An election staffer counts ballots at a polling station on Nov. 27, 2024, in Banda Aceh, Aceh.

Democrats back Prabowo’s plan to end direct regional elections

The pro-government Democratic Party has thrown its weight behind President Prabowo Subianto’s suggestion to abolish direct elections for regional heads, potentially overturning a legacy of democracy that came about under its founding figure, former president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

1 month ago

Economy premium

Trade protectionism to persist in 2026

Trade protectionism has become a new normal that economists say Indonesia will have to navigate carefully this year through market diversification. ...

1 month ago

Politics premium

New KUHP, KUHAP meets legal pushback in Constitutional Court

At least 10 judicial review petitions against the new Criminal Code (KUHP) and Criminal Law Procedures Code (KUHAP) have been filed with the Constitutional Court within four days after the new laws came into force. ...

1 month ago

The Latest

Activists from Gerakan Buruh Bersama Rakyat (Gebrak), an alliance between labor unions and civil groups, join a peaceful march along Jl. Thamrin in Central Jakarta on Sept. 4, 2025, to during protests against police brutality and repression in several major cities across the country.

Editorial premium

Beyond wage hikes

Instead of simply calculating minimum wages that will support a decent standard of living per worker per region, the government must do more in implementing an integrated policy approach that focuses on cost of living relief for households.

1 month ago

Industrial Digging: Excavators transfer soil to transport trucks on July 28, 2023, at a nickel mine operated by nickel mining company Vale Indonesia in Sorowako, South Sulawesi.

Regulations premium

Miners call for faster quota approvals amid rule shift

While temporary permits have provided short-term relief, experts warn that a growing backlog could undermine investment certainty and the sector’s long-term stability.

1 month ago

A teacher cleans school equipment on Jan. 4 from mud caused by flash floods at state elementary school SDN 11 Kuta Blang in Bireuen, Aceh. The Elementary and Secondary Education Ministry confirmed that 3,508 out of 4,149 schools affected by hydrometeorological disasters in North Sumatra, West Sumatra and Aceh are ready to resume the second semester on Jan. 5.

Archipelago premium

Flood aftermath hampers school reopening in Aceh

As schools in disaster-hit regions of Sumatra reopened this week, students in Aceh continue to face challenges returning to normal learning routines, with many flood-damaged schools still undergoing recovery.

1 month ago

Stock traders monitor the Jakarta Composite Index (JCI) on April 8, 2025, in South Tangerang, Banten.

Markets premium

IDX Composite sets new all-time high above 8,900

The principal Indonesian stock market gauge closed at a fresh record on Tuesday, supported by strong commodity stocks and global risk appetite.

1 month ago

A passenger train runs on an elevated track on Aug. 5, 2025, in Jakarta's central business district.

Economy

Banking sector 2026: Gaining altitude?

Indonesia’s banking sector had a tough time in 2025 due to several challenges, mostly stemming from weaker domestic demand. A struggling middle-to-low-income class has put pressure on banks from the assets and liability side.

1 month ago

Bold operation: Captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro arrives on Monday, Jan. 05, 2026, at the Downtown Manhattan Heliport as he heads toward the Daniel Patrick Manhattan United States Courthouse for an initial appearance to face US federal charges including narco-terrorism, conspiracy, drug trafficking, money laundering and others in New York City, the US.

Americas

US capture of Maduro tests limits of China's diplomatic push

China follows a policy of non-intervention and routinely criticises military activity conducted without the UN Security Council's approval.

1 month ago

Caracas limbo: A car drives on an empty street on Jan. 3, 2026 after United States President Donald Trump said the US has struck Venezuela and captured its president, Nicolas Maduro, in Caracas.

Companies premium

US raid has not affected Venezuela operations, Pertamina says

Indonesian government officials and an industry group have said the crisis in Venezuela has had little to no impact on the country’s economic activity so far.

1 month ago

Vice President Delcy Rodriguez is sworn in as Venezuela’s interim president at the National Assembly, after the US launched a strike on the country and captured Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores, in Caracas, Venezuela, January 5, 2026.

Americas

Venezuelan parliament swears in interim president after Maduro's ouster

Trump has warned Rodriguez could face a fate worse than Maduro if she failed to heed US demands on policy reforms and oil access.

