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View all search resultsGrowing regional discontent
Indonesians confront mounting economic hardship despite official assurances that all is well. Many are confused: the reassurances from officials do not match the reality of their daily lives.
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A man climbs a flagpole as he attempts to raise a Free Aceh Movement flag alongside the Indonesian national flag during a rally outside the Baiturrahman Grand Mosque in Banda Aceh, Aceh, on Aug. 15, 2026. (AFP/Reza Saifullah)
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any Indonesians were shocked and angered by widely circulated videos showing Acehnese youths raising the outlawed flag of the former Free Aceh Movement (GAM) inside Baiturrahman Mosque on Aug. 15 in Aceh. They were protesting rampant corruption and abuse of power by local and national officials. But they were not alone.
In North Kalimantan, the indigenous Dayak Lundayeh community in Nunukan regency, North Kalimantan, also raised the red-yellow-blue Dayak Borneo flag under the national Red and White flag. It, too, should be read as an expression of deep disappointment with the central government over years of uneven regional development and neglected infrastructure.
Similar grievances simmer in other regions, compounded by corrupt local officials who have done little to close the gap between Jakarta and the outer islands. The government should pay closer attention to what is happening in Kalimantan before the discontent spreads further.
The central government's slow, ineffective response to victims of the massive floods in Aceh, North Sumatra and West Sumatra angered residents who still feel abandoned despite official promises of aid and reconstruction.
We hope Jakarta does not repeat that failure in East Nusa Tenggara, devastated last week by a 7.7-magnitude earthquake. This is a chance for the government to restore public trust in the region.
This year’s Independence Day celebration was more subdued than in past years, as Indonesians confront mounting economic hardship despite official assurances that all is well. Many are confused: the reassurances from officials do not match the reality of their daily lives.
Aceh's resources are thin today, even though the province theoretically retains substantial oil and gas potential. In 2023, Aceh's ratio of foreign direct investment to gross regional domestic product was just 1.7 percent, ranking 23rd among Indonesia's 38 provinces, a poor showing for a province with such natural wealth. Under the special autonomy arrangement, Aceh is also entitled to 70 percent of oil and gas revenues from its own territory. So where has that money gone?
