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Why has the Indonesian response to Covid-19 been so ineffective? How can disagreements over its management be resolved? Dr Dirk Tomsa discusses these issues and more with Dr Riris Andono Ahmad in Talking Indonesia.

Modelling indicates an urgent need for action by the government, health authorities, and the public, writes Ben Phillips

Scholars have said China had an “authoritarian advantage” in responding to SARS in 2002-2003. But Robertus Robet writes that in the case of Covid-19, there appears to be no such advantage.

Calls are growing for the government to ban the post-Ramadan exodus to the regions (mudik) to prevent further spread of Covid-19. But as Dr Belinda Spagnoletti writes, mudik is also an important safety net for those living in precarity.

What are the barriers for LGBT Indonesians to access basic services, including health care, and what are the implications if they are left behind? Dr Jemma Purdey chats to Ignatius Praptoraharjo in the latest episode of Talking Indonesia.

President Joko Widodo’s focus on the economy led him to initially ignore the seriousness of the coronavirus threat, writes Ahmad Syarif Syechbubakr.

Ravando Lie looks at what lessons the colonial government’s experience with the 1918 Spanish Flu could provide for Indonesia as it struggles to get on top of Covid-19.

Critics of the gig economy say it erodes workers’ rights and makes work more precarious. How do these dynamics play out in Indonesia, where a large portion of the workforce is already in insecure and informal work? Dr Dave McRae speaks to Diatyka Widya Permata Yasih in the latest episode of Talking Indonesia.

The president is signalling a shift in energy policy away from coal, but mining for the resource shows no signs of slowing. Article 33’s Santoso gives a closer view of what the practice is costing communities on the ground.

Indonesian girls are now outperforming boys in both literacy and numeracy in the early grades. But as Senza Arsendy and George Sukoco write, the picture is more complicated at the high school level.

A laughable claim about the danger of falling pregnant in swimming pools raises serious concerns about the state of adolescent sexual and reproductive health in Indonesia, writes SurveyMETER’s Dwi Oktarina

The national legislature (DPR) recently published its long list of priority bills (Prolegnas) for 2020. Rizky Argama looks at some of the problematic bills planned for deliberation and how the process could be better managed.

In a disease outbreak like coronavirus, who should the public trust? Conversely, how can the government show that it is a trustworthy source of information? Krishna Hort, Angus Campbell and Tiara Marthias look at the challenges of health communication.

What does the history of Chinese Indonesian performing arts say about ethnic Chinese strategies for self-representation over time? Dr Charlotte Setijadi chats to Dr Josh Stenberg about this question and more in the latest episode of Talking Indonesia.

Despite mass student protests and an intervention by the president, legislators last week picked up where they left off on dangerous revisions to the mining law, write JATAM’s Merah Johansyah and Alwiya Shahbanu.