Hai teman-teman, welcome to the October edition of the Indonesia Council Digest.
These last 2 months have proven, yet again, there is never a dull moment in Indonesian politics! Many were glued to the livestream of the Constitutional Court case concerning whether Vice-President Gibran Rakabuming Raka was actually eligible to run as VP in 2024. Petitioners questioned Gibran’s high school record, bringing Australia’s own UTS InSearch (now UTS College) into the debate. Ultimately the MK did not order Gibran’s removal and the VP responded, saying he respected the Court’s process while also throwing in some classic Gibran logic: if he did not finish high school, how was he able to attend university? How indeed.
If you have no idea what this MK furore is all about, Ibu Yenny Wahid offers a useful and accessible explainer video for her foreign friends in this Instagram post.
For something lighter—depending how you define ‘light’—I’m looking forward to catching new film, Bapak Paling Jujur (Indo cinema release 15/10). The IMDB synopsis offers a tantalising premise: “A gubernatorial candidate on the campaign trail is cursed by his grandmother not to lie. In a world full of public image, unbridled honesty can lead to a series of problems and chaos that could destroy his image.”
Our next newsletter will be out in December so do send through anything you’d like us to share to (iclistdata [at] gmail.com). Selamat membaca!
Sampai jumpa lagi,
Lis and the IC team
What’s happening
Indonesia Update 2026
More of a ‘what happened,’ but a huge congratulations to Eva Nisa and Julian Millie on convening another excellent Indonesia Update, hosted at the ANU from 18-19 September 2026. If you missed any of the sessions, recordings from both days of the event are available on YouTube.
Indonesia Research Showcase 2026
University of Sydney, Tuesday 27 October, 9AM-2PM
The Sydney Southeast Asia Centre will be hosting Indonesia Research Showcase 2026 featuring current Indonesia-focused research across language, law, culture, economics and health, followed by a social lunch. Register here.
Australian Congress for Indonesian Language 2026
Australian National University, 21-22 November 2026
The second Australian Congress for Indonesian Language will be held at the Hedley Bull Centre, ANU Canberra, with online participation available. The free program includes workshops, panels, keynote presentations, parallel sessions, the AII Indonesian Studies Awards, and a screening of Tegar.
ASEAN in Focus 2026
University of Sydney, 2-4pm Thursday 5 November 2026
This free annual event will bring together policymakers, researchers, industry and community members to discuss key issues in the ASEAN region.
Festival Indonesia 2026
The Festival Indonesia 2026 will be held at Federation Square in Melbourne on Saturday 24 October. It looks like it will be a big day!
Flobamora NSW Fundraising Night for Flores
The Flobamora NSW Fundraising Night for Flores will be held on Saturday 24 October from 6pm at Kiss My Brass, Marrickville.
Canberra Art Biennial
Indonesian artist Tisna Sanjaya is featured in the Canberra Art Biennial until 31 October. His installation is on display at 15 Moore Street.
Pelangi Multicultural Festival
The Pelangi Multicultural Festival will be held on Saturday 31 October from 10am- 3pm at Leumeah High School, Campbelltown. Bring your family and friends and enjoy a fun-filled multicultural day with the community. Everyone welcome. Entry is free.
Other cool stuff
ACICIS Bahasa Sesh Challenge 2026
It that time of year again! The ACICIS Bahasa Sesh Challenge 2026 is on until 31 October. Share your favourite word or phrase in Bahasa Indonesia, tell us why it matters to you, and post it for others to see. You don’t have to be fluent to join; you just have to care enough to say one word out loud.
Meeting up with Anagard in Canberra
In this BBI ACT article Sibuk Konsumsi, Lupa Mengerti Zara Maxwell-Smith speaks to Indonesian street artist Anagard during a visit to Canberra. Zara has also created some teaching materials based on her discussion with Anagard, which you can find linked at the end of the article.
Historical objects are coming home
Indonesia is set to receive more than 30,000 repatriated historical objects from the Netherlands, including items from the Eugène Dubois Collection – notably a large fossil collection and a 38-carat diamond stolen from the Banjarmasin Sultanate in 1859. Read more about the repatriation of these objects.
