Dany Permana, Jakarta – Greater Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra) board of patrons chairperson Prabowo Subianto says he is grateful that the mechanism for electing regional heads through Regional Legislative Councils (DPRD) has become a reality.

Nala Edwin, Jakarta – Prabowo Subianto’s Red and White Coalition has succeeded in returning the election of regional heads into the hands of Regional Representative Councils (DPRD) as it was under the New Order dictatorship of former President Suharto.

Sabrina Asril, Jakarta – Democrat Party (DP) politician and lawmaker Ruhut Sitompul claims that they decided to walkout before a vote on a draft law on regional elections after being ordered to do so by DP faction chairperson Nurhayati Ali Assegaf.

Persiana Galih, Jakarta – A protest action at the entrance to the House of Representatives (DPR) building in Central Jakarta opposing the Draft Law on Regional Elections (RUU Pilkada) ended in chaos. Hundreds of workers and students clashed with police after they blockaded Jl. Gatot Subroto on Thursday September 25.

A last minute change of heart by President Yudhoyono’s Democrat Party, which will give a 14 seat majority in parliament to the parties opposing a draft law (RUU Pilkada) on regional elections, may not be enough to stop the passage of the bill with speculation rife that the Democrats are split as its key lawmakers have been offered leadership pos

As former New Order general Prabowo Subianto’s Red and White Coalition parliamentary majority prepares to pass a law that would put an end to the direct election of regional heads, a poll released Tuesday by the Indonesian Survey Circle found that 81.25% of respondents want local leaders to be elected directly by the people – not regional legisl

Jakarta – The Indonesian Ulama Council (MUI) believes that the election of regional heads should be carried out by regional legislative councils (DPRD) because representative elections through the DPRD can minimalise the negative aspect of direct elections.

Man: The people’s rights are being hijacked Mr

Rio Kuswandi, Bandung – An alliance of social groups from various sectors of society held a protest action in front of the Regional House of Representatives (DPRD) building on Jl. Diponegoro in the West Java provincial capital of Bandung on Wednesday September 10 to oppose the draft law on regional elections (RUU Pilkada).

Pribadi Wicaksono, Yogyakarta – The Yogyakarta Workers Alliance (ABY) has slammed the draft law on regional elections (RUU Pilkada) saying it will bring suffering to workers in the future.

Miftahul Khoer, Jakarta – The Jakarta Legal Aid Foundation (LBH) has disclosed that there are at least 35 retired generals supporting the Joko Widodo-Jusuf Kalla or Jokowi-JK presidential ticket.

Jakarta – The Civil Society Coalition for Security Sector Reform (KMSRSK) is calling for reform to military justice to be accelerated.

Jakarta – The long fight to uncover and moreover reconcile the 1965-66 affair is slowly starting to show results. Still needed of course is hard work and a readiness on the part of several parties to uncover the truth and come to terms with the facts of the affair.

Sherr Rinn – Between 2010-12 there was an awakening of the Indonesian labour movement that can be seen in the writings of people such as Danial Indrakusuma, Rahmat, Tarikh, Hidayah and Rekomendasi.

Ezra Sihite/Rizky Amelia/Ulin Yusron – It’s not just Ahok that has been brought into the central leadership board, but scores of retired generals have also joined the ranks of the Greater Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra Party) elite. In addition to this, there are family members and activists.

Man: Deputy regents (wakil bupati – regent’s representative) want to be regents! Deputy governors (wakil gubernur – governor’s representative) want to be governors! So Mr representative of the people (wakil rakyat) why don’t you want to be one of the people!

Muhammad Aminudin, Malang – The second year of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY) and Vice President Boediono’s administration was commemorated by students in the East Java city of Malang with a demonstration at the Malang city Regional House of Representatives (DPRD).

The political, economic, social and cultural situation, over which there has been great apprehension of late, has resulted in the public almost entirely loosing trust in those who run the country.

Jakarta – The political elite in this country should use the holy fasting month of Ramadan as a moment for introspection and evaluation, to ask whether their policies side with the ordinary people or not.

Jakarta – The House of Representatives (DPR) for the period 2009-2014 has been deliberating a packet of three political laws, namely Law Number 22/2007 on Election Organisers, Law Number 2/2008 on Political Parties and Law Number 10/2008 on the Election of Members of the DPR, DPD and DPRD.