On Wed 17 April 2019, 190 million Indonesian voters will set off to the polls to elect their President and Vice-President. On this day they will also elect 136 members of the national Regions House, a kind of weak Senate, together with 575 members of the powerful House of Representatives. In addition they will elect […]
Politics
Guide to the 2019 Indonesian Elections: Path to the Presidency
On Wed 17 April 2019, 190 million Indonesian voters will set off to the polls to elect their President and Vice-President. On this day they will also elect 136 members of the national Regions House, a kind of weak Senate, together with 575 members of the powerful House of Representatives. In addition they will elect […]
Indonesia Regional Elections 2018: Performers up, scions and coat-tailers down
Voters in half of Indonesia’s 34 provinces, including the 4 largest provinces, as well as nearly 25% of cities and counties, went to the polls last week to elect their leaders. Indonesia’s multiplicity of Indonesian parties and its rich tapestry of political splits and schisms make it difficult to extrapolate results to the national level. […]
Drafting Jakarta’s Ballot Papers
It is a year until the next presidential elections will be held in Indonesia and speculation has begun about who will put themselves forward to face the incumbent, Joko Widodo. The answer will shape the coming debate in Australia’s largest neighbour. Indonesia’s democracy is just 20 years old and it is due to hold its […]
Of ballots and Constitutional Court verdicts
The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) announced on 15 November 2017 that over 61% of Australians said yes to the question: “Should the law be changed to allow same sex couples to marry?” With almost 80% of eligible voters taking the time to participate in this voluntary postal survey, the response by the people was […]
Indonesia’s anti-Corruption fight inspires Afghanistan
Mr Jones, my crusty old grade 6 school teacher, used to say “you can learn from the greatest of fools, Evans”. It was a comment he usually made after I made managed to proffer some new view on something or other. Even so his advice was very wise and never forgotten. In 2008, a great […]
Innovation and science at the centre of government
The Turnbull Government held the inaugural meeting of the Innovation and Science Committee of Cabinet on Tuesday, which is responsible for implementing the Government’s $1.1 billion National Innovation and Science Agenda (NISA). This is the first time a dedicated Cabinet Committee has been established by the Australian Government to oversee innovation and science, highlighting the […]
Indonesian, Australian governments condemn Jakarta attacks
The Indonesian Government and the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs have issued press releases condemning the terrorist attacks in Jakarta on January 14, 2016. Official Media Release from the Government of the Republic of Indonesia “Today, at around 10.50 am, a suicide bomber exploded in a cafe at the crossroad of Thamrin Road, Central Jakarta, […]
Jokowi’s Cabinet Changes: The No Ruffle Reshuffle
After months of speculation and political sand throwing within his own coalition, President Jokowi has made the first changes to his Working Cabinet (Kabinet Kerja). Given the heated criticisms and public attacks of the past few months, the actual changes have barely caused a ripple in either Jokowi’s minority coalition or the majority opposition. Overall, […]
Jokowi’s Indonesia: A new sheriff in town
Indonesia is closing the books on 2014 facing significant economic headwinds but also experiencing some genuine optimism that freshly-elected President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) is making real progress safeguarding the budget, pushing administrative reforms badly needed to boost growth and reduce corruption and even consolidating his position in the badly-fragmented national legislature. From the November fuel […]