Unsung hero: The heir of national hero Abdul Chalim (left) receives congratulations from then president Joko “Jokowi” Widodo during a ceremony to mark National Heroes Day at the State Palace in Jakarta on Nov. 10, 2023.

Prabowo and the question of national heroism: Who deserves the title?

A national hero should not be a controversial individual.

4 months ago

There is no such thing as Global South

A country under attack is a country under attack, and an aggressor country is an aggressor country. This distinction does not change based on whether the country is in the North or the South. ...

4 months ago

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Greater global uncertainty: How ASEAN will continue thriving

ASEAN has been generally spared the global furor and shock over Trump's many policies since his second term began, and by continuing to focus on peace and prosperity through dialogue and partnerships, the regional bloc is likely to maintain its centrality and resilience during Malaysia's 2025 chairmanship. ...

4 months ago

The Latest

Boxed in: Cars and motorcycles throng a road heading to the Semanggi underpass in Jakarta on Oct. 10, 2023. Police are considering applying the odd-even traffic policy on motorcycles as part of the city’s efforts to reduce air pollution.

Academia

Boost road safety for people, planet and prosperity

Global leaders must take urgent, concerted action to end road carnage.

4 months ago

Display of power: Traditional Russian wooden nesting dolls, known as Matryoshka, depicting Russia's President Vladimir Putin, United States President Donald Trump and his wife Melania and other world figures, are displayed for sale at a gift shop on Feb. 13 on the touristic Arbat street in downtown Moscow.

Academia

Donald Trump’s surprise attack on Europe

European leaders knew that Vladimir Putin in the East and Donald Trump in the West would be a strategic nightmare scenario.

4 months ago

President and Gerindra Party chairman Prabowo Subianto (left) walks with former president Joko “Jokowi” Widodo on Feb. 15, 2025, during the political party’s 17th anniversary event at the Sentul International Convention Center in Bogor, West Java.

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The government is mishandling a public relations crisis

It would do well for the Prabowo administration to take a page out of Jokowi's PR playbook on best public communications practices, lest it quickly come to be viewed as a pariah, especially following 10 years of a president who remains highly popular today.

4 months ago

Still flying high: European Union flags flutter outside the European Commission headquarters on June 5, 2020, in Brussels.

Academia

US tariffs won’t easily derail euro zone recovery

The euro zone is showing early signs of an economic recovery that is unlikely to be derailed by the tariffs the Donald Trump administration has threatened thus far.

4 months ago

A motorist passes a group of boys playing a mobile game on individual devices on Jan. 21 in an alleyway in Jakarta.

Academia

How 'we-mode' built civilization, and why it’s at risk

To stem the tide of “disembodied disconnect” as a symptom of the cyber age, digital technologies should be designed to enhance embodied social experiences that engage our uniquely human capacity to collaborate across diverse groups and engender deep social cohesion.

4 months ago

A scavenger ties up used cardboard boxes he salvaged to sell for recycling in Jakarta on Feb. 22, 2022.

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Economic growth without equity: Indonesia’s widening wealth gap

The government must prioritize policies that curb widening inequality while expanding access to prosperity across all social strata.

4 months ago

A giant puppet depiction of Pinocchio is pulled by participants during a demonstration organized by various humanitarian and environmental organisations and students in Jakarta on Feb. 7, 2024, calling for democracy, human rights and climate change ahead of the 2024 presidential election.

Academia

Southeast Asia, world need UN special rapporteur on democracy

Democratic progress in Southeast Asia remains stifled by authoritarian resilience, weak institutions, and the misuse of legal frameworks to silence opposition.

4 months ago

Engrossed: Boys use a mobile phone to surf the internet on Dec. 26, 2018, in front of a landmark dedicated to the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami in Banda Aceh, Aceh.

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Fragmented AI governance: How should Indonesia navigate its policy?

According to the Global AI Index 2023, Indonesia ranks 46th out of 62 countries, highlighting a pressing need to enhance its digital infrastructure to effectively tackle challenges in AI development.

4 months ago

Qwen and Deepseek logos are seen in this illustration taken on Jan. 29, 2025.

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The Deepseek saga: Why AI education matters

Currently, informatics education only begins at the middle school level, meaning that if AI literacy is introduced in elementary schools, at least a portion of Indonesia’s 1.6 million elementary teachers will need training.

4 months ago

Members of the Karen Border Guard Force (BGF) carry out an inspection at a workplace during a crackdown operation on illicit activity linked to scam centers in Shwe Kokko in Myanmar's eastern Myawaddy township on Feb. 14, 2025.

Academia

China pushes Thailand to act on scam centers

Bangkok is finally offering an unprecedented degree of cooperation in combating scam centers along the Myanmar border. Will it last?

4 months ago

Not only beautiful: Visitors walk among mangroves at the Angke Kapuk Nature Tourism Park on Dec. 7, 2024, in Jakarta.

Academia

Harnessing innovation in protecting coastal ecosystems

The key to the future of our coastal ecosystems and mangrove development lies in the most modern of answers: Technology.

4 months ago

United States President Donald Trump speaks to the press while signing an executive order to create a US sovereign wealth fund on Feb. 3, 2025, in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, DC.

