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This handout image provided by Nournews agency shows the Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council of Iran Ali Shamkhani (right) shaking hands with the Director of the Office of the Central Foreign Affairs Commission of the Chinese Communist Party Wang Yi (center) during a meeting with Saudi Arabia's National Security adviser and Minister of State Musaad bin Mohammed al-Aiban (left) in Beijing on March 10, 2023. Iran and Saudi Arabia agreed to restore ties and to reopen respective diplomatic missions after talks in China, state media in both countries reported on March 10, 2023, seven years after relations were severed.

Editorial

China the peacemaker?

In the same week that the US financial authorities had again to fend off a potential crisis from the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and reports that tension has risen between President Biden and Ukraine's President Volodymir Zelensky, especially over the sabotage of the Nord Stream II pipeline, China scored a massive political victory in the Middle East.

2 years ago

Editorial

Combatting money laundering

The Finance Ministry’s inspectorate general and tax intelligence division hardly played a part in the disclosure of corruption cases involving ministry officials so far. ...

2 years ago

Editorial

Welcoming Israeli soccer team

The upcoming arrival of Israel has ignited a furor in the country, but as a good host Indonesia should not mix sports with politics. ...

2 years ago

The Latest

Rest in peace: Employees at the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) lay flowers and wreaths on top of a casket placed in front of the KPK's headquarters in Kuningan, Central Jakarta, on Sept. 13, 2019, after the House of Representatives elected Insp. Gen. Firli Bahuri of the National Police as KPK's new commissioner.

Editorial

Time to write off the KPK?

This year, we can say with some measure of certainty that our fears and criticism were not hyperbole, that they did indeed reflect the malaise permeating the once powerful antigraft body.

3 years ago

Residents walk through the closed Jl. Al-Fathu in Soreang, Bandung regency, West Java, on July 4. The Bandung regency administration closed several roads to limit public mobility during the emergency public activity restriction (PPKM Darurat) period from July 3 to 20.

Editorial

Shouldn’t we hit the brakes again?

The government is once again caught between the need to boost the economy, which is rebounding this year, and protect public health.

3 years ago

Handle with care: Port loading and unloading activities are carried out in a container terminal belonging to port operator PT Pelindo IV in Makassar, South Sulawesi, on Sept. 20. The government merged all four state port operators on Oct. 1 to improve connectivity and services.

Editorial

Downside risks to economy

The World Bank says structural reforms should be accelerated to bolster domestic and foreign investments to offset the narrowing macroeconomic policy space and stimulate the economy.

3 years ago

People walk past the Bird’s Nest stadium, the venue for the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2022 Winter Olympics, in Beijing on Feb. 4, 2021, a year before the opening of the Games.

Editorial

Hot Winter Games

The show will go on, and as one International Olympic Committee (IOC) official has said, the success of the 2022 Winter Olympics will not depend on the presence of dignitaries.

3 years ago

Motorists stop their vehicle at the edge of the flooded Jl. Warung Buncit Raya in South Jakarta on Feb. 20, 2021. Heavy rain in the past few days caused several parts of Jakarta and its surrounding areas to be inundated by floodwater.

Editorial

Flood-free Jakarta

The politicization of the project aside, the city government needs to review the program as it does not offer a long-lasting solution to the Jakarta floods.

3 years ago

Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Mahfud MD and Home Minister Tito Karnavian visit the North Natuna Sea aboard the KRI Semarang-594 naval hospital ship on Nov. 23.

Editorial

The Natuna factor

Since the fall of the nation’s first president, Sukarno, in 1966, Indonesia has tended to stay closer to the United States for various reasons, including of security.

3 years ago

President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo inaugurates five members of the Corruption Eradication Commission's (KPK) supervisory council in December 2019.

Editorial

Police antigraft corps

It is uncertain whether the new corps will be able or willing to pursue graft cases implicating police officers.

