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President Prabowo Subianto (left) listens to United States President Donald Trump on Feb. 19, 2026, during the signing ceremony for the US-Indonesia Agreement on Reciprocal Tariffs (ART) in Washington, D.C.

Editorial premium

Sovereignty for soybeans?

We should use this inadvertent grace period due to the US Supreme Court's ruling to review the ART scrupulously to see what we're actually gaining or losing, and make doubly sure that we haven't traded our sovereignty through an alliance pact disguised as a trade deal.

19 hours ago

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Stop the spiral

Jakarta should focus on what it can actually do, without grandstanding. ...

1 day ago

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Gen Z’s marital shift

As Gen Z trades traditional wedding bells for financial stability and personal fulfillment, religious affairs offices have discovered that it takes more than TikTok trends and free durians to fix a national marriage slump. ...

3 days ago

The Latest

People demonstrate against President Prabowo Subianto's government, calling for reviews of government budget cuts and the free nutritious meals program, in front of a police barricade in Jakarta on Feb. 21, 2025.

Danantara and the austerity paradox

For many Indonesians, the promise of prosperity tomorrow rings hollow as they struggle to meet their basic needs today.

1 year ago

Voices for justice: Students and activists of the Committee for the Release of Papuan Political Prisoners hold a rally on Monday at the Supreme Court in Central Jakarta. As part of Indonesia’s spin-off movement #PapuanLivesMatter, which was spurred by the ongoing Black Lives Matter movement around the world, the protesters demanded the release of the seven Papuan activists standing trial on charges of treason at the Balikpapan District Court in East Kalimantan. JP/Dhoni Setiawan

Pardon not for all

The government argues that the amnesty plan may help ease the overcrowding problem characterizing most prisons across the archipelago.

1 year ago

Elected regional heads attend the inauguration ceremony at the Presidential Palace complex in Jakarta on Feb. 20, 2025. President Prabowo Subianto inaugurated 961 regional heads consisting of 33 governors and 33 deputy governors, 363 regents, 362 deputy regents, 85 mayors and 85 deputy mayors in the ceremony.

Diversity within unity

The regional governments, and their elected leaders, represent this diversity, and they are the only political institution to do so.

1 year ago

Students hold a rally titled "Indonesia Gelap" (Dark Indonesia) on Feb. 17, 2025, to oppose budget-cutting policies by President Prabowo Subianto, in front of the East Java Regional House of Representatives building in Surabaya.

A return to the streets

This week’s protests, the fastest that any president has faced since taking office since the Reform era, are a visible sign of this renewed vigor.

1 year ago

Workers check on packages of battery cells at the Hyundai LG Indonesia (HLI) Green Power plant in Karawang, West Java, following its inauguration on July 3, 2024.

The good old days of global trade

Our government must work on the assumption that global trade is no longer what it used to be.

1 year ago

Rewired generation: Children play online games on their mobile phones along the roadside in Jakarta on Nov. 27, 2024.

Support for age limit, but

While the plan to restrict social media among minors is largely welcomed by the public, particularly parents, authorities should implement the upcoming policy with extra caution.

1 year ago

President Prabowo Subianto delivers a speech at a plenary cabinet meeting on Jan. 22, 2025, at the Presidential Office in Jakarta.

Questioning budget cuts

President Prabowo Subianto’s recent budget cut to save over Rp 306 trillion (US$18.9 billion) to fund his administration’s priority programs is incomprehensible.

1 year ago

Long awaited embrace: Philippine drug convict and former death row inmate Mary Jane Veloso hugs her parents at the Correctional Institution for Women in Mandaluyong City, Metro Manila, on Dec. 18, 2024.

Saving Indonesians abroad?

The Foreign Ministry says there are 157 Indonesians in foreign prisons whose legal processes remain ongoing as they face the death penalty; 111 for drug trafficking and 46 for murder.

1 year ago

Lawmakers attend a House of Representatives plenary session at the Senayan legislative complex in Jakarta on July 9, 2024.

Democracy under threat

Prabowo and Gerindra have taken for granted the overwhelming legislative and executive powers that the people have lent them.

1 year ago

Cabinet retreat cartoon

The return of militarism

We have reasons to worry about expanding the roles of the military beyond its domain as defender of the nation against external threats.

1 year ago

Defense Minister and president-elect Prabowo Subianto (center left), accompanied by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoǧan (center right), salutes the military guard of honor on July 30, 2024, upon arriving at the Turkish Presidential Complex in Ankara.

Prabowo and Erdogan’s front for Gaza

Prabowo should speak up together with Erdogan after their bilateral summit against any attempt to jeopardize the fragile ceasefire in Gaza.

1 year ago

This photo illustration shows the DeepSeek app on a mobile phone in Hong Kong on Jan. 28, 2025.

DeepSeek gives us a leg up

DeepSeek gives up a leg up, but we have to take the next step by developing the human resources and infrastructure needed.

1 year ago

Contradictory statements: Businessman Hashim Djojohadikusumo, appointed by his brother President Prabowo Subianto as special presidential envoy on environment and climate, delivers a statement during the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP29) in Baku, on Nov. 12, 2024.

Why we should stick with Paris Agreement

Rather than withdrawing from the treaty, Indonesia should up its game in the negotiation room.

1 year ago

Power of information: National Nutrition Agency (BGN) head Dadan Hindayana (second right) and National Development Planning Minister Rachmat Pambudy (right) talk to journalists at a press briefing after a cabinet meeting about the free meals program with President Prabowo Subianto at the Presidential Palace complex in Jakarta on Jan. 17, 2025.

