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Demonstrators hold a banner that reads “Papua is not empty land” as they rally in front of the Agrarian and Spatial Planning Ministry in South Jakarta on Oct. 7, 2025, against a plan to release forest areas in South Papua for national strategic projects on food, energy and defense.

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In the age of AI, we need ancient intelligence

As the country rushes headlong into AI, what is being left behind is the age-old wisdom that has been a cornerstone of human civilization for millennia: When entering someone's home, we knock first to obtain their permission, and we don't barge in anyway if they turn us down.

5 hours ago

Data-center reality check could slam brakes on AI earnings boom

US corporate earnings are already running almost 60 percent above trend, with rapid growth still expected for years, mostly thanks to the AI boom. But the questionable economics of new AI data centers could pop this bubble. ...

1 hour ago

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AI psychosis: Could it happen in Indonesia?

While the country already has a regulation on digital child protection, the rapid advent of artificial intelligence and its growing integration in children's lives requires a shared effort by all stakeholders to instill safe and responsible use, especially among vulnerable individuals. ...

2 hours ago

The Latest

An Indonesian passport peeks out of a backpack in this stock illustration.

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Patriotism needs no permission

Amid the ongoing commotion regarding the draft law on citizenship, perhaps it is time to hearken back to the wisdom of Ibu Pertiwi, our national personification, in revising our policies so they welcome back all who claim Indonesian roots with open arms.

3 hours ago

Foreign Minister Sugiono (third right) stands with his regional counterparts (from left) Myanmar's Hau Khan Sum, Malaysia’s Mohamad Hasan, Thailand's Vijavat Isarabhakdi, Timor-Leste's Bendito dos Santos Freitas, Vietnam's deputy minister Dang Hoang Giang, the Philippine’s Theresa Lazaro, Singapore's Vivian Balakrishnan, Brunei's Prince Abdul Mateen Bolkiah, Cambodia's Prak Sokhonn and Laos' Thongsavanh Phomvihane, along with ASEAN Secretary-General Kao Kim Hourn (right), for a “family photo” on July 21, 2026, during the opening ceremony of the 59th ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Meeting (AMM) in Manila.

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Building an ASEAN that delivers: Why centrality requires capacity

ASEAN’s 60th anniversary next year offers an occasion for both reflecting on the progress it has made thus far and considering the transformative efforts it must undertake to fulfill one of its founder's visions: a Southeast Asia that stands on its own feet.

2 days ago

A worker produces photovoltaic (PV) modules for solar panels on Jan. 23, 2025, in a factory in Suqian, Jiangsu province, China.

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Tearing down the currency wall

Most of the world seems to misunderstand why global capital is not financing the developing world’s climate transition.

2 days ago

Manager candidates of the Red and White Cooperatives march in full camo outfits on July 31, 2026, prior to attending the closing ceremony for the Defense Ministry’s Bachelor of Indonesian Development Drivers (SPPI) degree program at Halim Perdanakusuma Air Force Base in East Jakarta.

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What kind of leaders does Indonesia want?

While a public service academy has a place in the education ecosystem, nurturing future leaders that can navigate the country's positioning in the global arena of technology, innovation and business doesn't require building a whole new institution.

2 days ago

Racks of graphics processing units (GPUs) with a closed-loop liquid cooling system are seen on Feb. 4 inside an operational Microsoft data center in Karawang, West Java.

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A new paradigm for foreign direct investment

Does foreign investment genuinely strengthen Indonesia's industrial capabilities, technological base and global competitiveness - or is it simply taking advantage of the country's large domestic market?

2 days ago

President Prabowo Subianto (right) looks on as Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul reacts to elementary schoolchildren waving Thai and Indonesian flags on Aug. 3, 2026, during a ceremony to welcome the Thai leader’s visit to Jakarta.

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What Bangkok and Jakarta can teach each other about political survival

The recent bilateral summit in Jakarta was a master class in Southeast Asian statecraft, where the visiting Thai premier and the hosting Indonesian president showed off their diplomatic chops in the art of political survival.

2 days ago

A social aid recipient (right) receives a sack of rice from the government's food reserves distribution program at the Dumai Post Office in Riau on Oct. 29, 2024.

The long game: Why politics, not evidence alone, drives welfare reform in Indonesia

Democratic governments can pursue long-term improvements without abandoning politically salient commitments to social welfare.

2 days ago

People join an Al Quds Day rally in New York’s Times Square on March 13, 2026, to express support for Palestinians and object to the United States and Israel’s strikes on Iran.

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America’s Israel debate has changed. Indonesia must notice

As American public opinion changes inexorably regarding their country's policy toward Israel, Indonesians should pay heed to how the voices of ordinary voters may ultimately redefine the future of US policy toward Palestine.

3 days ago

Remnants of signage for the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) are seen on Dec. 29, 2025, on the facade of the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center building in Washington, DC.

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Foreign aid's next chapter: Better delivery, not retreat

This is a moment not to discard decades of progress in learning how to deliver aid but to reconsider priorities and demand greater accountability.

3 days ago

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The right lurch of Malaysia: ASEAN should watch it with care

As the political center of Peninsular Malaysia shifts rightward, preserving the nation’s fragile multiethnic balance is becoming a crucial test, not just for its federation but for the stability of ASEAN.

3 days ago

A warung keeper standing behind the cashier, managing daily sales of basic goods on Nov. 5, 2025.

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Uncertainty reveals Indonesia’s consumer strength

Consumption in Indonesia does not merely endure macro volatility; it frequently accelerates through it.

