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Jakarta Post
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Prabowo pledges stronger worker protections, labor reform at May Day rally

President Prabowo Subianto delivered on Thursday a fiery speech on International Workers’ Day, or May Day, pledging reforms to improve workers’ welfare and promote stronger labor protections, amid dissatisfaction over labor conditions and concerns of more job losses.

11 hours ago
Society

Finance ministry says about $140 million spent so far on free meals program

Launched in January, the vaunted programme has reached just 3.27 million recipients as of April 29, with more than 1,000 kitchens operating across the archipelago, the ministry said.  ...

18 hours ago
Society premium

Free meals program lacks public transparency, accountability: ICW

Recent findings by antigraft watchdog Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) showed President Prabowo Subianto’s flagship initiative, the free nutritious meal program, lacks key principles of good governance, showing poor accountability and transparency and leaving it vulnerable to fund mismanagement. ...

1 day ago

The Latest

Society

Indonesia deforestation rises for third year running: NGO

Indonesia has one of the world's highest rates of deforestation, with key drivers including timber plantations, palm oil cultivation and, increasingly, the mining of critical minerals.

3 months ago
Society

Bansos not affected by budget cut, says Sri Mulyani

Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati said that social assistance (bansos) funding would remain untouched despite the government's budget efficiency measures to support President Prabowo Subianto’s flagship free meals program, among others.

3 months ago
Society premium

Indonesia's health programs unswayed by US exit from WHO

Health programs in Indonesia are unlikely to be significantly impacted after the US' withdrawal from the WHO, as Indonesia is not financially dependent on the organization and the planned programs are expected to continue, the government assured.

3 months ago
Society premium

Nutrition Agency, BPOM join forces to ensure free meal program safety

The partnership comes in response to several reported cases of food poisoning linked to the free, meal program, which have sparked public concern and calls for stricter food safety controls.

3 months ago
Society premium

Lecturers in Indonesia struggle to balance responsibilities with low pay

To make a living, lecturers take on extra jobs, while simultaneously balancing their daily tasks and professional obligations.

3 months ago
Society premium

Final preparations underway for free health screenings

Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin says the official launch of the free check-ups is contingent upon the inauguration of new regional heads, which the Home Ministry has said will take place at the Presidential Palace in Jakarta on Feb. 6.

3 months ago
Society premium

Imlek 2025: Glodok residents move on from May 1998 riots

Residents of Jakarta's Chinatown, now a melting pot of diversity, still recall the mob violence that ripped through the community almost three decades ago and the discriminatory undertones that linger.

3 months ago
Society

Government allocates Rp 19t to renovate schools this year

A central fund of just over $1 billion has been earmarked to renovate and revitalize schools nationwide as part of the Prabowo administration's priority aim to improve national education.

3 months ago
Society

BPOM vows to clamp down on skincare industry

The BPOM aims to be more stringent in its approach toward skincare products through tighter monitoring of their production, distribution and marketing, especially products that exaggerate or falsify their benefits.

3 months ago
Society

Transportation minister proposes work-from-anywhere ahead of Nyepi, Idul Fitri

The proposed WFA policy is intended to alleviate traffic congestion in the country as hundreds of millions of people participate in the annual Idul Fitri tradition of mudik (exodus).

3 months ago
Society premium

House gives ministry 20 days to resolve Tangerang ‘mystery fence’

A meeting with House Commission IV overseeing maritime affairs on Tuesday concluded with a time frame of 20 days for the ministry to conduct a follow-up investigation to determine the origins of the illegal 30-kilometer-long structure.

3 months ago
Society premium

Govt reports decline in online gambling transactions

Following a nationwide crackdown on online gambling, the Communications and Digital Ministry has reported a significant decline in transactions on the illegal sites in the past few months.

3 months ago
Society premium

Government revokes permits for land across from Tangerang sea fence

Agrarian and Spatial Planning Ministry/National Land Agency (BPN) head Nusron Wahid explained that the majority of the permits were invalid as they covered areas off the coast. 

3 months ago
Society premium

House Speaker calls for resolution of education ministry row

The termination, which has since been mediated and reversed, sparked the most glaring protest among state employees in a country where civil servants are rarely inclined to air their grievances about their superiors.

