Nearly 800 migrants from Burma and Bangladesh were rescued by local fishermen when their boat sank off the eastern coast of Indonesia. The migrants were brought to shore, given food and water, and placed in a warehouse.
Indonesia is facing international backlash after it was revealed the government requires female military recruits to undergo virginity tests. It is the second time in the past 6 months human rights organizations put pressure on the country to drop these tests.
Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia have turned away boats laden with thousands of migrants headed for their shores. Officials from the two countries met the boats, handed over fuel and supplies and sent them on their way. As Europe wrangles over the
Proponents of stricter Islamic regulations in Indonesia have scored another victory with the passage of sharia measures mandating the separation of sexes in educational institutions and certain social situations.
On Monday, only five days before he will fight Floyd Mayweather, 38, in the richest fight in history, Filipino fighter Manny Pacquiao, 36, appeared on a video call on the Philippines, GMA News TV to plead with Indonesian President Joko Widodo for the life of a Filipina scheduled to be executed on Tuesday for dealing drugs.
Indonesian police accidentally intoxicated the population of an entire town by burning 1,100 pounds of marijuana in Tangerang, 15.5 miles west of Jakarta. The amount added up to almost $1 million.
As Islam conquered what was formerly a Christian Middle East; what was formerly a Hindu, Buddhist, Zoroastrian, and Christian Central Asia (India, Persia, Afghanistan, parts of Russia); what was formerly a pagan, animist and Christian Africa; Islam also conquered what was formerly a Hindu and Buddhist Indonesia and Malaysia.
Sanity has just prevailed in Muslim-majority Indonesia. An attempt to impose virginity tests on female high school students in the city of Jember has failed. A public outcry, led by human rights groups, as well as by Indonesia’s Muslim clerics, has led to the rescinding of a virginity requirement for girls-only in high school. Non-virgins would not have been entitled to their diplomas.
A South Korean government source told The Korea Herald the Indonesian government will invite North Korea leader Kim Jong-Un to the Bandung Conference in April.
Indonesian Lieutenant Airman Tri Wobowo, a pilot who was among the first to identify debris from AirAsia flight QZ8501, reported that some victims found in the wreckage appeared to have held hands as the plane crashed into the ocean.
As Indonesian officials continue to search for missing AirAsia Flight QZ8501, the human toll this mystery is taking on those directly involved is coming to the fore, as families await eagerly news of their loved ones’ fate. Not all who could have taken the flight out of Indonesia were on board, however– and one family of five escaped being on board entirely thanks to a sick grandfather.
Louise Sidharta, 25, from Indonesia, could not wait to see her fiancée Alain, 27, and enjoy one last vacation before their wedding in May.
Indonesian Home Affairs Minister Tjahjo Kumolo announced the country will stop administering virginity tests for female civil servants at the Institute of Public Administration. Students attend the college to train for civil and regional administration jobs.
