service) award for civil bravery and courage in times of adversity which was given to former East Timorese pro-integration militia leader Eurico Barros Gomes Guterres.

Fianda Sjofjan, Raka Adji, Jakarta – Jakarta Metro Jaya Police has said it will conduct door-to-door vaccinations as part of the ongoing Merdeka Vaccination Program, which is targeting to vaccinate 100 percent of Jakarta's population against COVID-19.

Putu Indah S, Nabil Ihsan, Jakarta – None of customary villages in Indonesia has officially been recognized by the central government as of August this year despite assurances of such recognition, Minister of Villages, Development of Disadvantaged Regions, and Transmigration, Abdul Halim Iskandar, has said.

An incident involving a Nigerian diplomat and immigration officers in Indonesia is triggering unease in relations between the two nations.

Maria Fatima Bona, Vento Saudale, Jakarta – Shortage in global vaccine supplies has slowed Indonesia's attempts to ramp up vaccination against Covid-19 but somehow the country managed to administer 77.14 million doses as of Wednesday, with 25.4 million citizens already fully vaccinated.

Dewi Nurita, Jakarta – The Health Ministry disclosed that the limited number of health workers who are tasked to input Covid-19 data resulted in the accumulation of non-real-time data, leading to the spike in the number of daily deaths in the last three weeks.

Endri Kurniawati, Jakarta – Epidemiologist from the University of Indonesia, Pandu Riono, said the implementation of the odd-even policy for four-wheeled vehicles in Jakarta has no relevance to the level 4 public mobility restrictions or PPKM Level 4 which was enforced until August 16.

Ryan Dagur, Jakarta – Indonesian authorities have deported more than 100 Timor-Leste citizens who defied Covid-19 restrictions and illegally crossed the border to participate in a martial arts event in East Nusa Tenggara province.

Diatyka Widya Permata Yasih and Vedi Hadiz – Since the turn of the millennium, a variety of Indonesian films featuring Islamic characters grappling with moral issues have emerged.

Yustinus Paat, Jakarta – Governor Anies Baswedan allows malls, worship places and outdoor sport venues to reopen with certain capacity limits on the basis of a steady decline in newly Covid-19 cases in recent weeks.

A founding member of the Free West Papua Movement, Tan Sen Thay, has died in the Netherlands.

Tan Sen was an integral figure in the independence movement that developed in West Papua as part of the struggle against Indonesian rule, once Dutch colonial rule was replaced in the 1960s.

Kuala Lumpur (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – Indonesia should make permanent its temporary ban on new permits for oil palm plantations to advance progress on tackling deforestation and meet its climate goals, environmentalists say.

Dewi Nurita, Jakarta – Indonesia's independent data initiative, LaporCovid-19, found that over 19,000 Covid deaths reported by the district/city governments are not registered in the central government's records. The agency is calling for data transparency, particularly on the numbers of deaths during self isolation.

Christopher Knaus – Australia's 2004 spy mission targeting Timor-Leste during oil and gas negotiations was "neither legal nor initiated properly" and former prime minister John Howard is likely to be called to give evidence at the trial of Bernard Collaery, the independent senator Rex Patrick has told parliament.

Jakarta – The head of the Indonesian Association of Epidemiology Experts (PAEI) professional development division, Masdalina Pane, is questioning the indicators being used by the government to determine which level of Enforcement of Restrictions on Public Activities (PPKM) to apply in a region.

Hans Nicholas Jong, Jakarta – UNESCO has urged the Indonesian government to close a stretch of road that runs through the largest protected area in Southeast Asia, citing its negative environmental impact.

Antara, Jakarta – The Jakarta Provincial Government has raised the Covid-19 vaccination target to 11 million people from the previous 8.8 million. "We are raising the target to ensure that all residents in Jakarta get the vaccine," said Deputy Governor Ahmad Riza Patria in Jakarta, Tuesday, August 19.

Police in North Jakarta have arrested a vaccinator who was caught on video injecting a boy with an empty syringe that should have contained the COVID-19 vaccine.

