Joko Widodo

Cash could crash Indonesia elections

Money is one of the greatest enemies of democracy. This especially rings true in Indonesia which will soon see one of its biggest elections ever this Wednesday. Last month, Indonesia’s Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) arrested Bowo Sidik Pangarso, a member of the House of Representatives (DPR) in the alleged bribe case of the cooperation between PT Pupuk Indonesia Logistik and PT Humpuss Transportasi Kimia.

13 April 2019
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Stray ballots for Jokowi found in Malaysia

Indonesia is probing vote-rigging claims after the discovery of thousands of stray election ballots in neighbouring Malaysia, officials said, as the opposition threatens to challenge next week's poll results over separate voter list irregularities.The General Elections Commission (KPU) has sent a team to Malaysia to investigate as many as 20,000 ballots, including many marked in favour of Indonesian President Joko Widodo, that were found in two locations near the capital Kuala Lumpur.&qu

13 April 2019
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Prabowo warns of possible election fraud

Standing up through the sunroof of a van, Prabowo Subianto leans down to shake hands and accept cash – sometimes bags of it – from tens of thousands of cheering supporters clogging up roads and sitting on rooftops.

12 April 2019
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Minorities matter in Indonesia’s election

By now, most of the world already knows that Indonesia is home to the largest Muslim demographic in the world, housing approximately 229 million Muslims. This, however, is especially pertinent considering the fact that Indonesia is about to face its largest election in a week from today on 17 April.Several political pundits as well as human rights advocates have already expressed worry regarding a rising conservatism in the country.

10 April 2019
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Will Indonesians even bother to vote?

On 17 April 2019, Indonesia will hold its general elections. It will be the first time in the country’s history where the president, vice president, and members of the People's Consultative Assembly will be elected on the same day. Indonesia has over 190 million eligible voters, unfortunately, there are now concerns that many may not turn up to do their duty on polling day.

30 March 2019
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Indonesian politics “too dirty and too boring”

While campaigning for the Indonesian presidential election is slated to begin soon, a report has revealed that millennials in Indonesia are disenchanted with the country’s political establishment.The report was based on internal research carried out by presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto’s campaign team which shows that half of the country’s millennials are unlikely to vote because they see politics as what Prabowo’s running mate, Sandiaga Uno refers to as "too dirty and too

24 March 2019
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Jokowi vs. Prabowo: What’s in it for the economy?

When it was announced last year that the upcoming Indonesian presidential elections would be a rematch between Joko Widodo and Prabowo Subianto, there have been endless analyses over Indonesia’s identity politics. The usual narrative was that Jokowi represented a more liberal approach to Islam while Prabowo was more conservative, and that issues surrounding religion could be the deciding factor of the elections.

14 February 2019
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ASEAN leaders and the Chinese zodiac

In the coming month of February, we will usher in the Chinese Lunar New Year, otherwise known as the Spring Festival. As most readers are aware, part of the fun during this festive season involves looking at our horoscopes for the new year based on the Chinese zodiac calendar. Horoscopes follow a classification scheme that assigns an animal and its reputed attributes to each year in a repeating 12-year cycle. Last year was the year of the dog, and this year will be the year of the boar.

25 January 2019
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Indonesian youth optimistic about diversity

The Indonesia Millennial Report 2019 has revealed an encouraging discovery: despite the numerous reports on a supposed increase in conservatism in the country, some 89.1 percent of the millennial generation have an optimistic outlook on diversity in Indonesia.The report defined millennials as those belonging to the age group of 20 to 35 years. It noted that some 24 percent of Indonesia’s population is made up of millennials.

23 January 2019
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Jokowi leads ahead of presidential debates

Indonesian President Joko Widodo and his challenger Prabowo Subianto are set to face off in the first of a series of debates ahead of the April presidential election.Seeking to win over swing voters, Widodo, popularly known as Jokowi, will defend his track record on corruption, terrorism, law reform and human rights in Thursday’s presidential debate, while Prabowo will lay out his vision to lure those still undecided.Although the economy has taken the centre-stage in the election campaign, sp

17 January 2019
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Situation in West Papua getting worse

The situation in West Papua is getting increasingly dire after reports have revealed that up to 31 people have been killed in a central district of the region on Sunday. Currently, exact numbers and accurate reports of what is happening in West Papua is difficult to gather as the international media is effectively banned from reporting there. According to Agence France-Presse (AFP), those killed were believed to be construction workers.

5 December 2018
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