Jakarta – Former Health Minister Siti Fadilah Supari was released from prison on Saturday after completing her four-year jail sentence for corruption.

Siti, who served during the Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono presidency, was convicted of taking Rp 1.9 billion ($129,000) in bribe concerning a government medical equipment procurement project in 2005.

Heru Andriyanto, Jakarta – Indonesia reported a single-digit monthly rise in the number of coronavirus cases on Saturday, the slowest growth since the outbreak began in early March.

The country has recorded 123,080 confirmed cases of coronavirus throughout the month to take its total to 410,088.

Made Anthony Iswara, Jakarta – The Religious Affairs Ministry has established new criteria for Indonesians intending to go on umrah (minor haj) as Saudi Arabia is set to open its doors to international pilgrims on Nov. 1.

Arlina Arshad – From China to the United Arab Emirates and Britain, Indonesia has been scouring the world for potential vaccines against the coronavirus while ramping up local output and carrying out human vaccine trials at home to tackle the spread of the infectious disease.

Dzulfiqar Fathur Rahman, Jakarta – Indonesia is seeing a steep decline in textile exports to Turkey – a major market for textile products – blamed on additional duties and the coronavirus pandemic's effect on global trade.

Nina Loasana, Jakarta – Jakarta airports and toll roads have been crowded with travelers as hundreds of thousands of Jakartans are expected to leave the capital during the five-day weekend from Oct. 28 to Nov. 1.

Budi Sutrisno, Jakarta – Two residents of Cilacap, Central Java, have been admitted to the Banyumas Medika Hospital for intensive care after contracting COVID-19 while sheltering from floods.

The two were among hundreds of residents who were evacuated after floods in Cilacap worsened due to overnight downpour from Wednesday evening to Thursday morning.

Nina A. Loasana, Jakarta – The Soccer Association of Indonesia's (PSSI) executive committee announced on Thursday that it would cancel all soccer matches in 2020 following the National Police's decision not to issue a permit for the leagues amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Jakarta – Most young people still do not believe they could be infected with COVID-19, according to a survey carried out by Statistic Indonesia (BPS).

The survey shows that 17 of 100 respondents aged 17 to 30 said they did not believe they could be exposed to COVID-19.

Moch. Fiqih Prawira Adjie, Jakarta – Graft busters at the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) arrested fugitive Hiendra Soenjoto, a suspect in a bribery case involving former Supreme Court Secretary Nurhadi on Thursday, after eight months on the run.

Jakarta – COVID-19 volunteer coordinator Andre Rahadian has invited public health graduates to join his team to help the country fight the coronavirus.

Andre said in a statement on Wednesday that the needed public health graduates would be deployed as contact tracing volunteers.

Adrian Wail Akhlas, Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo said he aimed to realize the full potential of the country's sharia financial industry by merging state-owned sharia banks, likening the industry to a "sleeping giant" that could boost the sluggish economy.

Ghina Ghaliya, Jakarta – Labor unions have lambasted Manpower Minister Ida Fauziyah for leaving the minimum wage unchanged for 2021, accusing her of siding with businesses over workers.

Jakarta – The head of the Papua Province Humanitarian Team for Cases of Violence Against Religious Figures in Intan Jaya Regency, Haris Azhar, has announced the results of their investigation into the shooting of Pastor Yeremia Zanambani who was allegedly shot by a rogue Indonesian military (TNI) officer in Hitadipa District, Intan Jaya, on September 19.

Budiarti Utami Putri, Jakarta – A survey by the pollster Indonesia Political Opinion (IPO) on Thursday, October 29, suggests that the public satisfaction level towards the current administration led by President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo and VP Ma'ruf Amin had dwindled in a poll held on June 8-20.

Jakarta – The National COVID-19 task force has been using a real-time data platform called Sistem Bersatu Lawan COVID-19 (BLC) Monitoring Perubahan Perilaku (United in Fighting COVID-19 Monitoring Behavioral Change System) to curb the spread of the disease.

