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Employees of a pharmaceutical store promote baby care products through live streaming on Jan. 25, 2023, at ITC Fatmawati trade center in South Jakarta.

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Data flows out, value flows away: Indonesia’s digital trade paradox

Behind the rhetoric of digital cooperation, Indonesia’s new trade framework risks turning the nation into a mere supplier of raw data for global giants. To avoid a digital paradox, the country must bridge the gap between open data flows and the domestic infrastructure needed to capture its true economic value.

11 hours ago

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Trump’s war of choice on Iran: Inquiring into foreign policy making

Why did Washington decide to pursue the path of war rather than continuing with diplomacy? ...

8 hours ago

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The future of democracy: Why Gen-Z protests demand a new blueprint

As Gen Z movements shake the foundations of traditional politics from Indonesia, Nepal to Europe, the old pillars of representative democracy are no longer enough to hold up the world. We must move beyond the ballot box toward a deliberative, bottom-up model that gives the new generation a real seat at the table. ...

9 hours ago

The Latest

An employee directs motorists lining up to buy fuel at a gas station in Banda Aceh on March 5, 2026.

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Defending budget deficits amid war: Prabowo’s fiscal crossroads

As Indonesia’s 2026 budget faces an oil-fueled collision between campaign promises and market reality, the government must choose: protect its signature projects or save its fiscal credibility.

1 day ago

A man stands onshore against the backdrop of the Callisto tanker on March 12, 2026, anchored at Sultan Qaboos Port in Muscat amid a sharp drop in maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz due to the United States-Israeli war with Iran.

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Strait strategy: Iran is sanctioning America

By choking off the Strait of Hormuz to oil flowing from pro-US Persian Gulf countries, while still shipping a substantial amount of its own oil to China, Iran has slapped painful sanctions on the US.

1 day ago

An aerial view shows vehicles of homebound travelers lining up to board ferries at Gilimanuk Port in Jembrana, Bali, on March 15, 2026. Six days before Idul Fitri, traffic heading from Bali to Java surged as thousands of people began the annual mudik (exodus) to celebrate the holiday with family.

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Beyond the ritual, the power of Indonesia’s 'Lebaranomics' is real

In an economy still heavily skewed toward urban concentration, where capital accumulates disproportionately in Jakarta and major cities, the annual Idul Fitri migration serves as a release valve, channeling economic “lifeblood” back into rural capillaries.

1 day ago

Relatives celebrate with a family member after he was released from Insein prison in Yangon, Myanmar, on March 2, 2026 to mark Peasants' Day. Myanmar's military junta on March 2 announced amnesties for more than 7,000 prisoners convicted of financing or sheltering a “terrorist group“, a designation it has used to outlaw pro-democracy factions opposing its rule.

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Prisoner ‘amnesty’ is no sign of reform in Myanmar

Such moves are a familiar tactic used by the military to project legitimacy and deflect international criticism

1 week ago

Muslims perform Friday prayers during Ramadan at Tanah Abang Market, Southeast Asia’s largest textile market, in Jakarta on Feb. 27, 2026.

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Ramadan values provide basis for just welfare distribution

Beyond a spiritual ritual, Ramadhan offers a powerful economic blueprint for bridging Indonesia’s wealth gap and securing a just, prosperous future by 2045.

1 day ago

Army Infantry Battalion Raider 112 troops arrive at Krueng Geukuh Port in North Aceh, Aceh on March 10, 2026 after 15 months of a border security mission in Papua.

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Economy, not infantry: Indonesia’s real shield against the Mideast crisis

As global oil prices soar and the rupiah weakens, the government is responding with a display of military hardware that masks, but cannot fix, a deepening economic crisis.

1 day ago

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim (left) greets Chinese President Xi Jinping (right) as the latter arrives in Kuala Lumpur on April 15, 2025 for a three-day visit to the Southeast Asian country.

How intellectual diplomacy bridges East and West

The meeting of the best of the East and the West is more than a symbolic gesture; it is a substantive step toward reimagining the future of global intellectual engagement.

