Indonesia: Economic and Political Overview
In 2021, the President Joko Widodo pulled another political party, the National Mandate Party, into his expanding coalition, which now controls 82 percent of the 575 seats in the House of Representatives. Despite growing public concern about pressures on civil liberties and the government’s pandemic difficulties, he remains incredibly popular with Indonesian voters. The President has accelerated the construction of dozens of much-needed highways, ports, and airports, with traffic-clogged Jakarta getting the country’s first-ever subway line in 2019. But in 2021, in the context of an aggravating COVID crisis, he struggled to deliver on his promises of high economic growth, pro-business reform, and improved social welfare.
President Joko Widodo, constitutionally barred from a third term, will lose influence as would-be successors jostle for position ahead of elections in 2024, but he will double down on efforts to attract increasing foreign direct investment into downstream heavy industries before his final term ends in mid-2024. His administration will make only token gestures on other pressing political matters, including addressing the political strife in Indonesia's Eastern provinces and reducing corruption. As Indonesia is bracing for a tumultuous political year in 2023, as parties gear up for the upcoming general elections next year, Joko Widodo's preferred successor, the current governor of Central Java, Ganjar Pranowo, should secure the presidency in 2024. Most other parties in the ruling coalition have yet to nominate their presidential candidates, while those which have are still leaving the door open for changes.
Uncertainties in an election year will undoubtedly have an impact on the economy, especially regarding investments, according to Center of Reform on Economics (CORE) Indonesia executive director Mohammad Faisal.
The world rankings, published annually, measures violations of press freedom worldwide. It reflects the degree of freedom enjoyed by journalists, the media and digital citizens of each country and the means used by states to respect and uphold this freedom. Finally, a note and a position are assigned to each country. To compile this index, Reporters Without Borders (RWB) prepared a questionnaire incorporating the main criteria (44 in total) to assess the situation of press freedom in a given country. This questionnaire was sent to partner organisations,150 RWB correspondents, journalists, researchers, jurists and human rights activists. It includes every kind of direct attacks against journalists and digital citizens (murders, imprisonment, assault, threats, etc.) or against the media (censorship, confiscation, searches and harassment etc.).
The Indicator of Political Freedom provides an annual evaluation of the state of freedom in a country as experienced by individuals. The survey measures freedom according to two broad categories: political rights and civil liberties. The ratings process is based on a checklist of 10 political rights questions (on Electoral Process, Political Pluralism and Participation, Functioning of Government) and 15 civil liberties questions (on Freedom of Expression, Belief, Associational and Organizational Rights, Rule of Law, Personal Autonomy and Individual Rights). Scores are awarded to each of these questions on a scale of 0 to 4, where a score of 0 represents the smallest degree and 4 the greatest degree of rights or liberties present. The total score awarded to the political rights and civil liberties checklist determines the political rights and civil liberties rating. Each rating of 1 through 7, with 1 representing the highest and 7 the lowest level of freedom, corresponds to a range of total scores.
Political freedom in the world (interactive map)
Source: Freedom in the World Report, Freedom House
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Latest Update: November 2023