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Indonesia
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Indonesia

Indonesia
Indonesia
Latest news, in-depth features and opinion from Indonesia.
Capital
Jakarta
Head of State
President Prabowo Subianto
Prabowo Subianto
Head of Government
President Prabowo Subianto
Prabowo Subianto
A student carries food trays as part of the free meals programme in Bandung on June 12. Photo: Xinhua
Prabowo Subianto

Indonesia’s free meals corruption probe extends to police, military officers

President Prabowo’s US$15 billion programme has been criticised for budget strains and cases of food poisoning.

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Banking & finance

Hong Kong broadens yuan’s financial footprint as currency gains global appeal

Tourism

No free lunch: Indonesia’s Bali targets barter deals in immigration sweep

United States

Papua rebels shoot American pilot dead, torch plane to send ‘message’ to US

Authorities found the Indonesian aircraft carrying Nicholas Gosselin and seven passengers burned at a local airport in Yahukimo.

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Troops stand guard in the Yahukimo region of Indonesia’s Papua province in 2023. Photo: Cartenz Peace Task Force/AFP
Religion

Unmarried Indonesian couple get 21 lashes each over viral live stream kiss

About 100 people witnessed the caning, carried out by a group of people wearing robes and hoods on a stage in Banda Aceh.

Joko Widodo

Ex-Indonesian president backs son’s party for 2029 election

Joko Widodo wants to boost the appeal of the Indonesian Solidarity Party and signal his continuous relevance, analysts say.

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Singapore

Singapore warns of ‘severe’ haze in August, September from El Nino effect

There is a ‘high risk’ of haze in Southeast Asia as a combination of El Nino and warmer seas raises the danger of forest fires, agency says.

The Singapore city skyline is seen shrouded with haze on September 29, 2023. Photo: AFP
Prabowo Subianto

Civil trainee deaths spur criticisms of Prabowo’s reliance on military drill

The military says the physical activity that trainees take part in to prepare for their civilian roles is ‘not a burden’.

Google

Video | Gojek founder gets 10-year sentence in corruption case

Nadiem Makarim was ordered to return over 800 billion rupiah (US$45 million) in addition to pay a 1 billion rupiah fine in what rights activists call a politically motivated case.

Artificial intelligence

The AI industrial revolution: why US faces a historic tech reckoning from China

From EVs to robotics, China’s advancement in cutting-edge tech has seen it shake off the West’s long-standing belief in US exceptionalism.

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Illustration: Lau Ka-kuen
Law

Does Gojek co-founder’s guilty verdict test Indonesia’s investor climate?

Ex-education minister Nadiem Makarim has been sentenced to 10 years’ jail for abusing his authority over the procurement of school laptops.

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Nadiem Makarim, Indonesia’s former education minister and co-founder of ride-hailing firm Gojek, at the Central Jakarta Court on Tuesday. Photo: Reuters
Greater Bay Area

Asean hopes to tap Greater Bay Area’s tech skills with closer ties: industry chiefs

Panellists at South China Morning Post’s GBA-Asean Summit list AI and green technology as key areas for cooperation.

Hong Kong economy

New Asean Chamber of Commerce launched in Hong Kong will ‘fulfil long-felt need’

New business group launched at the South China Morning Post’s GBA-Asean Summit 2026.

Religion

Asian Angle | Liberal Islam in Indonesia is sliding into irrelevance

Political entanglements and ideological schisms have left the pioneering Liberal Islam Network in disarray.

A boy waves a flag at a rally attended by thousands of Indonesian Islamists in Jakarta in 2018. Photo: AFP
The Netherlands

‘Too late’: why some Malukans say a Dutch apology isn’t enough

Dutch PM Rob Jetten apologises for the mistreatment of first-generation Malukans in Europe, prompting calls for tangible change.

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The Netherlands’ Prime Minister Rob Jetten (centre) and Mayor of Rotterdam Carola Schouten (left) unveil a national monument at the Lloydkade for Malukans in Rotterdam on June 21. Photo: AFP
Britain

My Take | Putting the social media genie back in the bottle will not be easy to do

The determination around the world to crack down on the use of these platforms by children is a response to the mounting evidence of the harm it can do.

Protests around the world

Dozens arrested in Indonesia after anti-government protest turns violent

Around 100 people had gathered in Surabaya to protest a fuel price increase and the president’s flagship free meals scheme.

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Asean

Asian Angle | Asean’s side deals in Myanmar risk missing where the power truly lies

Trading collective leverage for isolated bargains blinds the bloc to changing realities on the ground.

Myanmar’s Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs U Hau Khan Sum (left) with other Southeast Asian leaders at the Asean summit in Cebu, the Philippines, on May 8. Photo: Pool via Reuters
Singapore

Burning point: Southeast Asia’s haze fight faces cost test

Indonesia has come under renewed attention after President Prabowo Subianto committed to cracking down on agriculture-linked fires.

Extreme weather

Asia’s ‘dangerous’ humid heatwaves push human body to its limits

Parts of Southeast Asia are set to experience at least six months of dangerous humid heat days annually, a report says.

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Banking & finance

Indonesia set to issue US$1 billion in panda bonds in China

The Southeast Asian country will offer the bonds in an attempt to better stabilise its national finances as the rupiah continues to fall.

Indonesia and China flags. Photo: Shutterstock
Tourism

Indonesia’s immigration chief urges rethink on wider visa-free access

Immigration Director General Hendarsam Marantoko says Indonesia ‘does not want visitors who do not contribute positively’ to the economy.

Tourists walk through the Prambanan temple complex in Sleman regency, Yogyakarta, Indonesia. Photo: Khairu Syukrillah/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa
China-Asean relations

Is Prabowo’s Trump moment a sign that China is losing its favourite partner?

The Indonesian leader’s unusual approach to the ‘America first’ president is testing Jakarta’s non-alignment policy, observers said.

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China trade

Why the Vietnam ‘detour’ for US-bound Chinese goods hit a dead end

Is finding another Hanoi haven possible, or would trying be a fool’s errand for Chinese firms looking to get the jump on Trump and evade tariffs?

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Energy

How Indonesia’s coal policies left its own citizens in the dark

Hours-long blackouts since last week have disrupted the lives and businesses of millions of subscribers of state-owned utility firm PLN in Java.

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Barges are loaded with coal on the Mahakam River in Samarinda, East Kalimantan, Indonesia, in 2022. Photo: AP
US-China trade war

Why the US remains ‘fragmented’ in a critical copper clash against China

Washington’s efforts to rebuild the domestic copper industry are colliding with Chinese dominance in a metal central to advanced tech and defence systems.

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Illustration: Lau Ka-kuen
Mainland China

Indonesia hails China’s backing for panda bond amid investor concerns over rules

While Jakarta has assured Chinese investors about Indonesia’s economic outlook, analysts cite regulatory uncertainty as a key barrier.

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SCMP Highlights

Tourists in China call locals smelly, Singapore vs London: 7 Asia highlights

From Malaysian tourists in China to a fatal school shooting in the Philippines, here are a few highlights from SCMP’s recent Asia reporting.

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