Bakso seller: Mr President! Was it in the interests of Indonesian-American relations or for the sake of... bakso!

Against a backdrop of humanitarian disasters and anti-US protests, President Obama’s first visit to Indonesia was overshadowed by the ‘handshakegate’ affair after Communications Minister Tifatul Sembiring found himself at the centre of a media maelstrom for shaking hands with First Lady Michelle Obama after he swore he would not touch a woman to

Man: Rattan also needs image building, right?

Rattan producers say that the government needs to promote the rattan industry and lift a ban on the export of unprocessed fiber, which has resulted in a dramatic decline in the numbers of raw rattan producers and threatens a formerly a reliable source of income for many local communities.

Dini Mawuntyas, Surabaya – The head of the board of directors of the Tanjung Perak branch of the Land Transport Organisation in the East Java provincial capital of Surabaya, Kodi Lomahayu, says that 6,000 transport workers at the port are threatened with dismissal.

Jakarta – The national banking industry appears to be controlled by foreign interests. The proportion of foreign ownership has steadily risen to almost half of the total capacity of the banking industry.

Jakarta – Human rights organisations the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras), the Human Rights Working Group (HRWG) and Indonesian Human Rights Watch (Imparsial) have called on the Indonesia-East Timor Commission of Truth and Friendship (CTF) to immediately hand over the results of its work and those that the institu

Ari Saputra, Jakarta – Workers had their own way of commemorating the anniversary of Indonesia’s independence. Around 80 protesters from the Indonesian National Front for Labour Struggle (FNPBI) held an demonstration among the factories in the Nusantara Bonded Zone (KBN) in Cakung, North Jakarta on Friday August 17.

M. Rizal Maslan, Jakarta – The House of Representatives (DPR) Commission I on foreign affairs has commended the measures being taken by the National Intelligence Agency (BIN) in conducting a counter campaign against foreign parties linked to the issue of West Papua.

[The following is a compilation of abridged translations of protests between November 17-18 against US President George W. Bush's planned visit to the West Java city of Bogor on November 20. Translated by James Balowski.]

Palu students continue protests against Bush

[The following is a compilation of abridged translations of protests between November 15-16 against US President George W. Bush's planned visit to the West Java city of Bogor on November 20. Translated by James Balowski.]

No end in sight for Anti-Bush demonstrations in Bogor