3 months ago
Society premium

Government walks back plan on monthlong school break for Ramadan

Instead of a monthlong break as initially proposed, a joint ministerial circular has declared a weeklong school holiday at the beginning of Ramadan, with the caveat that teachers provide their students with an independent learning project for the duration.

3 months ago
Society premium

Navy chief of staff, Titiek Soeharto take lead in dismantling Tangerang sea fence

More than 1,500 personnel were deployed to take down a segment of a more than 30-kilometer-long bamboo structure that was allegedly built by private contractors to lay the groundwork for a massive reclamation project.

3 months ago
Society premium

Gaming sensation Jagat shifts focus to public good amid vandalism backlash

The treasure-hunting game with rewards that are too good to be true now requires positive contributions to public spaces.

3 months ago
Society

Free meals still in effect during Ramadan, students to bring food home

National Nutrition Agency (BGN) head Dadan Hindayana said the agency would continue the program through the fasting month “as that’s the most important and highly anticipated activity” in schools.

3 months ago
Society premium

Protests at higher education ministry end as minister retracts dismissal of subordinate

A senior official at the Higher Education, Science and Technology Ministry confirmed that the recent protest against minister Satryo Soemantri Brodjonegoro regarding the allegedly abrupt dismissal of a civil servant in the institution had been resolved and that all related parties have met and mutually “forgiven each other”.

3 months ago
Society premium

Companies, individuals hold land permits ashore from illegal sea fence

The Agrarian and Spatial Planning Ministry/the National Land Agency (BPN) has confirmed that two private companies own land on the shoreline facing the “mysterious” sea fence in the coastal waters of Tangerang regency, Banten, and has promised to investigate any potential links between the companies and the illegal barrier.

3 months ago
Society

Prabowo apologizes for delay in free meals distribution

Prabowo said that the free meal program was still in its initial stage and that it could not instantly be applied to all schools across the country.

3 months ago
Society

Ramadan ‘special learning’ circular ready to sign: Minister

The government is ready to issue a circular that appears to revive a colonial-era policy on a monthlong school break for Ramadan, though the schools minister insists the contemporary iteration is intended as a special learning program.

3 months ago
Society premium

Navy taking down ‘mysterious’ sea fence that sparked reclamation debate

The Indonesian Navy is taking down a sea fence of unexplained origin installed in the coastal waters of Tangerang, Banten, that has sparked a debate about the issue of unlicensed marine reclamation.

3 months ago
Society premium

Food safety concerns linger amid free meals rollout after recent poisoning cases

After at least two food poisoning incidents related to the free nutritious meals program, calls for stricter food safety procedures and monitoring have surfaced from parents and experts alike.

3 months ago
Society

Saudi Arabian citizen deported for harassing local, overstaying visa

The Immigration Directorate General has deported a Saudi Arabian citizen identified as MA for harassing a marbut (mosque keeper) in Cisarua, Bogor regency, West Java.

3 months ago
Society premium

Food poisoning mars second week of free meals rollout

Authorities are investigating food poisoning cases linked to the government's free meals program, with the presidential office saying the incidents will be an "important" point for the program's evaluation.

3 months ago
Society premium

Month-long Ramadan holiday plan meets with lukewarm welcome

Parents have raised their concerns that a month-long school holiday could adversely impact their children’s learning.

3 months ago
Society premium

Calls for caution on social media minimum age limit plan

The government plans to impose a minimum age limit for social media users to follow in the footsteps of Australia in safeguarding minors online, a move that has been widely lauded but also comes with caution from experts who believe that poorly thought out regulations might be counterproductive.

3 months ago
Society

Ministry to push social media protections ahead of age-limit law

On Monday, Communications and Digital Minister Meutya Hafid said the government planned to issue a regulation to set a minimum age for social media users, after discussing the proposal to protect children online with President Prabowo Subianto. 

3 months ago
Society premium

Government intensifies probe into 'mysterious' fence off Tangerang coast

Authorities are ramping up an investigation into a 30 km bamboo fence installed off the Tangerang coast, while another, similar structure has cropped up off the northern coast of Bekasi, with speculation pointing to a possible link to ongoing property or land reclamation projects in Greater Jakarta.

3 months ago

Today's ePost

Wed, April 30, 2025

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