The decision to allow the annual exodus after the holy month of Ramadan is the latest in a series of measures aimed at easing COVID-19 restrictions and reviving the country's economy.

The government has started a public consultation on draft regulations from the recently passed law legalizing the capital relocation, but critics have said the gesture is just for show.

Nine Indonesian workers embraced their weeping families as they arrived home in Binjai, North Sumatra, on Tuesday, after being trapped in Chernihiv, a city in northern Ukraine, while war rages on following Russia’s invasion.

The government further eased restrictions in many areas in Java and Bali and waived quarantine for all fully vaccinated foreign arrivals entering the country starting on Tuesday, as daily coronavirus cases have dropped more than 90 percent from a mid-February peak.

Indonesia has introduced a global declaration that calls on parties to the Minamata Convention on Mercury to tackle illegal trade of mercury, with the hope that such a move would spur stronger international cooperation in the future.

North Sumatra Police have named eight suspects of human trafficking violations in the alleged fatal caging of people in the house of graft suspect and inactive Langkat regent Terbit Rencana Perangin-Angin.

As mobility returns to pre-pandemic levels in response to plummeting COVID-19 cases and easing restrictions, experts say that major efforts are needed to keep Jakarta's roads gridlock-free.

Human rights activists in Indonesia are under increasing pressure from authorities and other organized groups for simply speaking truth to power.

Pollsters have slammed recent claims made by National Awakening Party (PKB) chairman Muhaimin Iskandar and Coordinating Maritime Affairs and Investment Minister Luhut Pandjaitan that a majority of Indonesians would support an extension of President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s final term in office. 

All passengers and crew of a wooden fishing boat that sank off the coast of Tanjung Api in Asahan, North Sumatra, over the weekend, have been accounted for according to local authorities.

Two of the vessel's 86 passengers, who were seeking work in neighbouring Malaysia, were killed when it capsized Saturday, said Rully Ramadhiansyah, spokesman for the Belawan naval base in North Sumatra.

The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) has suspended its push for a constitutional amendment to strengthen the People’s Consultative Assembly (MPR) following a controversial proposal from other members of the ruling coalition to delay the 2024 elections. 

As the host of the fourth Conference of the Parties (COP4) to the Minamata Convention on Mercury, Indonesia is aiming to lead parties to the convention to come into agreement on some issues left unresolved in the previous conference, COP4 president Rosa Vivien Ratnawati said.

The wooden fishing boat was carrying 89 onboard when it departed for neighbouring Malaysia through an unguarded route. 

Environmentalists are not impressed because they believe the strategy shows that the government still does not want to fully stop deforestation despite pressure from environmental groups.

Amnesty International remains steadfast in calling for the inclusion of Papuans in  government-level discussions on the province's special autonomy status, following a heated protest by alleged members of a paramilitary group.

In a clear sign of Javanese cultural hegemony, President Jokowi on Monday invited all governors from across the country to join a ritual laden with Javanese symbolism to bless the construction of the new capital city at ground zero in East Kalimantan.

Experts have cautioned against relying on big data analysis, arguing that questionable methodology and potential lack of representation in the data-gathering process could lead to distorted conclusions in capturing public opinion on certain discourses.

Political lobbying remains underway, with elites of political parties within the ruling coalition seeking to influence other coalition members to postpone the 2024 general election.

The North Sumatra police are looking into possible human trafficking violations in the alleged fatal caging of people in Langkat.

Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto held a meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron at the Élysée Palace on Wednesday, more than a month after Indonesia sealed a deal to order 42 Rafale fighter jets and signed an exploratory agreement for the possible purchase of two submarines.

The shift in healthcare focus during the pandemic has shed light on the staggered implementation of family planning programs.

Tourism workers and the local government are hopeful that Bali's stronger reopening starting this month will get the resort island back on its feet.

The Defense Ministry, in a statement issued on Wednesday, said Prabowo would discuss a number of defense issues with Macron, including the follow-up steps in the acquisition of the defense equipment.

Protesters say Jakarta has not included Papuans in plans to form new provinces in the region and fear the reforms will be used as a pretext to tighten government control over the area. 

As the Omicron-fueled surge of infections begins to wane in Indonesia, the government has announced a plan to create an outline to help the country's transition to endemicity and return to normal life after two years of battling the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Bandung Institute of Technology’s (ITB) rectorate struck a deal on Monday with the university’s School of Business and Management (SBM ITB) to allow the latter to resume classes after a dispute over its status as an autonomous institution.