3 days ago

A drone view shows part of an Iranian missile that landed on a building's roof, amid the US-Israel conflict with Iran, in East Jerusalem March 16, 2026.

Why European and Asian leaders reject the new American order

If the US continues to view NATO and its Pacific alliances through a purely transactional lens, it risks hollowing out the very institutions that have underpinned global stability for eight decades.

4 days ago

Smoke rises in the Fujairah oil industry zone, caused by debris after interception of a drone by air defenses, according to the Fujairah media office, amid the US-Israel conflict with Iran, in Fujairah, United Arab Emirates, on March 14, 2026.

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What the Iran crisis means for middle powers

The Iran crisis makes clear that a restoration spearheaded by middle powers is crucial for steering geopolitics away from a world governed by power alone.

5 days ago

Iraqi Kurdish people celebrate the Nowruz New Year festival in the town of Akre,in Iraq’s northern autonomous Kurdish region, on March 20, 2025.

Between Persian culture and Islamic theocracy: The politics of Iran’s Nowruz

Official warnings ahead of Nowruz in Iran have been explicit: Dissent will be treated not as protest but as insurrection.

6 days ago

Trucks are seen at an oil terminal in Yokohama, Kanagawa prefecture on March 17, 2026. Oil prices resumed their push higher on March 17 as several countries pushed back against Donald Trump's demand that they help secure the key Strait of Hormuz, while Iran continued to target crude-producing neighbors in retaliation for attacks against it.

India’s balanced strategy in West Asia

As India navigates the volatile West Asian landscape, New Delhi’s masterclass in strategic autonomy proves that dialogue, not division, is the ultimate currency of power.

6 days ago

Farmers plant rice in a paddy field on June 28, 2025, in Lambaro, Aceh.

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The smart way to food security isn’t self-sufficiency

Producing food is not the same as ensuring people can eat. The difference lies not in production but in income levels, logistics, market integration and purchasing power.

1 week ago

New civil servants take their oath on March 22, 2024, during an induction ceremony at Bogor City Hall in Bogor, West Java.

Indonesia’s civil–military boundaries under new pressure

The plan to train thousands of civil servants as military reservists raise risks of militarizing the bureaucracy.

1 week ago

Dangerous waters: A Royal Oman Police Coast Guard patrol boat surveys the seas on March 12, off Muscat, as shipping traffic comes to a virtual standstill in the Strait of Hormuz, amid the United States-Israel war on Iran.

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Lessons for Indonesia from the harbingers of a new tanker war

Learning from the ongoing war in the Middle East, it is essential for TNI-AL to consider increasing capacities for mine hunting in particular and underwater warfare in general.

1 week ago

Indonesian nationals, formerly employed in scam centers, line up during questioning at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Tangerang, Banten, on Feb. 22, 2026, upon returning from Cambodia on commercial airliners.

Trafficked Indonesians risk blame after scam escape

Framing returnees as potential criminals is politically convenient but counterproductive. It discourages victims from seeking help from authorities.

1 week ago

The logos of ride-hailing service providers Gojek and Grab are seen on helmets worn by an online motorcycle taxi driver and another passenger in Jakarta on Jan. 26, 2026.

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The early signs of platform power in our ride-hailing economy

As ride-hailing drivers report increasing scarcity and pay-to-participate barriers, the invisible hand of the algorithm is reshaping our digital economy. We must ask whether platform innovation is expanding opportunity or quietly redefining the terms of fairness for millions.

1 week ago

Cars are stuck at traffic at a segment of the trans-Java toll road in Semarang, Central Java, on March 14, 2026. Travelers from Greater Jakarta have begun the 'mudik' (exodus) ahead of the Idul Fitri holiday, which is expected to fall on March 20 or 21.

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Muslims and Catholics walk together to achieve peace

Catholics and Muslims, together with all people of goodwill, are called to envision and open new paths through which life can be renewed.