3 years ago

Editorial

Where were you? Rape victims ask

The chorus of angry condemnation that has ensued the public disclosure of Herry’s evil deeds this past week does not conceal our failure to protect the girls.

3 years ago

Better late than never: Vehicle owners wait for their turn to pay vehicle tax at ITC Depok in Depok, West Java, on Nov. 10, 2020. The West Java provincial administration is waiving penalties for late vehicle tax payments and other vehicle-related fees to reduce the burden on vehicle owners amid the COVID-19 pandemic as well as to woo owners to pay their vehicle taxes.

Editorial

Regional fiscal management

Better matching local revenue to local spending strengthens local responsibility and accountability.

3 years ago

A child rides a bicycle on the closed Jl. Al-Fathu in Soreang, Bandung regency, West Java on July 4. The Bandung regency administration closed several roads to limit public mobility during the emergency public activity restriction (PPKM Darurat) period from July 3 to 20.

Editorial

The cost of inconsistency

It will come as no surprise if the new policy leads to complacency, which in the past resulted in a spike in new cases.

3 years ago

Anticorruption People’s Movement (Gertak) activists rally at the Digulis traffic circle in Pontianak, West Kalimantan, on Thursday to condemn the dismissal of Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) employees for failing a “civic knowledge test”.

Editorial

In the KPK we lack trust

The commission’s credibility crisis should come as no surprise, as public confidence in the KPK has been falling since 2018, according to research by Indikator Politik.

3 years ago

Editorial

Tech’s golden opportunity

While China’s tech crackdown has caused concern among investors, its muscle flexing may provide opportunities for other Asian companies to fill the gap.

3 years ago

Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi takes a group photo with participants of the 2018 Bali Democracy Forum in Nusa Dua, Bali on Dec. 6, 2018.

Editorial

Walk the talk on democracy

Also not clear is Biden’s summit democratic agenda, when many leaders invited are authoritarian, some from countries that fall within Freedom House’s category of “Partly Free” and three within the “Not Free” group.

3 years ago

New attraction: Jakarta International Stadium (JIS) in Tanjung Priok, North Jakarta glitters as construction continues at night on Nov. 23. The new stadium is set to be inaugurated by the end of the year.

Editorial

More than just a stadium

Jakarta International Stadium is hoped to be a boon for health, environment and economy.

3 years ago

Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto (right), Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi (second right), Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne (second left) and Australia Defense Minister Peter Dutton attend a media briefing following their meeting at the Foreign Ministry in Jakarta on Sept. 9.

Editorial

Lining up allies

It is no secret that the Indo-Pacific has been used to describe a regional order that expands on the Asia-Pacific by raising the stakes in the US-China rivalry.

3 years ago

Muslims join the Tahajud prayer to attend the 212 reunion at the National Monument, Central Jakarta, Dec. 2, 2019.

Editorial

The government and ulema

The animosity between some conservative ulema and President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, who had endorsed Ahok’s reelection, continues to this day, albeit at a much lower scale.

3 years ago

International travelers wearing personal protective equipment (PPE) arrive at Melbourne's Tullamarine Airport on Nov. 29 as Australia records its first cases of the Omicron variant of COVID19.

Editorial

Bracing for Omicron

Four days after South Africa announced the discovery of Omicron on Wednesday, Indonesia joined several other countries in tightening their borders.

3 years ago

Against the law: Members of a civil society organization join a large-scale protest against the Job Creation Law in Harmoni, Central Jakarta, on Oct. 8, 2020. The House of Representatives passed the law on Oct. 5 despite public resistance.

Editorial

Law without credibility

This is how democracy works in contemporary Indonesia, where the opposition, hence the checks and balances mechanism, is not functioning.

3 years ago

A building in the Public Works and Public Housing (PUPR) office compound in Kebayoran Baru, South Jakarta. The Green Building Council Indonesia (GBCI) has certified the building as environmentally-friendly.