Nina A. Loasana, Jakarta – An independent team calling itself the Intan Jaya Humanity Team has alleged that Indonesian Military (TNI) personnel were behind the fatal shooting of Pastor Yeremia Zanambani last month in Intan Jaya regency, Papua as well as a series of violence prior to the killing.

Jakarta – A Semarang Police brigadier in Central Java is filing another lawsuit against the force's decision to dishonorably discharge him because of his sexual disorientation.

James Massola and Karuni Rompies – US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has heaped praise on Indonesia for taking "decisive action to safeguard its maritime sovereignty" over the Natuna Islands, while criticising China's for its "unlawful" claims in the South China Sea.

Arizka Warganegara and Paul Waley – The Indonesian parliament has passed a controversial new act known as the Omnibus Law, so named because it brings together a raft of different measures.

Ghina Ghaliya, Jakarta – Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri has taken a jab at the country's millennials, questioning their contribution to the nation in a fiery speech on Wednesday in response to the recent nationwide rallies against the controversial Job Creation Law.

Moch. Fiqih Prawira Adjie, Jakarta – Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan has warned residents of the capital to be careful of COVID-19 transmission from family members as citizens enjoy five consecutive days off until this weekend.

Tri Indah Oktavianti, Jakarta – The United States has praised the Indonesian government's effort in addressing the issues of regulatory roadblocks, corruption and nontransparency in the business sector as it seeks to strengthen economic ties with the archipelagic country.

News Desk, Jakarta – The Aceh Police have named five suspects for allegedly trafficking Rohingya refugees to Indonesia in June.

Tri Indah Oktavianti, Jakarta – Indonesia has invited the United States to invest in the development of Riau Islands' Natuna regency, one of the archipelago's outer islands in the southern part of the disputed South China Sea, which has become the flashpoint for escalating tensions between Washington and Beijing in the region.

Dyaning Pangestika, Jakarta – The Health Ministry has urged regional governments to enforce health protocols in order to prevent COVID-19 from spreading further during the long weekend.

The government has declared Wednesday and Friday collective leave days, surrounding the public holiday of Maulid (commemoration of birthday of Prophet Muhammad) on Thursday.

Jakarta – A long weekend is just around the corner, expected to begin with Prophet Muhammad's birthday on Oct. 29 and combined with collective leave days from Oct. 28 to 30 as well as the ensuing weekend.

Jakarta – The number of visitors on the resort island of Bali has doubled ahead of the long weekend at the turn of the month.

With Maulid (commemoration of the birthday of Prophet Muhammad) falling on Thursday and the government having declared Wednesday and Friday collective leave days, most Indonesians are enjoying a five-day break.

Jakarta – The amount of medical waste found in the Cisadane River has been increasing since the COVID-19 pandemic began, says Tangerang City Environment Agency head Dedi Suhada.

"Our environment activists often find [medical waste] in the Cisadane River that flows through Tangerang," Dedi said on Wednesday, as quoted by kompas.com.

Moch. Fiqih Prawira Adjie, Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo has signed a presidential regulation (Perpres) on corruption case investigation supervision, which details the authority of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) in taking over graft cases from other law enforcement bodies.

Gemma Holliani Cahya, Jakarta – Fear of losing jobs. Cabin fever and inability to focus while working from home. Limited interaction with friends and families. Unable to afford daily needs.

For the past seven months, the outbreak has changed the lives of many Indonesians.

Heru Andriyanto, Jakarta – The National Covid-19 Task Force said on Thursday that the percentage of active coronavirus cases in proportion to the total number of reported cases have been declining every month.

Task force spokesman Wiku Adisasmito said Indonesia now has lower percentage of active cases than the global average.

Jakarta – The police arrested activists from the Save Indonesia Coalition for spreading hate. This is a foolish way to deal with differences of opinion.