3 days ago

Farmers work on paddy fields on Nov. 20, 2025, in Lhoknga, Aceh.

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Independence still eludes marginal farmers

The majority of our farmers are working plots so small they cannot generate a sustainable or dignified income.

3 days ago

A Rohingya refugee carrying a sack walks across a market on Jan. 12, 2026, at the Kutupalong refugee camp in Ukhia, Bangladesh.

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Premature repatriation risks deepening the Rohingya crisis

Repatriation without rights risks reproducing the very crisis it seeks to resolve.

4 days ago

Protesters gather before a monument with graffiti that reads “tax the rich” on Sept. 10, 2025, during a rally held as part of the “Bloquons tout“ (Let's block everything) protest movement at Place de la République in Paris.

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The case for a pay-where-you-play tax system

The global tax system has repeatedly put corporate interests ahead of people and the planet by allowing multinationals to transfer profits to tax havens. If adopted, the proposed UN Tax Convention would overturn the century-old rules that make this possible.

4 days ago

A janitor sweeps the floor after a homemade bomb blast at Madrasah Aliyah Negeri (MAN) 3 Padang in West Sumatra on July 14, 2026.

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No leader, no ideology: Indonesia’s new terror threat

Indonesia spent 20 years mastering the art of dismantling terrorist organizations. Its next threat will not have an organization to dismantle.

4 days ago

Voters wait to cast their ballots at a polling station during the 14th general election in Alor Setar, Malaysia, on May 9, 2018.

Malaysia state polls: The age of political frenemies

What we are witnessing today in Malaysia is the rise of the frenemy: a political party or coalition that acts as a friendly partner on one stage, but turns into an outright rival the moment they step onto another.

4 days ago

Women use smartphones on Sept. 28, 2023, at the entrance of Tanah Abang Market, Southeast Asia's largest wholesale shopping center for garments and textiles, in Jakarta.

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Data should be treated as a national asset

Indonesia will need to decide whether its digital data should be treated merely as an input for external technology companies or as a strategic national asset whose value should also contribute to domestic development.

4 days ago

A teller counts rupiah banknotes on Oct. 27, 2025, at the BNI Pasar Baru branch in Jakarta.

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A stronger macroeconomic framework for a stronger Indonesia

Indonesia now faces an important choice. The current policy mix is costly to maintain while becoming less effective.

4 days ago

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent walks out of the West Wing to do a television interview on the North Lawn of the White House on March 14, 2025 in Washington, DC.

US yen intervention signals perfect storm rising in FX and bond markets

From a purely financial perspective, Japan, arguably America’s biggest ally in Asia, poses as much of a threat due to the sheer scale of its exposure to US debt. It’s officially America’s biggest international creditor, to the tune of $1.14 trillion.

5 days ago

Chinese President Xi Jinping (right) and United States President Donald Trump shake hands during a photo op at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on May 14, 2026, amid talks focusing on trade, regional security and bilateral ties between the world’s two largest economies.

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What a Sino-American G2 would mean for Asian security

The G2 concept that Trump has been touting lately is a highly unstable proposition that could make the emergence of a unipolar Asia more likely. Fortunately, Japan remains committed to advancing the far more effective “free and open Indo-Pacific" framework, with India as an indispensable partner.

5 days ago

An aerial view shows a fire burning shrubs on peatland in Cot Seumeureng village, Samatiga district, West Aceh, Aceh, on July 19, 2026.

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Fighting forest fires starts with communities

Fire mitigation succeeds when risk is viewed as a shared responsibility. No single actor can tackle the threat of fire alone.

5 days ago

Illustration of opioid

Fear influences patient access to medical opioids

Patients in Indonesia cannot access medical opioids because the government fears drug misuse.

5 days ago

Dancers from Mexico dance during the Surabaya Cross Culture International Folk Art Festival (SCCIFAF) on July 16, 2023, in Surabaya, East Java.

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A personal journey, a shared future: Mexico and Indonesia in a new era of partnership

Within the multilateral framework of the United Nations, in the G20 and as partners in MIKTA, Mexico and Indonesia consistently join forces to amplify their voices.

5 days ago

Philippines Foreign Secretary Theresa Lazaro and other leaders attend a group photo session during the High-Level Conference of the High Contracting Parties to the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation (TAC) on the sidelines of the ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Pasay, Manila on July 24, 2026.

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ASEAN centrality on display in Manila

At a time when ASEAN centrality is frequently questioned, the recent meetings demonstrated that ASEAN remains the principal convening platform of the Indo-Pacific.

5 days ago

Wisma Danantara Indonesia stands out on Jl. Jenderal Sudirman, Central Jakarta, on July 8, 2025.

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Why Danantara should stay out of KSSK

"KSSK Plus" introduces profound systemic, institutional and governance risks that threaten to undermine the very financial stability it seeks to enhance.

6 days ago

This handout photograph released by India's Press Information Bureau (PIB) on April 28, 2018, shows India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi (right) and Chinese President Xi Jinping looking on along the East Lake, in Wuhan.

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The limits of Asia's two major growth models

What is the most reliable development path for an increasingly fragmented global economy? China and India represent different answers. But can other countries emulate them?

6 days ago

Singapore's Prime Minister Lawrence Wong (from left), Brunei's Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, Indonesia's President Prabowo Subianto and Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Manet hold hands for a group photo during the opening ceremony of the 48th ASEAN Summit and Related Meetings, in Cebu, Philippines, May 8, 2026.

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Why ASEAN Charter needs urgent reform

Nearly two decades later, the appropriate time for realistic yet necessary change has arrived.

6 days ago

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