Tensions rose last week after the Home Ministry issued a decree that transferred the ownership of four contested islands from Aceh to North Sumatra, prompting protests from Aceh residents and officials.

In a bid to prevent the dispute from escalating, President Prabowo Subianto, while en route to Russia, led a meeting between Aceh and North Sumatra governors through video conference that resulted in an agreement to return the islands to Aceh.

Days after the dispute was settled, other regions stepped forward with unresolved claims of their own and challenged the same ministerial decree, which they say fails to reflect spatial plans of the regions and historical administrative boundaries.

Waves of disputes

One of the most notable cases involves an old dispute between two neighboring regencies in East Java over 13 uninhabited islands located off the southern coast of the province.

The contested islands, previously considered part of Trenggalek, were placed under Tulungagung’s administration by the 2025 ministerial decree, prompting renewed protests from the Trenggalek administration over the dispute that goes back to as early as 2022.