Everything you need to know about Indonesia: news, reviews, in-depth analysis, opinion and more
Indonesia: World's Most Populous Muslim Country and Biggest Archipelago
Sophisticated kingdoms ruled Indonesia before the Dutch colonized it in the early 17th century and ruled over it for two centuries. Later on the islands were occupied by Japan from 1942 to 1945, when it won its freedom. Indonesia is the world's largest archipelago and home to the world's largest Muslim population. In 1965 long-term leader General Suharto came to power and imposed authoritarian rule in the country. And also permitted technocrats to run the economy. Involvement of Army in executing government policies and programs have given birth to large-scale corruption in Indonesia. This mass corruption and citizen harassment by Armed forces ousted General Suharto from power in 1998. In the post Suharto era Indonesia brought major changes in its constitution and in the power structure. The first direct presidential elections were held in 2004.
Indonesia Profile: Overview of Facts and Figures
Geographical Information on Indonesia :
Indonesia is a Southeastern Asian country comprising of 17,508 islands and the world's largest archipelago. Indonesia shares its borders with Papua New Guinea, East Timor and Malaysia. Indonesia is a part of the ?ring of fire' that has the largest number of active volcanoes in the world.
Lying along the equator Indonesia enjoys a tropical climate, with two distinct monsoonal wet and dry seasons.
Culture and Cuisine Of Indonesia:
Indonesia comprises of around 300 ethnic groups and each ethnic group has its own culture and following. The co-existence of various cultures provides diversity to Indonesian culture, which has been influenced by Indian, Arabic, Chinese, Malay, and European cultures.
Cuisine of Indonesia varies from region to region and culture to culture. The way of preparation and cooking of Indonesia foods finds it influence from Chinese, European, Middle Eastern and Indian sources. Rice is the main staple food and is served with side dishes of meat and vegetables.
Tourist Attraction of Indonesia:
The attractions of Indonesia ranges from historical to traditional and modern as well. The historical and traditional heritage of Indonesia is very rich and colourful that attracts tourists and travelers.
Borobudur Temple: This is a very ancient temple is located in the northwest part of Yogyakarta. This temple was built during the reign of the Sailendra rulers. With the help of UNESCO this temple was restored and presently is a major tourist destination.
Monkey Forest Sanctuary: This is a unique Indonesian attraction and is an enclosed area where there are many grey monkeys and also a temple that is known as the temple of dead. The mystery behind this temple attracts tourists all over.
Golden Triangle : This is major tourist attraction in Jakarta. At night the sight become all the more attractive for the artistic decoration and lighting. The combination of lights and sounds mesmerizes people.
Major Sight-seeing Places in Indonesia include:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi condoles death of passengers of AirAsia Flight QZ8501, which went missing while flying from Indonesia to Singapore.
Washington, May 3 (ANI): India is leading other countries in the world with the highest number of deaths due to preterm births by a difference of millions, according to a new report.
Washington, May 3 (ANI): India is leading other countries in the world with the highest number of deaths due to preterm births by a difference of millions, according to a new report.
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Jakarta, May 3 (IANS/AKI) Four members of a gang who posed as police officers to extort money from people have been arrested in the Indonesian capital.
Washington, May 2 (IANS) The United States has put India, China, Pakistan and ten other countries on a priority watch list for allegedly providing insufficient protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights or limited market access.
Jakarta, May 1 (Xinhua-ANI): A senior European Union (EU) official said here on Tuesday that EU will cut aid to Indonesia in the fields of education, good governance, climate change, and trade investment in 2014, a local media reported.
Abu Dhabi, April 30 (IANS/WAM) The Indonesian government has urged the UAE companies to tap opportunities in that country.
Washington, April 29 (IANS) President Barack Obama turned comic for a night to poke fun at everything, from the Secret Service scandal to his top diplomat Hillary Clinton, to his likely Republican rival Mitt Romney's dog.
