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Dear reader,

Animals kept in enclosures probably don’t have the best of lives, but they need not be humiliated further by human insolence. More on that in a story highlight below, involving a hippo and a plastic bag.

Before I let you go, this edition of Nusantara Notes is once again sponsored. Loyal readers, you know what to do; new readers, your clicking the ad at the end of this newsletter helps humble independent writers like me immensely, so I hope you take a couple of seconds out of your day to do so.

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Cheers,

Andra

Law/Politics

• The Presidential Palace has apologized for a recent incident in Sampit, Central Kalimantan in which President Joko Widodo’s motorcade was given priority over an ambulance carrying a patient in critical condition. The palace stressed that emergency vehicles should always take priority over even the president’s vehicle, and that the fault was in local police who were directing traffic.

• The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) has shot down rumors that it will replace Secretary General Hasto Kristiyanto amid his ongoing Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) questioning over the whereabouts of graft fugitive and former PDI-P cadre Harun Masiku. PDI-P said the party is being unfairly attacked through Hasto in this saga.

• The Jakarta Metro Police will not detain embattled former KPK Chief Firly Bahuri after a shocking recent allegation that he, ironically, received IDR 1.3 billion in bribes from former Agriculture Minister Syahrul Yasin Limpo. Syahrul made the claim in his corruption trial, but the Jakarta Metro Police said it was already aware of the allegation and had no grounds for his arrest. Instead, Firli may soon be charged in a new corruption case.

• The National Democratic (Nasdem) party is endorsing Zulkieflimansyah for reelection in the West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) gubernatorial race in November. The party credited Zulkieflimansyah as having a great role in putting the province on the global map, such as through hosting MotoGP in Lombok.

Business/Economy

• Coordinating Economic Affairs Minister Airlangga Hartarto said there will be no price hikes for fuel and electricity in July. The government has yet to decide when and if it will adjust subsidies for either, as demand remains stable for both.

• State-owned pharmaceutical firm Kimia Farma is shutting down five of its 10 factories, as well as some of its more than 1,200 pharmacy outlets. The streamlining of operations is being carried out in response to the company’s reported financial woes.

• Indonesians are bearish on stocks, with The Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) boss acknowledging a shift of investors moving to other financial instruments. This trend reflects a changing investment landscape as market participants seek more potentially safer options such as mutual funds.

• Let this be a lesson for us to settle on who settles the bill when you eat out with friends. A restaurant in Depok, West Java thought a large party of diners dashed without paying their IDR 829,000 bill earlier this week, with the tale going viral and triggering outrage in the country. The diners have since returned to pay the amount, claiming that they thought someone else in their party had settled the bill before leaving the restaurant.

Everything Else

Hangry Hippo

There were so many layers of wrong when a viral video taken over the weekend in Taman Safari Bogor, West Java showed somebody from inside a car tossing a plastic bag into the gaping mouth of a hippo.

Park officials said that they have identified the person responsible and have notified the police about the incident. The identification took longer than expected because the car was a rental and the culprit may be a foreign national.

The hippo reportedly did not choke on the trash and is in good health, but one wonders why it was so willing to receive food from park visitors. It’s worth mentioning that the plastic bag contained vegetables and fruits.

At any rate, feeding animals in that particular enclosure is prohibited, while endangering the protected animal is punishable by up to five years in prison.

In Other News

• There and back again with delays. A Garuda Indonesia flight scheduled to bring Hajj pilgrims home from Saudi Arabia was reportedly delayed by about 12 hours, in what is a frustrating callback to the number of delays by the flag carrier in departing flights for Hajj. Garuda has yet to issue a statement as of this newsletter’s writing.

• A 5.5-magnitude quake struck Gorontalo Province today. Officials say that there is no potential for a tsunami nor have there been any reports of major damage in the region.

• The Indonesian men’s national football team has been placed in the same 2026 World Cup qualifiers group as China, Bahrain, Japan, Australia, and Saudi Arabia. In order to qualify outright, Indonesia has to place in the top two in the group at the end of the round-robin. Oof.

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