Rakhmat Nur Hakim, Jakarta – Coordinating Minister for Security, Politics and Legal Affairs Mahfud MD says that democracy, which has developed rapidly in the public realm, has resulted in the government feeling that it is wrong whatever it does.

Palupi Annisa Auliani (editor) – The threat posed by the Covid-19 pandemic has distracted public attention. In the mist of the panic among the public, many strategic decisions on public policies have been taken without public involvement or participation.

Jakarta – Arif Susanto, a political analyst from the think tank Exposit Strategic, has criticised Presidential Chief of Staff Expert Donny Gahral Adian who said recently that buzzers are an unavoidable part of democracy.

Achmad Nasrudin Yahya, Jakarta – The Labour Movement with the People (Gebrak) has asserted that there will be no compromise with the government or the House of Representatives (DPR) over their opposition to the Draft Omnibus Law on Job Creation (RUU Cipta Kerja).

Irfan Kamil, Jakarta – National Human Rights Commission (Komnas HAM) Commissioner for Study and Research, Sandrayati Moniaga, says that the commission is recommending that deliberations on the Draft Omnibus Law on Job Creation (RUU Cipta Kerja) not be continued.

Jakarta – Papuan activist and former political prisoner Filep Karma says there are differences in how demonstrations proceed in Papua and Jakarta. He says that in Papua, demonstrations are not as free and easy as in Jakarta.

Jakarta – The election monitoring group Association for Elections and Democracy (Perludem) is predicting that there will be 31 regions where there will be sole candidates in the 2020 elections of regional heads (pilkada).

Writing on picture reads “Regional head”

Man: Before it was the father, now the mother, what next, the kids?

Kid: When do I get a go Dad?

Achmad Nasrudin Yahya, Jakarta – The Civil Society Coalition for Security Sector Reform is urging the government and the House of Representatives (DPR) to be transparent in its deliberations on the Draft Presidential Regulation (Perpres) on the Role of the Indonesian Military in Tackling Terrorism.

Jakarta – West Papua province has again been recorded as having the worst democracy index. This year (2019), West Papua’s Democracy Index (IDI) was 57.62, even dropping lower from 2018 when it was 58.29 points.

Zakarias Demon Daton, Samarinda – Health officials in Samarinda, East Kalimantan, tried to force three activists to undergo isolation at a local hospital after claiming that they had tested positive for Covid-19.

Jakarta – Kalimantan Islamic University (Uniska) political observer Muhammad Uhaib As’ad says that the democratic process in Indonesia post reformasi – the political reform process that began in 1998 – is still being held hostage by the power of money.

On Monday July 27 in the Central Java city of Yogyakarta, SOLIDER (People’s Solidarity for Democracy) held a commemoration of the Kudatuli affair (the July 1996 riots), which was a manifestation of the conflict between the ordinary people and the New Order regime of former president Suharto.

Solo – A recommendation by the ruling Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) to back President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s eldest son Gibran Rakabuming Raka as a mayoral candidate in the regional elections in Solo, Central Java, has attracted criticism from student groups in the city.

Jakarta – Representatives of demonstrators who held a protest action against the Draft Omnibus Law on Job Creation said they were disappointed after meeting with leaders from the House of Representatives (DPR) at the parliamentary complex in Senayan, Central Jakarta, late on Thursday July 16.

Sania Mashabi, Jakarta – Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI) Chairperson Asfinawati has revealed several indicators that show the Indonesian government wants to return to the era of Suharto’s New Order regime.

Raja Umar, Banda Aceh – Pictures of a group of women cyclists wearing tight clothing and no headscarfs riding around the Acehnese provincial capital of Banda Aceh has gone viral on social media.

The photos and videos of the women wearing sexy pink tops invited criticism from netizens.

A 27-year-old man with the initials “JS” in Payakumbuh city, West Sumatra, has been arrested for wearing a red T-shirt with a hammer-and-sickle logo – the symbol of communism – displayed on it.

Jakarta – The Lokataru Legal and Human Rights Foundation says that there are two problems with the police which have developed during the era of President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s administration. These two problems relate to politicisation and police professionalism.

Man in boat: Can they still hear our voices?

According to two recent surveys, most Indonesians disagree with the government’s decision to hold the 2020 simultaneous regional elections (Pilkada) on December 9 as uncertainty remains over when the Covid-19 pandemic will end.