Thiruvananthapuram, April 29 (IANS) Can a monkey do a man's job? Yes, when it comes to climbing tall coconut trees and plucking its fruits - a skill that has been hit by labour shortage, say the Kerala authorities.
Singapore, April 28 (IANS) India slipped down on the final day of the Queen Sirikit Cup golf here Saturday as all three players succumbed under pressure.
Washington, April 27 (IANS) The oil palm plantations on Borneo island, a part of which falls in Indonesia, would become a key source of greenhouse gas emissions by 2020 if they continue to grow unchecked, says a new study.
Singapore, April 26 (IANS) The Indian women's team at the 34th Queen Sirikit Cup moved up one place Thursday and gave themselves a realistic chance of contending for a podium place at the Tanah Merah Country Club (Garden). India are now lying fifth at the end of the second day of the competition.
Jakarta, April 26 (Xinhua-ANI): Bali, the most popular tourist destination island in Indonesia, will host Miss World pageant, one of the oldest major international beauty pageants in the world, next year, local media reported on Thursday.
Jakarta, April 26 (Xinhua-ANI): An Indonesian senior official said on Thursday that Indonesia will suspend imports of U.S. beef from Thursday because of a confirmed U.S. case of mad cow disease, a local media reported here.
Washington, Apr 26 (ANI): Using the high-precision analysis of GPS data from the Fukushima earthquake of 11 March 2011, scientists at the German Research Centre for Geosciences GFZ believe the earthquake magnitude and the spatial distribution can be determined in just over three minutes, allowing for a rapid and detailed tsunami early warning.
Yangon, April 26 (IANS) Revenue from Myanmar's natural gas exports rose by $640 million to $3.5 billion in the fiscal year 2011-12.
London, Apr 25 (ANI): A French swimmer, who has no arms or legs, has announced his plans to swim around the world.
New Delhi, April 25 (IANS) India's top men's badminton player Ajay Jayaram and Kashyap Parupalli advanced to the second round of the Yonex India Open 2012 at the Siri Fort Sports Complex here Wednesday.
Sydney, Apr 24 (ANI): Former Australian prime minister Malcolm Fraser has said that the new American marine 'base' near Darwin is a mistake, and added that his nation's grovelling to the US is affecting relations with Asia.
Jakarta, April 24 (IANS) Mount Lokon in Indonesia's North Sulawesi province erupted Tuesday, an official said here.
Islamabad, April 23 (IANS) The Pakistani Navy Monday inducted its first fast attack missile boat - PNS Azmat - in a bid to boost its advanced warfare capability and prowess.
Chennai, April 22 (IANS) Buoyed by bilateral trade between Indonesia and India touching a record $20 billion and increasing at a steady pace, an Indian business delegation will visit the south east Asian country next month to explore investment opportunities, a top official said Sunday.
Jakarta, Ape 21(ANI): Ten men and a woman have been publicly caned for gambling and indulging in immoral behavior under the Islamic law that is followed in the conservative Aceh province of Indonesia, according to the authorities.
Jakarta, April 21 (IANS) A 6.8-magnitude undersea quake Saturday jolted Indonesia's West Papua province, but there was no danger of a tsunami, the meteorology agency said.
Jakarta, April 21 (Xinhua-ANI)): An earthquake measuring 6.8 Richter scale jolted West Papua in eastern parts of Indonesia earlier Saturday, but there was no potential of tsunami, the Meteorology and Geophysics Agency reported here.
Jakarta, April 20 (IANS) An Indonesia football coach has been banned for four games and fined by FIFA for accusing match officials of taking bribes during a 10-0 loss to Bahrain in World Cup qualifying.
Phnom Penh (Cambodia), April 20 (Xinhua-ANI): Cambodia will host regional security meetings next week among the 10-member the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and eight dialogue partners.
Washington, Apr 19 (ANI): Identifying people by capturing pictures of their eyes is becoming easier, a new study has revealed.
Jakarta, April 19 (Xinhua-ANI): An Indonesia soccer coach has been banned for four games and fined by FIFA for accusing match officials of taking bribes during a 10-0 loss to Bahrain in World Cup qualifying, a media reported here.
