Harison Citrawan, Jakarta – A recent IndoBarometer survey found that 29.7 percent of 1,200 respondents were satisfied with the Yudhoyono administration and 40 percent thought the New Or

The 15-year jail sentence for internationally known Abu Bakar Ba'asyir definitely fails to satisfy both his supporters and those who demanded maximum punishment for the firebrand Muslim

The country's path to becoming a full-fledged democracy is at stake.

Is Indonesia a nation that abides by the rule of law? Do its elected officials respect the law and govern in accordance with the edicts of the courts?

Yohanes Sulaiman – The debate on the legacy of Suharto and the New Order began immediately after his fall in May 1998.

Erik Meijaard – In December 2007, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono launched Indonesia's orangutan conservation strategy and action plan, which calls for all wild orangutan populations

Armando Siahaan – Sometimes we applaud the police. Sometimes we criticize their actions. And sometimes we just have no idea what they were thinking.

Nila Ardhianie, Semarang – Time has passed quickly. The privatization of piped water service in Jakarta will mark its 13th anniversary on June 6.

Nivell Rayda – It has been a year since I visited the tiny goat shed that brought the town of Karangasem, in West Java's Indramayu district to infamy.

Al Araf, Jakarta – The democratic transition in Indonesia is undoubtedly a complex and fragile process.

Armando Siahaan – Recent political shenanigans have certainly raised questions about how much Indonesian politics have progressed since the end of the New Order regime.

1. Introduction

Franz Magnis-Suseno, Jakarta - June 1 is Pancasila Day in Indonesia.

Joe Cochrane & SK Zainuddin – Fortune has favored Indonesia's business barons and captains of industry these past 12 months.

H. Drake, Honolulu, Hawaii – This Sunday May 29, 2011, marks the fifth anniversary of the eruption of the Lapindo mudflow.

Rebecca Lunnon – Jemaah Islamiyah is still often the first name associated with terrorism in Indonesia.

"Everything was much better under Pak Harto," concluded an opinion generated in a recent polling which has been the hot topic these days.

In a vibrant democracy, politics is critical to ensuring the interest of the people is not only met but enhanced through an electoral system.

The western movies showing in Jakarta last weekend included My Sassy Girl, released in 2008, New Daughter and Blood Creek, both released in 2009, and Source Code, released last April.

Edilberto C.

Sara Schonhardt, Jakarta – The death of Osama bin Laden at the hands of United States Special Forces in Pakistan this month has turned a lens on the sustainability of his al-Qaeda radic

Armando Siahaan – Speaking at an international conference in Jakarta last week, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono mentioned that he was trying "to get Oprah Winfrey to say something ab

With the general election now three years off, the political climate is heating up every day as politicians begin jockeying for positions, heightening the rivalry.

Beyond our imagination, the Indonesian Islamic State (NII) teachings have spread to many layers of society, but the way the government plays down the lurking danger that may cost the ex

Al Araf – Every act of terrorism will be followed by the government's desire to reassess and strengthen the role of state security institutions.

Rebecca Lunnon & Muh Taufiqurrohman – Indonesia's Detachment 88 has once again struck a blow against terrorism by making arrests linked to March's spate of book bombs and by foiling

Wawan Sobari, Malang – The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) released a seminal report this month on local governments' social assistance fund policies.

With the war on terrorism far from over, Indonesia has seen mounting attacks on corruption fighters, despite the nationwide acceptance that graft is an extraordinary crime, separate fro

Armando Siahaan – Those dreaming, or drooling, to see American porn starlet Sasha Grey strut her stuff in person here in Jakarta can, well, just keep on dreaming.

Yanto Soegiarto – Two things members of the House of Representatives just won't stop from doing: building a new Rp 1.13 trillion luxurious office building, and making expensive comparis

Julia Suryakusuma, Jakarta – First we had Ariel "Peterporn", then something even better.

Loro Horta – After 400 years of inept Portuguese colonial rule and 24 years of brutal Indonesian occupation, Timor-Leste (formerly East Timor) gained its independence in 2002 following

The floodgates of reform opened at the end of president Soeharto's repressive and monarchial New Order have, directly and indirectly, paved the way for unlimited political freedom in In

Pandaya, Jakarta – First, a revered figure made earth-shaking revelations on corruption, a breach of electoral laws and commonplace polygamy among leaders of the Islamist Prosperous Jus

With the political rumor mill in full swing over an impending cabinet reshuffle and a senior conservative lawmaker photographed watching pornography during a plenary session, the behavi

Yohanes Sulaiman – A scan of recent news offers more evidence, if any were needed, that accountability means little in the upper ranks of politics and business in Indonesia.

Armando Siahaan – Nazril "Ariel" Irham must be smirking right now, knowing that a lawmaker from the Prosperous Justice Party, which was one of the many groups calling for him to be impr

Mohammad Iqbal Ahnaf – An often overlooked consequence of Suharto's fall was the end of his strategies to stifle political radicalism.

Jakarta – The House of Representatives leaders' insistence on going ahead with building a Rp 1.16 trillion (US$118 million) super luxury 36-story office tower despite taxpayers' fierce

Johannes Nugroho – Furor has broken loose in Senayan over plans to build a Rp 1.13 trillion ($130 million) legislative office tower.

Omar Pidani, Jakarta – Timber smuggling from Indonesian forests along the Kalimantan-Malaysia border has long become a "pain in the neck" for the country.

Muhammad As'ad, Surabaya – Many people, from civil society activists to pedicab drivers, are debating whether it is necessary for the House of the Representatives (DPR) to build a fancy

Damien Kingsbury – The government's East Timor asylum seeker solution is dying a death of a thousand cuts. It is a slow and painful process and unedifying to watch it writhe in agony.

Rizal Ramli, Jakarta – Recent revelations from WikiLeaks documents, stating that President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and his family were involved in corruption are, frankly, not a big su

Jakarta – As our intelligence community is struggling hard to improve itself and provide early and accurate information to the country's top decision makers in the wake of several incid

Hasyim Widhiarto and Rendi Akhmad Witular, Jakarta – Supported by solid constituencies, mainly comprising young and educated Muslims living in urban areas, the Prosperous Justice Party

Yohanes Sulaiman – Early on Saturday, on Twitter, I read the news about how Roy Suryo, Democratic Party lawmaker, managed to delay the 6:15 a.m. flight of Lion Air to Yogyakarta.

Armando Siahaan – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono will be remembered for a lot of things, but being a bastion of pluralism is definitely not one of them.

Bruce Gale – "We shall not ignore democratic values.

Socratez Sofyan Yoman, Jayapura – The people of Indonesia outside Papua are clearly confused and keep asking: Why have indigenous Papuans never recognized and accepted the Act of Free C