1 month ago

Quick Dispatch

YSF 2026 highlights AIESEC in Indonesia’s commitment to address global challenges

AIESEC in Indonesia has reaffirmed its commitment to tackle global issues through the perspectives of youths through the annual Youth Speak Forum (YSF), an initiative by AIESEC Global that aims to position the youth-run platform as a credible voice for youths across the globe.

23 hours ago

Malaysia's Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad speaks during a news conference in Putrajaya, Malaysia, July 15, 2019.

Asia & Pacific

Malaysia's ex-PM Mahathir in hospital after fall

Mahathir has suffered health problems in recent years and was previously hospitalised for fatigue after a picnic celebration for his centenary in July.

1 month ago

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen addresses a press conference of the Nordic-Baltic Summit at the Prime Minister's official summer residence Harpsund, Sweden on November 27, 2024.

Europe

NATO ally Denmark warns US against taking Greenland by force

Washington's military intervention in Venezuela has reignited fears about Trump's designs on the autonomous Danish territory, which has untapped rare earth deposits and could be a vital player as polar ice melts, opening up new shipping routes.

1 month ago

Attendants wait for customers at a Shell gas station in an unknown location on Sept. 19, 2025, as a gasoline shortage sweeps private retailers, in part due to a corruption scandal linked to state-owned energy giant Pertamina.

Regulations premium

RI raises fuel import quota for retailers after 2025 supply snarl

Following last year’s fuel snafu, the government has decided to increase this year's import quotas for private retailers, but has not publicly announced by how much.

1 month ago

Slow recovery: Homes are seen as they are rebuilt amid cleared lots on Dec. 28, 2025, in Altadena, California, the United States, where homes were destroyed by the Eaton Fire one year ago. The Eaton Fire ignited on Jan. 7, 2025, killing 19 people and destroying more than 9,000 structures, most of them homes in Altadena. The fire is the fifth deadliest and the second most destructive wildfire in California history.

Academia premium

Beware of central economic forecasts for 2026

With China’s efforts to upgrade its growth model progressing slowly, the US will serve by far as the global economy’s primary engine, a concentration that creates its own set of risks.

1 month ago

Indonesian migrant worker Sugianto stands next to South Korean President Lee Jae-myung on Dec. 2, 2025, during an award ceremony at the Blue House in Seoul. Sugianto received a presidential honor for his bravery in rescuing elderly residents during a massive forest fire in South Korea in March 2025.

Society premium

Indonesian migrant worker receives South Korean presidential award for heroic act

Wearing a mask, Sugianto began going door to door, knocking on residents’ homes. He guided them slowly to the evacuation site and carried those who were unable to walk.

1 month ago

Employees work in a workshop which recycles copper on July 11, 2025, in Anqing, in China's eastern Anhui province.

Academia

Every mineral is critical in the new metals age

The USGS updated critical minerals list now encompasses 60 different materials, representing around 80 percent of all the mined commodities on the periodic table.

1 month ago

Cargo staff and police officers at Soekarno-Hatta Airport unload the coffin of Indonesian migrant worker Yasmiati from Grobogan, Central Java, upon arrival from Hong Kong on Dec. 23, 2025, at the airport’s cargo terminal in Tangerang, Banten. The Foreign Ministry, the Indonesian Consulate in Hong Kong and the Migrant Workers’ Protection Ministry repatriated nine victims of the Wang Fuk Court apartment fire, on Nov. 26, 2025, in Tai Po District, Hong Kong

Academia premium

Time to turn commitments into real protection for migrant workers

Many Indonesian migrant workers continue to live and work without effective protection.

1 month ago

Pedestrians walk in front of an electronic quotation board displaying the Nikkei Stock Average closing price at 40,000 yen level on the Tokyo Stock Exchange in Tokyo on June 27, 2025.

Markets

Asian stocks extend record rally while oil, dollar drift

US big oil got a boost from the country's military raid at the weekend that captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.

1 month ago

Urban farming reimagined: Chicken Hero Pavilion, a self-initiated project by RAD+ar, rises as a hilly structure in Urban Forest, South Jakarta, exploring backyard poultry farming as a design response to food waste and urban resilience.