Sydney, April 19 (IANS) Buoyed by the number of Indian tourists flocking to Australia, an influential tourism promotional body has asked the Australian government to invest $1 billion to attract more visitors from India and other Asian countries in the next decade.
London, April 18 (IANS) Orangutans are turning out to be smart designers, going by the sophisticated way they build their nests, says a scientific study.
Washington, Apr 18 (ANI): Barack Obama apparently had an odd past with the man's best friend.
Washington, April 17 (IANS) With the notable exception of India, a number of economies in emerging Asia have room to make policy more supportive of economic activity, given favourable debt dynamics, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said Tuesday.
Inflation has long been the common man's concern about economy. Though inflation is the most immediate economic parameter to be associated with the hike of price, it has its long and far reaching effects on the society and social concerns. The monetary strategies in the international level are less vulnerable to the effects of global inflation than the currencies of the poorer and developing nations.
Moscow, April 12 (IANS/RIA Novosti) Russia needs to invigorate its efforts to implement commercial space projects jointly with the European Space Agency and individual space powers, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has said.
Bangalore, April 12 (IANS) Scientists had been expecting Wednesday's great earthquake off Sumatra but it occurred a little sooner, according to Arun Bapat, an Indian seismologist in Pune.
New Delhi, April 12 (IANS) Passenger car market leader Maruti Suzuki Thursday made an entry into the multi utility vehicle (MUV) segment, launching Ertiga, priced between Rs.5.89 lakh and Rs.7.30 lakh for the petrol variant and Rs.7.90 lakh and Rs.8.45 lakh for the diesel-powered one (ex-showroom Delhi).
New Delhi, April 12 (IANS) A day after a massive earthquake close to Indonesia triggered fears of another tsunami, India Thursday called for greater cooperation with nations of the Southeast Asian region to meet growing non-traditional security threats such as natural calamities, epidemic, piracy and transnational crimes.
London, Apr 12(ANI): England fast bowler Tim Bresnan, who is currently in the Maldives for his wedding, had to sit tight and hope that the tsunami didn't reach Maldives after news of the earthquake in Indonesia.
Jakarta, April 12 (IANS) Five people were killed and four injured in Aceh province Wednesday after two massive quakes struck off Indonesia, officials said Thursday.
Jakarta, April 12 (IANS) One person was killed and four injured following massive earthquakes in Indonesia's Aceh Wednesday, an official said here Thursday.
Chennai, April 11 (IANS) Fear gripped Tamil Nadu and a tsunami alert was sounded Wednesday after two powerful earthquakes in Indonesia triggered strong tremors across the state.
New Delhi, Apr 11 (ANI): Union Home Secretary R.K. Singh on Wednesday said he has spoken to all the Chief Secretaries of the coastal states including Andaman and Nicobar Islands following the 8.5 magnitude earthquake, which struck the western coast of Indonesia.
Mumbai, April 11 (IANS) Filmmaker Pooja Bhatt and the crew members of "Jism 2" found themselves caught in the tsunami scare Wednesday while they were scouting locations for the movie in Phuket, Thailand.
New Delhi/Hong Kong, April 11 (IANS) Two massive quakes shook Sumatra in Indonesia Wednesday, triggering a tsunami alert in 28 countries including India and panic all across India's east coast. There were no reports of casualties.
Panaji, April 11 (IANS) Fearing a tsunami, the Goa government ordered tourists off the beaches here after a massive earthquake rocked Indonesia.
New Delhi, April 11 (IANS) The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) here Wednesday appealed to people, particularly near coastal areas to not panic as there was no tsunami threat to India, after the massive earthquake in Indonesia.
New Delhi, April 11 (IANS) India Wednesday kept its air force and navy teams ready to address any eventuality in case a tsunami hits coastal states following an earthquake off Indonesia.
