Jakarta – Natural disasters have hit several parts of Indonesia at the start of 2021. The series of distressing calamities began on Saturday January 9 when landslide claimed 32 lives in Sumedang, West Java.
Floods then inundated South Kalimantan on Tuesday January 12, with 10 regencies and cities impacted upon, 27,111 homes inundated and 112,000 people forced to seek shelter.
Jakarta – Civil society organisations in the Central Java city of Yogyakarta which are part of the Yogyakarta People's Alliance for Democracy (ARDY) have sent a subpoena to Yogyakarta (DIY) Governor Sri Sultan Hamengku Buwono X over a ban on expressing opinions in public.
Jakarta – The Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi) is urging President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo to summon companies which have business permits covering forest areas and land in South Kalimantan.
Walhi suspects that these corporations are the cause of the massive deforestation, which is the root of the flooding problem which has inundated seven regencies and cities in South Kalimantan.
Feybien Ramayanti, Jakarta – Greenpeace Indonesia suspects that the flash floods which have inundated South Kalimantan are because watershed areas lost around 304,225 hectares of forest cover between 2001 and 2019. Most of this has been converted into palm oil plantations.
Greenpeace Indonesia forest campaign spokesperson Arie Kompas explained that the watershed areas represent areas which should accommodate and absorb rainfall in South Kalimantan. But because the forest cover has declined drastically, the water carrying capacity has declined.
A cabinet reshuffle on Tuesday, triggered by the arrest of two ministers for graft allegations and prolonged criticism over several ministers' poor performance has brought six new faces to President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's administration.
An apparently casual photo of Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan reading a book on Sunday morning has sparked debate among social media users with some claiming the photo is a subtle jab at President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's administration.
According to the State Research Institute a total of 124 candidate pairs affiliated with political dynasties will be running in the simultaneous election of regional heads on December 9.
The highly contentious and unpopular Omnibus Law on Job Creation was passed into law on October 5. In response tens of thousands of people took to the streets across Indonesia in a series of angry and sometimes violent protests.
Jakarta – Human Rights Watch (HRW) has criticised the government of President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo for its weak health response to Covid-19 which has brought Indonesia to its knees since the pandemic started in March 2020.
Jakarta – The non-government organisation (NGO) Green Papua claims that 654,561 Papuans have signed a petition opposing the extension of Special Autonomy (Otsus) for Papua.
Ardito Ramadhan, Jakarta – The Agrarian Reform Consortium (KPA) recorded 241 cases of agrarian conflicts in Indonesia throughout 2020.
Jakarta – The press community is calling on Indonesian police chief (Kapolri) General Idham Azis to revoke Article 2d of Kapolri Decree Number: Mak/1/I/2021 on Obeying the Prohibition on Activities, the Use of Symbols and Attributes and Halting the Activities of the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI).
Tsarina Maharani, Jakarta – Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) Coordinator Fatia Maulidiyanti says that the government's plan to upgrade the activities of the cyber police in 2021 threatens civil freedoms, particularly freedom of expression.
Jakarta – Enlightened Indonesia Foundation Executive Director Adhityani Putri says that the government should be more aggressive in realising its commitments to addressing climate change by reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
