Joko Widodo

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Francis Kicks Off Longest Trip of His Papacy

Pope touches down in Indonesia first to start longest journey of his papacy

(Newser) - Pope Francis arrived in Indonesia on Tuesday at the start of the longest trip of his pontificate, hoping to encourage its Catholic community and celebrate the tradition of interfaith harmony in a country with the world's largest Muslim population. After an overnight flight from Rome, Francis was wheeled off...

Indonesia Voted on Wednesday, and the Impact Will Ripple

Why it matters who is at the helm of the world's third-largest democracy

(Newser) - The world's third-largest democracy went to the polls on Wednesday, with an estimated 100 million people casting a ballot in the three-way race for Indonesia's next president. And while the results aren't final, the winner looks to be 72-year-old Prabowo Subianto, who according to unofficial tallies had...

One Nation's Capital Is Sinking. Solution? Build a New One

Indonesia is trying to do that, and the 'New York Times' digs into the huge challenges

(Newser) - Indonesia's capital of Jakarta has a fundamental problem: To put it simply, the city of 30 million people is sinking. President Joko Widodo has tried all kinds of "Sisyphean" solutions to fix things, writes Hannah Beach in the New York Times , but it appears the rising sea will...

World's 4th Most Populous Country to Get New Capital
Indonesia Chooses
Name for Its New Capital
UPDATED
Jan 18, 2022 2:40 PM CST

Indonesia Chooses Name for Its New Capital

So long, Jakarta

(Newser) - Update: If memorizing capitals is among your pastimes, here's a new one for you: Nusantara. That's the name that will grace Indonesia's new capital, which is set to take shape somewhere around 2024. It will replace the current government seat, Jakarta, areas of which are sinking at...

Indonesian PM, 6 Bigwigs Found 'Negligent' on Air Pollution

Court orders Joko Widodo, 6 other top officials to improve air quality in Jakarta

(Newser) - An Indonesian court ruled Thursday that President Joko Widodo and six other top officials have neglected citizens' rights to clean air and ordered them to improve the poor air quality in the current capital of Jakarta. A three-judge panel at the Central Jakarta District Court notched a victory for a...

Residents of 'Space Island' Tell Elon Musk to Stay Away

Biak Island elder says supporting Indonesian spaceport would mean 'sponsoring' genocide

(Newser) - Residents of a small island in Indonesia aren't too pleased to learn that their government has offered up their land to SpaceX boss Elon Musk. Indonesia President Joko Widodo has been encouraging Musk to build a rocket launch site in his country for months, per AFP . Biak's location,...

500-Mile Trek for Environment Has Unusual Twist

Indonesia's Medi Bastoni will be doing it backward, with the help of a rearview mirror

(Newser) - He's walking backward for a month in the hope of moving forward with forest conservation. The Guardian has the story of Medi Bastoni, an Indonesian man who set out Thursday to walk 500 miles in reverse from his village of Dono in East Java to the State Palace in...

He Placed Lewd Calls to Her. Now She's Going to Jail

Indonesian to serve 6 months for distributing obscene material after she taped a call

(Newser) - Women's rights advocates in Indonesia are outraged over a decision this week by the country's Supreme Court that will be sending the recipient of a lewd phone call to jail, and letting the supervisor who made the call walk away scot-free. Court documents cited by Reuters show Nuril...

2nd Family Carries Out Indonesia Suicide Attack

Police say church attack family spent time in Syria

(Newser) - Horror in Indonesia: For the second time in two days, a suicide bombing was carried out by an entire family, including a child, police say. Authorities say an 8-year-old girl was among five family members who attacked police headquarters in the city of Surabaya on Monday morning, the Guardian reports....

Indonesia to Kill, Castrate Pedophiles

New rules follow rape, murder of 14-year-old

(Newser) - Indonesia is officially a terrifying place for pedophiles: Effective immediately, child sex offenders can face the death penalty or chemical castration under new rules approved by President Joko Widodo, reports AFP . Offenders can also receive a maximum of 20 years in jail—double the previous maximum sentence—and may be...

10 Most Popular Leaders, According to Facebook

President Obama is the easy winner, but Queen Rania is in the top 10

(Newser) - Well, it's one way to measure world leaders: The PR firm Burson-Marsteller has taken a look at the Facebook pages of global bigwigs and provided a ranking based on their number of likes. Personal pages are counted separately from institutional pages, which is why President Obama's page and...

At Least 7 Dead in 'Paris-Style' Jakarta Attacks

Assault began with explosion in Starbucks

(Newser) - Attackers set off explosions at a Starbucks cafe in a bustling shopping area in Indonesia's capital and waged gunbattles with police Thursday, leaving bodies in the streets as office workers watched in terror from high-rise buildings. Police said five attackers and two civilians were killed, while 10 people were...

Man Born in Slum Becomes Indonesia's President

Joko Widodo rises to top post of world's largest Muslim-majority nation

(Newser) - He grew up in a slum on the island of Java and has never been considered part of his country's political elite, but today, Joko Widodo was inaugurated as Indonesia's seventh president. The 53-year-old "commoner"—who previously plied his trade as a furniture exporter and served...

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