Academia

How to counter Trump's tariffs productively?

Rather than imposing reciprocal tariffs, countries would do better to consider other measures, both individually and collectively, to mitigate the domestic and global economic fallout from Trump's trade war, including strengthening regional trade blocs.

4 months ago

The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) building is pictured on Jan. 22, 2025, under overcast skies in Jakarta.

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Time to start cleaning up before it’s too late

What is needed is the resurrection of the KPK into an independent body that is able to manage itself, fulfill its mandate effectively and be once again trusted by the public.

4 months ago

A concrete embankment (center) stands along part of the coastline of Pari Island in Jakarta’s Thousand Islands regency, as seen on Feb. 22, 2023. Environmentalists say that most of the 41-hectare island could sink by 2050 due to rising sea levels.

Academia

Climate action demands global fraternity

The climate crisis is more than an environmental issue and requires more than a solution for equitable financing: It is a global challenge that demands both a shift in the development and economic paradigms as well as a collective, holistic effort to protect this planet we call home.

4 months ago

Prime talent: LPDP has sent thousands of Indonesia’s brightest students each year to leading universities at home and abroad, financing their tuition fees as well as living costs.

Academia

#Kaburajadulu and the opportunities for a strategic talent policy

Singapore proactively scouts Indonesia’s top 1 percent talent such as winners of math or physics Olympics or other local competitions, enticing them with scholarships that lead toward permanent residency and finally naturalization.

4 months ago

In memoriam: Tributes are placed beneath the covered seal of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) at their headquarters in Washington, DC on Feb. 7, 2025.

Academia

USAID’s freeze shakes the entire global aid system

The EU and China may fill the aid vacuum left by Trump’s aid cuts.

4 months ago

A construction worker talks on the phone on Feb. 3, 2016, in front of a 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) billboard at the Tun Razak Exchange development in Kuala Lumpur.

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Danantara and the specter of Malaysia’s 1MDB Scandal

If not managed properly, Danantara could follow the same disastrous path as 1MDB, which turned from a great hope into a national financial catastrophe.

4 months ago

Hang loose: Indonesian Military personnel rappel from the Indonesian Air Force H-225 M Caracal helicopter during the Super Garuda Shield 2024 joint military exercise including Indonesia, Japan, Singapore, Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States in Situbondo, East Java, on Sept. 6, 2024.

Academia

Navigating the Indo-Pacific strategic environment: An Indonesian’s perspective

Given the high level of dynamism in the Indo-Pacific, it is prudent for Indonesia to update its strategic paradigms.

4 months ago

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ASEAN has a better chance in any US-China trade war

As ASEAN has been able to overcome many issues in the past, often by learning from the best practices of the West and itself, it stands to reason that ASEAN has the diplomatic depth to handle complex issues.

4 months ago

LPDP has sent thousands of Indonesia’s brightest students each year to leading universities at home and abroad, financing their tuition fee as well as living costs.

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#KaburAjaDulu: Beyond full stomachs, toward full lives

The urgency of the free nutritious meals initiative has led to significant budgetary reallocations, with the government enforcing widespread expenditure cuts across ministries and state institutions to fund the flagship program.

4 months ago

Children play near plastic waste on Sasa Beach in Ternate, North Maluku, on June 11, 2023.

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US retreat from Paris Agreement: Opportunities for climate education

European countries could take leadership roles to fill the void left by the United States.

4 months ago

This image grab taken from AFP video footage and posted on Nov. 23, 2022 shows workers at Foxconn’s iPhone factory in Zhengzhou in central China clashing with riot police.

Academia

The new face of protest

Something important is happening in China, and it should worry the country’s political leadership

4 months ago

Boxes of battery cells are seen stored for shipment at the battery manufacturing plant at PT HLI Green Power, Indonesia's first electric vehicle battery cell manufacturer, in Karawang, West Java, on Aug. 28, 2024.

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Balancing growth and sustainability in Indonesia

Manufacturing is a substantial source of national emissions, accounting for almost a third of Indonesia’s total emissions.

4 months ago

President Prabowo Subianto (right), in his capacity as chairman of Gerindra Party, delivers his speech during the 17th anniversary of the party at Sentul International Convention Center, Bogor, West Java, on Feb. 15, 2025.

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Prabowo's toughest challenge: State-corporate crime

Indonesia Corruption Watch reported that corruption cases during Jokowi's era cost the country at least Rp 290 trillion (US$18.7 billion).

4 months ago

President Prabowo Subianto delivers a speech during the leadership meeting of the National Police and Indonesian Military (TNI) in Jakarta on Jan. 30, 2025.

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The legal dilemma of budget efficiency during economic slowdown

Regardless of the justification used, this policy potentially contradicts the fundamental principles of Law No. 62/2024 concerning the state budget for the 2025 Fiscal Year.

4 months ago

An officer arranges the ASEAN flag (right) ahead of the ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Retreat in Langkawi, Malaysia, on Jan. 17, 2025.

Academia

Southeast Asian nations caught in US-China tensions

Countries that were once able to benefit from both China’s foreign direct investment and US trade and aid programs now face threats to both of these relationships.

4 months ago