Alya Nurbaiti, Jakarta – The national COVID-19 task force has urged the public to spend the upcoming long weekend at home in order to help prevent a spike in coronavirus transmission amid concerns of a re-emergence of holiday clusters.

Jakarta – The Papua regional police managed to arrest 13 people protesting against Special Autonomy in the vicinity of the Cenderawasih University (Uncen), Papua, and in several other areas on October 27. The demonstrators however were released after being questioned at the Abepura sectoral police headquarters.

Adrian Wail Akhlas, Jakarta – Tax incentives stipulated in the recently passed Job Creation Law have raised questions among economists over whether they can attract investment and boost state revenue going forward.

A. Muh. Ibnu Aqil, Jakarta – Why did the Komodo dragon cross the road?

That might have been the first thought that popped into the minds of Indonesia's netizens when a photo of the oversized monitor lizard made the rounds on social media over the weekend.

Dian Septiari, Jakarta – Vice President Ma'ruf Amin has expressed concern over the perpetuation of an Islamophobic narrative that challenges the promotion of moderate Islam, a spokesman said on Tuesday, in response to French President Emmanuel Macron's recent denunciation of radical Islamists.

Moch. Fiqih Prawira Adjie, Jakarta – Jakarta and Canberra reasserted their commitment to bolstering their bilateral partnership during the seventh Indonesia-Australia Ministerial Council Meeting on Law and Security on Tuesday.

Rizki Fachriansyah, Jakarta – The coronavirus death toll in Indonesia has increased by 18 percent over the past week as social restrictions continue to be relaxed in several regions, according to the national COVID-19 task force.

Nina Loasana, Jakarta – More people are reporting alleged sexual abuse at education institutions to the authorities, even though their complaints often fall on deaf ears, the National Commission on Violence Against Women (Komnas Perempuan) has reported.

Jakarta – A new COVID-19 cluster has emerged in Karawang, West Java, after 11 people who attended the anniversary of a dance group tested positive for the virus.

Karawang COVID-19 task force spokesman Fitra Hergyana said that one person had been infected with the virus when they attended the event recently at a restaurant in West Karawang.

Moch. Fiqih Prawira Adjie, Jakarta – The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) has urged the State Palace to report as a gratuity a folding bicycle recently given to President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo.

Tri Indah Oktavianti, Jakarta – The Destructive Fishing Watch (DFW) has called on the Indonesian government to increase patrols around the country's outermost islands in the North Natuna Sea of Riau, following reports of rampant illegal fishing by foreign fishers over the past few months.

Ghina Ghaliya, Jakarta – The Elections Supervisory Agency (Bawaslu) has found that more candidates running in the 2020 regional elections are opting for direct campaign rallies rather than going online, despite the election organizer's call for greater use of indirect campaigning to prevent COVID-19 transmission.

Pacific Media Watch – The United Liberation Movement if West Papua (ULMWP) has accused the Indonesian government of imposing martial law on the Melanesian region of West Papua and brutally suppressing protests in a crackdown.

Friski Riana, Jakarta – Coinciding with the Youth Pledge Day [Sumpah Pemuda], the labor unions GEBRAK and the Indonesian People's Faction (FRI) announced to hold a rally at Central Jakarta's Tugu Proklamasi [proclamation monument] on Wednesday, October 28, in protesting against the passing of the omnibus law on job creation.

Ghina Ghaliya, Jakarta – Indonesian health authorities confirmed Wednesday that the total number of COVID-19 cases has reached 400,000 eight months into the outbreak.

Norman Harsono, Jakarta – State-owned electricity giant PLN has booked trillions of rupiah in losses so far this year due to lower energy demand and a weak rupiah exchange rate during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Alya Nurbaiti, Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo inaugurated a new station of state-owned television provider TVRI in West Papua on Wednesday, coinciding with the commemoration of the country's Youth Pledge Day. The West Papua station is the 30th TVRI station.