Whither journalism, whither democracy?

The role of journalism in keeping society critically informed for people to make the right decisions, day-in and day-out, has been undermined, if not compromised.

1 year ago

Pramoedya Ananta Toer, one of Indonesia's world-renowned authors, signs one of his books on Dec. 19, 2000, during the launching of the English edition of Tales of Jakarta at a bookstore in Jakarta.

In Pramoedya's footsteps

If anything, Pramoedya was not content to just write and comment about the state of the world, but in a long tradition practiced by resistance writers like Albert Camus and Maxim Gorky, he decided to engage the world through direct action.

1 year ago

Devastated: People walk amid collapsed buildings along Saftawi street in Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip on Feb. 5, 2025, during a ceasefire deal in the war between Israel and Hamas. Palestinian militant group Hamas lashed out on Feb. 5 at United States President Donald Trump's shock proposal for the US to take over the Gaza Strip and resettle its people in other countries, seemingly whether they wanted to leave or not.

Trump’s ethnic cleansing plan

As a leader who wants to bring his country to the center of global political affairs, Prabowo should be more forthright in defending the rights of Palestinians.

1 year ago

A man stands on plastic waste and other garbage washed ashore and accumulating on a beach in Kedonganan Badung regency, in Bali on Jan. 3, 2025.

Mindful host

Overtourism and overdevelopment have become serious issues, especially in the southern part of Bali.

1 year ago

Fueling the economy: Employees work at a Pertamina gas station in Tangerang, Banten, on March 1, 2022.

What's ahead for Danantara?

The result of the new rule represents a compromise, which allows for two competing centers of power within the new body instead of just one.

1 year ago

Critical dissent: Protesters hold posters that read “Dipisahkan Qunut, Disatukan Tambang“ (Separated by Qunut, United by Mining) during a protest against Islamic group Muhammadiyah's decision to accept the government's offer of coal mining concessions in Sleman, Yogyakarta, on July 27, 2024.

Mining permits for all?

National Innovation and Research Agency (BRIN) researchers have warned of the risks that arise when mining is managed by entities that are alien to the sector, such as religious organizations.

1 year ago

President Prabowo Subianto (right) and his Malaysian counterpart Anwar Ibrahim (left) walk across the connecting bridge of the Petronas Twin Towers on Jan. 27, 2025, during the President's visit to Malaysia, in Kuala Lumpur.

Bound by destiny

While Indonesia and Malaysia have had disagreements over maritime boundaries, these must be managed carefully to prevent disputes from escalating into serious diplomatic rifts.

1 year ago

President Prabowo Subianto delivers a speech on Jan. 22, 2025, at a plenary cabinet meeting at the Presidential Office in Jakarta.

Prudence in state budget

While the budget adjustment seems rational on paper, it is paramount that the government guides the implementation of the programs and manages any consequences that may arise from the fiscal action.

1 year ago

Health workers administer a pre-vaccination screening test for a toddler on April 24, 2024, at a medical facility in Cipondoh, Tangerang, Banten, during the Health Ministry’s free nationwide vaccination drive in observance of World Immunization Week.

Health checks for all

The Prabowo administration is planning to launch in February its next flagship program: free birthday health screenings.

1 year ago

Slashing assistance: Marco Rubio speaks after he is sworn in as Secretary of State by United States Vice President JD Vance at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 21, 2025.

Making America weak again

Foreign aid was one reason why the US was once regarded as one of the greatest nations, if not the greatest.

1 year ago

President Prabowo Subianto and India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrive for a photo opportunity ahead of their meeting at the Hyderabad House in New Delhi, on Jan. 25, 2025.

Lessons from India's foreign policy

Prabowo's meeting last week with India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi will likely be among the most relevant to his ambition to become a global player while remaining independent in facing a more multipolar world.

1 year ago

President Prabowo Subianto (center) and Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka (third right) greet Red and White Cabinet ministers before a plenary cabinet meeting at the Presidential Palace in Jakarta on Dec. 2, 2024.

Prabowo’s 100 tough days

We cannot deny the fact that the first three months of the Prabowo administration have not been free of controversy.

1 year ago

This elevated view shows mounds of rubble from collapsed buildings along Saftawi Street in Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip on Jan. 20, 2025 a day after a ceasefire deal in the war between Israel and Hamas went into effect.

Indonesia’s active role in Gaza

Accepting some Palestinians to relocate temporarily would be a gesture to show that Indonesia is willing to put its money where its mouth is.

1 year ago

United States President Donald Trump (center) gestures alongside US First Lady Melania Trump and US Vice President JD Vance during the inaugural parade inside Capital One Arena in Washington, DC, on Jan. 20, 2025.

The power of options

The “other options” card is crucial to strengthen our hand in future negotiations.

1 year ago

A flotilla of boats with Indonesian Navy personnel on board travels to take down a mysterious sea fence in Tangerang, Banten, on Jan. 23, 2025.

Priceless waters

Our seas and coasts should remain open to ensure the livelihoods of coastal communities and protect marine biodiversity.

1 year ago

Retirees line up in Jakarta on Feb. 15, 2011, to receive their monthly pension payments.

Underlying pension problems

It is worthwhile to look at the underlying problems with the pension system in Indonesia.

1 year ago

Then United States Republican presidential nominee and former president Donald Trump attends a campaign rally, in Salem, Virginia, U.S. Nov. 2, 2024.

It's Trump's world

In a recent interview, Trump told the Wall Street Journal that he was pleased that the Chinese leader "respects me because he knows I am [expletive] crazy."

1 year ago

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