Editorial

Enforcing energy efficiency

The most effective way of enhancing energy efficiency is an appropriate pricing policy based on the economic costs of energy.

3 years ago

Dusty past: Trucks carry oil palm fruits through a plantation owned by PT Wanasawit Subur Lestari in Pangkalan Bun, Central Kalimantan on Dec. 19, 2015. Sustainable palm oil production has become the industry norm today.

Editorial

Jokowi’s EU fight

The government prohibits nickel ore exports to force mining companies to develop the downstream metal industry so that they export semi-processed products.

3 years ago

Ducati rider Michael Ruben Rinaldi (right) takes a bend during a free practice at the World Superbike race at the Mandalika International Street Circuit in Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara on Nov. 19, 2021.

Editorial

Roaring into world circuits

When we decide to go global, we must meet international standards, nothing less will do.

3 years ago

Thee Hantakan River in Alat village, Hulu Sungai Tengah regency, South Kalimantan, on Jan. 20, 2020. The region was hit by massive flooding following days of heavy rainfall.

Editorial

Can’t blame it on the rain

According to Greenpeace Indonesia, around 53 percent of Kapuas' 9.3 million hectares of water-catchment area have been converted into oil palm plantations, leaving only 4.2 million ha of forests around the 1,100-kilometer river.

3 years ago

Indonesian Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto (right) meets with United States Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on the sidelines of their participation in the Manama Dialogue on Nov. 20.

Editorial

Actions and words

Prabowo underlined the nation’s commitment to maintaining relations with all countries and to stay neutral in disputes as a reflection of the Non-Aligned Movement.

3 years ago

Indonesian police personnel show photographs of Para Wijayanto and various seized items at a press conference in Jakarta on July 1, 2019, after Wijayanto was detained by counterterrorism police with his wife at a hotel in Bekasi, West Java.

Editorial

Terror group’s facelift

JI and other terrorist groups may no longer spread fear through bomb blasts and other acts of violence but sow good deeds to reap public sympathy and instill their beliefs.

3 years ago

A student washes his hands prior to entering the Lycée Français de Jakarta campus in Cipete, South Jakarta, on Friday, May 28. Lycée Français de Jakarta was one of the first schools in the capital to be approved to pilot in-class learning in April, after undergoing a thorough screening process from the Jakarta Education Agency since October last year.

Editorial

Curbs are not enough

Over the past few months, a combination of mass vaccinations and mobility curbs appears to have helped Indonesia contain the pandemic.

3 years ago

Standing for the rights: Members of labor unions in West Java stage a rally in front of Gedung Sate in Bandung, West Java, on April 23 to call for improved wages and working conditions.

Editorial

In for flexible labor market

Wage rises are not sustainable if revenues do not increase either by higher productivity or bigger market sales.

3 years ago

Fishermen sit on their boat as smoke rises from chimneys at the Suralaya coal power plant in Cilegon, Banten on Sept. 22.

Editorial

Indonesia’s ‘coal hard facts’

Indonesia could move the date forward to 2040 if it can raise up to US$40 billion needed to convert these coal plants into using renewable energy resources.

3 years ago

Voice of silence: Mannequins stand outside of the House of Representatives compound in Central Jakarta on Dec. 8, 2020, as part of a campaign to push for the passage of the sexual violence eradication bill. The National Commission on Violence Against Women (Komnas Perempuan) has reported a steep rise in violence against women during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Editorial

Stopping (sex) crime

Let’s be clear: Sexual offenders are predators, criminals who take away the most precious belonging from a human being.

3 years ago

Window of climate opportunity: A conference is seen through a window at the media center during the UN Climate Change Conference (COP26), in Glasgow, Scotland, on Nov. 4.

Editorial

Coal and climate justice

The biggest disappointment is the lack of passion shown by developed countries to commit to climate financing and assistance to open greater access to renewable energy for developing and poor countries.

3 years ago