New Delhi/Hong Kong, April 11 (IANS) Many states along India's east coast felt tremors after an earthquake measuring 8.5 on the Richter scale rocked Sumatra in Indonesia Wednesday. Disaster management experts said there was no threat of a tsunami in India, but fishermen were still warned against venturing into the sea.
New Delhi, April 11 (IANS) India Wednesday asked states along its east coast to be on high alert amid tsunami fears following a massive earthquake in Indonesia.
Hong Kong, April 11 (IANS) A second temblor, this one measuring 8.2 on the Richter scale, struck off the west coast of northern Sumatra Wednesday, hours after a more intense earthquake shook the area.
London, April 11 (IANS) The nature of the massive earthquake that struck off Indonesia Wednesday makes it "less likely to produce a destructive tsunami", an expert said.
Kolkata/Chennai, Apr 11 (ANI): With an earthquake of 8.7 magnitude striking the western coast of Indonesia and tremors being felt in the eastern parts of India, residents of Kolkata and Chennai on Wednesday appeared to be very tense hoping that there is no loss to life or property.
Jakarta, Apr 11 (ANI): A massive 8.7 earthquake has struck off the western coast of Indonesia triggering fears of a "devastating" tsunami.
Washington, April 11 (IANS) The massive earthquake that shook Indonesia Wednesday brought back terrifying memories of the 2004 tsunami that swept through Aceh province.
The recent Earthquake, which hits Indonesia and many countries including India, has once again raised the memoirs of Tsunami.
Colombo, April 11 (IANS) Sri Lanka issued a tsunami warning after a massive earthquake jolted Sumatra, officials said here Wednesday.
Colombo, April 11 (IANS) People in Sri Lankan capital Colombo and several other parts of the island felt tremors following a major earthquake that struck Indonesia Wednesday.
Jakarta, Apr 11 (ANI): A massive earthquake has hit the West Coast of Sumatra, at a magnitude of 8.7 on the Richter scale.
New Delhi/Hong Kong, April 11 (IANS) Many states along India's east coast felt tremors as a high intensity earthquake rocked Sumatra Wednesday, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said. A tsunami warning has been issued in India and 27 other countries
An earthquake of 8.9 magnitudes has hit Indonesia. After which Indonesia has issued a tsunami warning. Besides Indonesia, tremors were also felt in 28 countries.
Hong Kong, April 11 (IANS) A tsunami alert has been sounded in 28 places across the world, including India, after a massive earthquake rocked Indonesia Wednesday.
Hong Kong, April 11 (IANS) An earthquake measuring 8.9 on the Richter scale was felt off the west coast of northern Sumatra in Indonesia Wednesday, the US Geological Survey said.
London, Apr 11 (ANI): Asia's rapid economic growth may undermine stability because the gap between the rich and poor is widening in India and other Asia countries, the Asia Development Bank (ADB) has revealed in its annual report.
New Delhi, April 10 (IANS) The visas on arrival issued to foreign tourists from 11 countries saw a jump of 34 percent during January-March this year compared to the same period in 2011, officials said Tuesday.
United Nations, April 6 (IANS) The 2011 version of a UN report on urbanization has projected that there will be significant increases in population in cities on the Asian and African continents by the year 2050, an official said here.
New Delhi, April 6 (IANS) As WHO focusses on healthy ageing as its theme for the World Health Day Saturday, experts say sedentary lifestyles and growing psycho-social factors are affecting the health of India's elderly.
Sydney, April 4 (IANS) The first batch of about 200 US marines have arrived in Australia's Darwin city as part of a defence deal, Australian Defence Minister Stephen Smith announced Wednesday.
Phnom Penh, April 3 (IANS) Cambodia, the current ASEAN chair, has called for stronger financial cooperation among its member countries to promote economic growth.
London, March 29 (IANS) Indonesia has plans to ban the mini-skirt under its stringent anti-pornography laws as it believes "they make men do things".
Jakarta, Mar.29 (ANI): Indonesia's Religious Affairs Minister Suryadharma Ali has declared that mini-skirts are pornographic and would be banned under the country's tough new anti-porn laws.
