The short-cut effort only confirms the country’s flaws in developing soccer, which is evident in the fact that Indonesia had to wait for 32 years to regain the soccer gold medal in the SEA Games last year.

Many of the national strategic projects are built where they make business sense, not where development priorities would have them.

As a middle power, Indonesia could use the ASEAN vehicle to further its and regional national interests, and even the interests of the Global South.

Jokowi's decision to reverse the decades-old ban on sea sand exports, whether in part or whole, raises the classic dichotomy of can versus should and disregards not only the contemporary issues of climate change and sustainability, but also the very reasons the policy was imposed in the first place.

The Dayak people and their traditional wisdom, which promotes harmony between humans and nature, can inform modern conservation methods and efforts toward sustainability for future generations.

Reports of educators perpetrating violence against their students have been heard quite often for years, but efforts to put a stop to the incidents remain inadequate.

There is little to no risk for the humans, pets and the environment from the spread of Wolbachia-infected mosquitoes or eggs.

Arts are essential in developing a society of free expression and robust intellectual engagement.

Even if he does stand the test of time, like his predecessor Fumio Kishida, Ishiba does not have much to offer in order to lure ASEAN leaders amid Japan’s declining economic power and the rising economic scale of ASEAN.

For businesses, however, a bloated cabinet will be a headache, as this will constitute more bureaucratic hurdles to deal with and more red tape.

As the biggest party in the House, the PDI-P faces mounting public expectations that it can keep democracy on fire through its critical views of government policies.

Our country envisions becoming a high-income economy by 2045, but perhaps it would do well to pause and think about whether we're measuring ourselves by some external yardstick as we race toward the centenary of our independence.

With the country counting among the rudest nations on Earth on the net, teenagers, who are generally very active on social media, have been exposed to the ill-mannered behaviors of netizens almost 24/7.

To make the downstream policy truly worthwhile, we need to go deeper along the supply chains, as what we produce from our smelters nowadays is just the transformation of raw commodities into slightly less raw forms.

Whether we are the rightful owner of these artifacts is not up for debate, but whether we are mindful preservers of these objects remains a question.

The Security Council has failed the Ukrainians and the Palestinians, now it is about to fail the people in Lebanon.

As we look forward to a Prabowo presidency, Indonesia stands at the cusp of a strategic shift in its global presence, with the possibility of a head of state actually attending international forums to represent the country and its unique brand of diplomacy.

Mehrtens became the victim of the conflict and the stubborn behavior of the government, which has maintained a security approach to deal with the Papua problem.

Political scientists are still debating how much celebrity influences matter in elections, but we have reasons to worry about political parties exploiting the charm of celebrities and public figures.

When the renewable energy bill finally does get passed, it will hopefully include stipulations on power wheeling that allow independent power producers to sell electricity directly to consumers through PLN’s transmission network.

As a new government prepares to take over, the ruling coalition must recognize that political meddling in professional organizations like Kadin sets a dangerous precedent.

The PON, which should have provided talent from all over the country with a stage on which to display their achievements, instead showcased violations of sportsmanship, and acts of violence and vandalism, which run counter to the core values all athletes are responsible for promoting.

The UN resolution sent a clear message that most of the world are with the Palestinian people.

The sudden focus on fish “milk” as a flagship idea risks becoming more of a political distraction than a meaningful nutritional intervention.

As Prabowo has made it clear he will be hands-on in foreign policy activities, he needs a minister who knows very well his vision and ambition and has a strong capacity to deal with regional and global affairs.

The salary cut would punish employees in the formal sector, as the government would add to their burden with more costs to bear, while potentially incentivizing people to stay in the informal sector.

Having everyone, or almost everyone, on board, may make for greater political expediency, at least from a president’s point of view, but it’s bad for democracy, and for effective governance.

The country still needs to make significant efforts to uphold freedom of religion as guaranteed in the 1945 Constitution, especially since government, whether central or regional, is often guilty of fanning the flames of intolerance through contradictory regulations.

The 21st edition of the National Games (PON) opened on Monday with much pomp and fanfare, marking a historic first this year with two provinces cohosting the multisport event, but the country must look beyond the visuals toward investing in sports infrastructure to facilitate the elevation of our athletes in the eastern regions to the international arena.

Prabowo may have broken with ASEAN tradition in taking his “preemptive” regional tour last week instead of after his inauguration, but seeing as his aim was to reassure our neighbors that Southeast Asia would remain the core of his administration's foreign policy, it is highly likely that Indonesia's next president will keep with the low-key, primus inter pares approach of his predecessors.