Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) recently found that graft convicts only get a prison sentence of three years and three months on average and only 4 percent of total estimated state loss incurred from corruption cases can be recovered throughout 2024.

The volcano has been highly active lately, with earlier eruptions occurring on Dec. 5 and Nov. 19. 

Suffering through days without clean water or proper medical care, evacuees packed into emergency shelters across three provinces in the northern part of Sumatra are falling severely ill, with some reportedly dying before help can reach them.

A fire tore through a seven-story office building in Kemayoran, Central Jakarta, on Tuesday, leaving at least 20 people dead and several others feared trapped inside.

Karanganyar Police spokesperson First Insp. Mulyadi said the victims, 45-year-old Sigit Joko Purnomo and 55-year-old Pujo Buntoro, collapsed within minutes of each other at around 11 a.m.

Persistent air pollution in Jakarta has triggered nearly 2 million cases of respiratory illness throughout this year, raising concerns over the long-term well-being of the capital’s 11 million residents.

Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) remains divided over the chairmanship of Yahya Cholil Staquf, whose position is still in limbo following the latest meeting between its supreme council and senior clerics.

The Ford Foundation has called on the government to expand its engagement with Indigenous communities as Indonesia moves forward with its pledge to recognize 1.4 million hectares of customary forests by 2029. 

With fatalities from the hydrometeorological disaster in Sumatra approaching 1,000 and numerous regions still struggling to receive aid, questions are growing over whether the government can manage the situation without international assistance.

The death toll from the cyclone-induced floods and landslides reached 950 as of Monday, with 274 people still missing, according to official data. The storms also killed about 200 people in southern Thailand and Malaysia.  

Home to 4.8 billion people or 60 percent of the world’s population, Asia accounts for 50 percent of the global cancer incidence.

Regent Mirwan said he had checked that all victims had been properly handled and ensured that all agencies were working properly before he performed umrah pilgrimage.

One in four women in Indonesia has experienced sexual violence in their lifetime, with at least 30 percent of reported cases committed by intimate partners according to a 2024 survey conducted by the Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection Ministry. 

Ahead of a planned revision to election rules, President Prabowo Subianto has once again raised the idea of scrapping direct regional head elections to cut costs, despite persistent opposition from pro-democracy activists who have warned of a possible rollback of democratic safeguards.

Fuel and liquified petroleum gas (LPG) supply is still limited and electricity has not fully recovered, with occasional blackouts continuing.

Riau Islands province has signaled it is ready to implement community service as an alternative punishment for criminal offenses carrying a maximum five years in prison or a fine of Rp 10 million when the new KUHP goes into effect on Jan. 2.

The regions hit by the floods and landslides in Aceh remain cut off from the government’s rescue efforts and aid delivery because of infrastructural damages, prompting fear of a rising death toll in one of the worst-hit provinces in the disaster.

The Indonesian Navy deployed at least 13 warships, five helicopters and an airplane to distribute relief for disaster victims in the northern part of Sumatra.

Drug smugglers Ali Tokman, 65, and Siegfried Mets, 74, have been languishing in jails for years after falling foul of the country's strict narcotics laws.

Aceh resident Munawar Liza Zainal said he felt "betrayed" by the government, which has so far shrugged off pressure to declare a national disaster. Declaring a national disaster would free up resources and help government agencies coordinate their response. 

Indonesia is among the countries with transitional capacity, which have internet access for most people, but coverage and quality remain uneven with regulation, funding and skills still catching up. These nations are encouraged to draft national strategies that should outline greater investment in labor skills and strong AI policies.

The police have named Lin Jingzhang, director of PT Peter Metal Technology (PMT), a suspect in the case of radioactive contamination at the Modern Cikande Industrial Estate in Banten, as authorities face pressure to tighten supervision to prevent similar incidents from happening in the future.

Zoo spokesperson Sulhan Syafi'i said the remaining funds for animal feed will only last until Dec. 10, and so far the zoo has received no emergency assistance from either the Bandung administration or the central government.

Four species of the rare parasitic flower Rafflesia are blooming simultaneously in Bengkulu, a highly unusual phenomenon and a positive sign for the conservation of these iconic endemic plants.

Now increasingly visible in Jakarta and other cities, independent libraries and reading communities have become new hubs for readers, taking the lead in promoting reading culture as government initiatives continue to fall short.

Local and national police are continuing to search for at least 122 people still missing in the aftermath of the flooding and landslides that struck northern Sumatra on Nov. 26.

As fevers, typhoid and skin infections surge among survivors of last week’s deadly floods, authorities are stepping up medical outreach and disease-prevention efforts across Aceh, North Sumatra and West Sumatra to contain outbreaks and protect vulnerable communities.