New Delhi, March 27 (IANS) The United Nations Children's Fund (Unicef) Tuesday stressed the urgent need for India, the first among 12 countries where open defecation takes place, to check and curb the practice and reduce the high rate of water-borne disease in rural communities.
Washington, Mar 27(ANI): The United States and Australia are planning to augment military ties, including possible drone attacks from a coral atoll in the Indian Ocean and increased U.S. naval access to Australian ports.
Beijing, March 23 (IANS) China and Indonesia Friday pledged to cement their ties and push forward their cooperation in east Asia.
Chennai, March 23 (IANS) Japanese automobile maker Nissan Motor Ltd Friday announced appointment of Takayuki Ishida as the managing director of its Indian subsidiary Nissan Motor India Pvt Ltd, while Toshihiko Sana will be the new head of the Renault Nissan Automotive India Pvt Ltd.
London, March 23 (IANS) An Indonesian boy has been smoking since he was four years old and gets through a pack of 20 cigarettes in just one day.
Beijing, March 23 (ANI): China and Indonesia have agreed to strengthen consultation and enhance cooperation to raise their bilateral ties to a higher level.
Washington, Mar 21 (ANI): The land of strange animals and an incredible biodiversity hotspot, Madagascar was also one of the last places to be inhabited by humans.
Washington, Mar 21 (ANI): The land of strange animals and an incredible biodiversity hotspot, Madagascar was also one of the last places to be inhabited by humans.
London, Mar 13 (ANI): An eight-year-old Indonesian boy reportedly smokes two packets of cigarettes a day and even gets angry if they are withheld from him.
London, Mar 13 (ANI): An eight-year-old Indonesian boy reportedly smokes two packets of cigarettes a day and even gets angry if they are withheld from him.
Jakarta, Mar 7 (ANI): The Union Minister for Commerce, Industry and Textiles Anand Sharma has said India and Indonesia will reach target trade worth US 25 billion dollars by 2015 ahead of schedule.
Jakarta, Mar 7 (ANI): The Union Minister for Commerce, Industry and Textiles Anand Sharma has said India and Indonesia will reach target trade worth US 25 billion dollars by 2015 ahead of schedule.
New Delhi, Mar 3 (ANI): An Indonesian army officer has named his son 'Ashwathama', which has been drawn from the Indian mythological epic 'Mahabharata'.
New Delhi, Mar 3 (ANI): An Indonesian army officer has named his son 'Ashwathama', which has been drawn from the Indian mythological epic 'Mahabharata'.
Washington, Feb 18 (ANI): Climate warming caused by greenhouse gases is very likely to increase the variability of summertime temperatures around the world by the end of this century, which will have serious effects in food production, claims a University of Washington scientist.
Washington, Feb 18 (ANI): Climate warming caused by greenhouse gases is very likely to increase the variability of summertime temperatures around the world by the end of this century, which will have serious effects in food production, claims a University of Washington scientist.
Paris, Feb 17 (ANI): An international money-laundering watchdog has added Pakistan, Indonesia, Ghana, Tanzania and Thailand to its blacklist of nations that fail to meet international standards.
Abu Dhabi, Feb 5(ANI): Over 15,000 people were present on the first two days of the India Fest 2012, showcasing India's cultural diversity alongwith its cuisine, in Abu Dhabi.
London, Feb 4 (ANI): A majority of the 2012 London souvenirs, including Union Jack-emblazoned tea cups, tea towels, crystal ware and fluffy toys are produced by workers abroad, mainly China.
London, Feb 4 (ANI): A majority of the 2012 London souvenirs, including Union Jack-emblazoned tea cups, tea towels, crystal ware and fluffy toys are produced by workers abroad, mainly China.
Baghdad, Jan 30 (ANI): Iraqi officials have expressed anger over American surveillance drones patrolling over its skies to protect the US embassy and consulates in the country.
Baghdad, Jan 30 (ANI): Iraqi officials have expressed anger over American surveillance drones patrolling over its skies to protect the US embassy and consulates in the country.