Dili (Reuters) – Timor Leste has recorded its first case of community transmission of the highly contagious Delta variant of the coronavirus, raising concerns by its health ministry about a possible spike.

Katharina R. Lestari, Jakarta – The Indonesian government has decided to extend Covid-19 social restrictions across Java and Bali islands until Aug. 16 to curb the spread of the highly contagious Delta variant.

The lockdowns began on the two islands on July 3 and were extended twice before this latest extension.

Emma Connors and Andrew Tillett, Singapore/Canberra – A plan to transport Australians keen to leave Indonesia by sea has run aground due to crew quarantine requirements and other costs, but those with deep enough pockets still have the option of chartering a boat.

Jakarta – The government has extended its COVID-19 curbs on Java and Bali until Aug. 16, but will ease them in 26 areas, as official data showed infections have plunged in the capital Jakarta but are increasing elsewhere.

Novy Lumanauw, Triyan Pangastuti, Jakarta – Indonesia has launched a risk-based online single submission system for business licensing on Monday, a long-delayed milestone that the government had hoped would improve the ideas of doing business in the country and boost investment.

Dewi Nurita, Jakarta – An epidemiologist from the Griffith University Dicky Budiman on Tuesday spoke about his fears of Covid-19 undetected cases, despite commending the government's decision to extend the public activity restriction (PPKM Level 4).

Francisca Christy Rosana, Jakarta – Director of the Center of Economic and Law Studies (Celios) Bhima Yudhistira Adhinegara responded to the government's policy on the opening of shopping malls during the extended PPKM Level 4 on August 10-16, 2021. This, however, was limited to four cities, namely Jakarta, Semarang, Surabaya, and Bandung.

Refugees and asylum seekers must get their COVID-19 jabs for the greater good, argued Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan, who has written a letter to the Health Ministry urging for their vaccine eligibility.

Sheryl Lee Tian Tong – Picking out the fluty whistle of a Sulawesi babbler (Pellorneum celebense) is easy. Spotting it is far more difficult: these shy and diminutive birds, endemic to the forests of the Indonesian island of Sulawesi, spend their days flitting about the understory, where their brown plumages allow them to blend discreetly into the environment.

M Rosseno Aji, Jakarta – The Indonesian anti-corruption community (MAKI) and the Law Enforcement Monitoring Institute (LP3HI) filed a lawsuit against House of Representatives (DPR) Speaker Puan Maharani at the Jakarta State Administrative Court (PTUN).

Maria Fatima Bona, Heru Andriyanto, Jakarta – Indonesia recorded 2,048 coronavirus-related deaths on Tuesday, the second time that the daily death toll has topped the 2,000 mark since the pandemic began.

The latest figures bring the country's overall death toll in the Covid-19 pandemic to 110,619, government figures show.

Carlos Ky Paath, Jakarta – The Indonesian government offers opportunities for athletes who won medals in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics to become civil servants.

The offer is meant as appreciation to those athletes who also will receive billions of rupiah in bonuses from the government and private institutions, a minister said on Monday.

Wahyudi Soeriaatmadja, Jakarta – Indonesia's capital Jakarta is set to ease Covid-19 curbs from Tuesday (Aug 10), allowing shopping malls and restaurants in the city to reopen with limited capacity as the numbers of confirmed cases and hospital admissions continue to fall.

Aisyah Llewellyn, Medan, Indonesia – It was the evening after the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha on July 20 when Hambal M Zain began to run a fever.

The 61-year-old coffee shop owner, who lives in the city of Banda Aceh in the northwestern Aceh Province, thought little of it at the time and in the days that followed the fever subsided and Zain went back to work as usual.

Ian Lloyd Neubauer, Jakarta – With undeniably dreamy backdrops and colorful local culture, the Indonesian island of Bali has lured foreign filmmakers for nearly as long as there has been film.

Jayapura – The West Papua National Committee (KNPB) is urging the Papua regional police and the Papua chief public prosecutor to immediately release Papuan activist Victor F Yeimo because there is no legal basis for his detention and his health has been deteriorating since his arrest on May 9.