Culture premium

Beyond tropical: How Indonesian design is evolving today

Today’s practitioners are responding to a shifting design discourse, shaped by a fast-moving industry, environmental urgency and new ways audiences encounter design and space.

1 month ago

Smoke billows from a fire on Jan. 2 in the Duri-Grissik gas pipeline in Batu Ampar village, Kemuning district, Indragiri Hilir regency, Riau. Firefighters managed to extinguish the fire on Jan. 3.

Archipelago premium

Police investigate gas pipeline explosion in Riau that injured 10

The fire also damaged five trucks and five motorcycles as well as three buildings, a tire repair shop, a palm oil collection post and a motorcycle repair shop.

1 month ago

Workers unload sacks of rice imported from Thailand on June 22, 2023, from a cargo ship at Malahayati Port in Krueng Raya, Aceh.

Academia premium

ASEAN needs an ASEAN+5 food security framework

Demand for food across Asia will continue to rise, driven by population growth, expanding middle classes and changing diets, but this is unlikely to be met by Asian producers and exporters alone.

1 month ago

Indonesian military (TNI) troops prepare for deployment amid anti-government protests on Aug. 31, at the National Monument (Monas) complex in Central Jakarta.

Archipelago premium

Family seeks justice after TNI soldier dies following alleged bullying by senior

Farkhan’s death comes just months after Second Pvt. Lucky Chepril Saputra Namo died in a fatal bullying incident at a military barracks in Nagekeo, East Nusa Tenggara.

1 month ago

United States President Donald Trump (center), alongside (from left to right) Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth speaks to the press following US military actions in Venezuela on Jan. 3 at his Mar-a-Lago residence in Palm Beach, Florida, the US.

Academia premium

Trump and the raid on Caracas

International law is not simply a moral preference. It is a guardrail built from hard lessons.

1 month ago

John Herdman, then head coach of Toronto FC, speaks at a press conference during a MLS media day event at the Miami Convention Center on Jan. 11, 2024, in Miami, Florida, the United States.

Sports premium

Hope, scrutiny surround Herdman’s appointment as Indonesia coach

A non-technical issue casts a shadow over Herdman’s reputation, following his links to a disciplinary controversy involving the alleged use of drones to spy on opponents during his time with Canada.

1 month ago

A Health Care and Social Security Agency (BPJS Kesehatan) official helps a customer on May 14, 2024, at the agency's South Jakarta office.

Society premium

JKN overhaul faces persistent healthcare hurdles in 2026

Indonesia’s National Health Insurance (JKN) program is set to undergo a series of policy revamps to improve the quality and access to medical service, but there is still a long road ahead to truly achieve universal health coverage.

1 month ago

A motorcade carrying Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro leaves the Westside Heliport on Jan. 3, 2026, in New York, the United States. Maduro, who was captured by US forces in Caracas, arrived in New York on Saturday evening. Maduro was seen surrounded by FBI agents as he descended the boarding stairs of a US government plane at a state National Guard facility, and was slowly escorted along the tarmac.

Academia premium

Venezuela and the persistence of hierarchy in global politics

Calling the US invasion of Venezuela a “realist moment” may sound appealing, but it risks becoming a vocabulary that affirms power rather than a tool for understanding it.

1 month ago

Former education minister Nadiem Makarim reacts on Jan. 5, 2026, prior to his trial in a corruption case about his involvement in the procurement of Google's Chromebook laptops for use at his ministry and by students, at the Jakarta Corruption Court.

Politics premium

Corruption trial begins for ex-minister Nadiem after delays

The corruption trial of former education minister Nadiem Makarim opened on Monday after weeks of delays that allowed him to recover from surgery.

1 month ago

Captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro arrives at the Downtown Manhattan Heliport Jan. 5, 2026, as he heads toward the Daniel Patrick Manhattan United States Courthouse for an initial appearance to face US federal charges including narco-terrorism, conspiracy, drug trafficking, money laundering and others in New York.

Americas premium

Indonesia warns Venezuela raid sets ‘dangerous precedent’

Indonesia, in its latest statement, warned that the use of force in Venezuela could set a dangerous precedent undermining sovereignty, as scrutiny grows over Jakarta’s muted response to United States actions.

1 month ago

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