1 week ago

(From left to right) Activists Delpedro Marhaen, Muzaffar Salim, Syahdan Husein and Khariq Anhar pose on March 6 ahead of the verdict hearing against them at the Central Jakarta District Court in Jakarta. The judges acquit the defendants of all charges of incitement during nationwide anti-government protests in August 2025 that later turned into riots.

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Streets, screens and gavels: Indonesia’s new cycle of contention

The pulse of Indonesian democracy has moved to three arenas of contention: the asphalt of the streets, the viral volatility of social media and the high-stakes theater of the courtroom.

1 week ago

Homebound travelers: Passengers wait for the bus at the Senayan legislative complex in Jakarta on April 4, 2024, that will transport them to West Sumatra as part of the free 2024 Idul Fitri mudik (exodus) program held by Gerindra Party lawmakers.

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When Idul Fitri becomes an interrogation for single women

When the "warmth" of the Idul Fitri living room becomes a cold interrogation, a woman’s Ivy League degree and global achievements are often reduced to a single, stinging metric: her marital status.

1 week ago

A poster with flowers is seen during a demonstration on March 14 in Yogyakarta, in support of activist Andrie Yunus of the Commission for the Disappeared and Victims of Violence (Kontras), who was attacked with acid by unidentified persons.

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Attacks on human rights workers are a manifestation of state terrorism

When a state uses acid to silence its critics, it ceases to be a protector and becomes a perpetrator of terrorism.

1 week ago

Cheers: Racegoers dressed in Irish colors hurl their hats into the air on March 13, 2025, during St Patrick's Day celebrations at Cheltenham Racecourse in England, the United Kingdom.

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Ireland and Indonesia celebrate shared friendship

We are honored that many citizens and friends of Ireland will commemorate St Patrick's Day across Indonesia’s vast archipelago.

1 week ago

Ramadan under tents: Disaster survivors have a predawn meal (sahur) on Feb. 19, 2026, at an emergency shelter in Bundar village, Karang Baru, Aceh Tamiang, Aceh. About 23 families liveed at the site, and cook simple meals for their sahur as they observe the Ramadan fast.

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Not an end game: Waqf to help Aceh recover from disasters

For waqf to play a meaningful role in post-disaster recovery, governance must be strengthened through clear asset mapping, professional management, transparency and integration with broader development and disaster-risk strategies.

1 week ago

Police officers deliver water bottles to rallygoers on Sept. 24, 2025, during a demonstration on National Farmers' Day in Jakarta.

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More than just police reform: A social contract for policing

True police reform is more than a change in regulation; it is a living social contract where legitimacy is earned daily and security is co-produced by the police and the public.

1 week ago

Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) Andrie Yunus testifies on July 14, 2025, during a judicial review hearing against the revised Indonesian Military (TNI) Law at the Constitutional Court in Jakarta.

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A brutal warning shot: The decisive moment for Indonesia’s fragile democracy

This cycle of impunity sends a clear and dangerous message: those who silence dissent through violence operate with the implicit protection of the state’s inaction.

1 week ago

Smoke rises from the Fujairah oil industry zone in the United Arab Emirates on March 14, 2026, reportedly from burning debris after air defenses intercepted a drone during the United States-Israel attacks on Iran.

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Gulf states navigate US-Israeli war on Iran

The GCC countries are between a rock and a hard place as regards shaping the outcome of the ongoing Middle East conflict, assuming that Washington doesn't have a clear-cut strategy for the region.

1 week ago

Workers operate heavy equipment on Feb. 2 to remove damaged asphalt for repairs on a section of the Java Northern Highway in Pekalongan, Central Java.

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The trillion-rupiah slumber: Why is public money sleeping in banks?

Hundreds of trillions of rupiah meant to build infrastructure, create jobs and stimulate local economies are simply gathering dust in bank vaults.

1 week ago

A phone user shops online on Oct. 13, 2025, for shoes in Semarang, Central Java.

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Trust as the new currency of Indonesia’s e-commerce

Indonesia's e-commerce industry in 2026 is entering a more mature phase, shifting from low-trust, price-driven marketplaces toward authenticity-led “mall” environments anchored by authorized sellers.

1 week ago

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