Short film: Something Good Going On
I came across this thoughtful short film available online, written and directed by Arnold Setiadi. The film explores family, immigration, class, identity and the love between a father and son through an Indonesian-American experience. At only 13 minutes long, it certainly packs an emotional punch.
Report from the Monash Indonesian Language Holiday Program (ILHOP) 2026
Image: David and Michel, members of the Australian Pencak Silat Federation, demonstrated the musical instruments of Silat: Gendang and Gong. (Photo courtesy of Muhamad Argi Afriandi, 2026)
Held for the fifth time on 2–3 July, Monash Indonesian Studies and the Monash Herb Feith Indonesian Engagement Centre hosted 30 secondary students from schools across Victoria.
Students undertook Indonesian language study for Years 9–10 and Years 11–12, toured the campus, learned angklung with Mas Razan from the Indonesian Consulate General in Melbourne, practised silat with gendang and gong with David and Michel from Padepokan Domas and the Australian Pencak Silat Federation, cooked bakwan goreng with Ibu Misniarti from Dapur Indo, and took part in a treasure hunt that included the historic Gamelan Digul at the Margaret Kartomi Gallery, an instrument deeply tied to Indonesia’s independence and its connections with Australia.
The number of students doubled from the previous year; some students had already participated several times, and for the first time several students from Distance Education of the Victorian School of Languages participated. Sampai jumpa tahun depan!
Jobs and Opportunities
The ASAA Event Grant is open to current ASAA financial members and supports workshops, symposia and conferences. Applications close on 27 November 2026.
The Elizabeth O’Neill Journalism Award supports one journalist from Indonesia and one from Australia to undertake a funded journalism program in 2027. Applications close on 26 October 2026.
The Seniman Muda ACT Residency offers a $1,000 contribution towards expenses and artistic development. It is open to Canberra-based artists aged 14–24 with a connection to Indonesia. Applications close at 9pm AEDT on 30 October 2026.
The AAS-in-Asia 2027 Call for Proposals seeks organised panels and roundtables for the 1-3 July Conference to be held at Sunway University, Kuala Lumpur. Proposals are due on 30 October 2026.
The ASEAS 2027 Biennial Conference will be held at the University of Warwick from 23–25 June 2027. Panel proposals are due on 31 October 2026 and individual paper proposals on 27 November 2026.
Publications and Podcasts
The number of podcast listeners in Indonesia is rapidly growing. If podcasts are you thing, and you happen to be in Makassar from 24-25 October, you can check out the Indonesian Podcast Festival!
If you can’t make it to Makassar we’ve got plenty of podcast episodes to keep you going from Talking Indonesia including episodes on the ‘Preman State,' Militarising Indonesia, Patient education for cancer, and Changing human–tiger relations in Sumatra.
You can also catch up on the latest in current affairs with the Reformasi Dispatch podcast, Episode 211 with Munira Mustaffa
New book Rightless Resistance Postcolonial Citizenship, Palm Oil, and Land Grabs in Indonesia (Cornell University Press) by Ward Berenschot, Ahmad Dhiaulhaq, Afrizal and Otto Hospes.
Rightless Resistance investigates why resistance to land grabbing so often fails. The rapid expansion of oil palm plantations has triggered widespread conflict across rural Indonesia as communities lose their land with little compensation. Based on an unprecedented study of 150 such conflicts, this book uncovers how villagers fight back against palm oil companies, and what their struggles reveal about power, law, and citizenship in postcolonial Indonesia. To learn more check out Annisa Sabrina Hartoto’s recent review over at New Mandala.
As usual there is also a lot going on over at Indonesia at Melbourne, with a featured article on Power, ulama and pragmatism at Nahdlatul Ulama’s Jombang Congress examining Indonesia’s largest Islamic organisation’s leadership, internal bargaining and the organisation’s relationship with the state. You can also read about the controversies surrounding Indonesia’s asset-forfeiture bill, with serious concerns about public participation and possible political misuse.
It seems odd to write this digest and not mention the hot topic of this past month: forest fires in Kalimantan and Sumatra and transboundary haze. There’s a lot of commentary on how this is going to impact regional relations as haze drifts across Malaysia and Singapore causing school closures and health concerns. Rizky Ihsan gives us an analysis of why Indonesia has been slow to act of forest fires despite ASEAN’s transboundary haze agreement. For those who are curious, current fire activity and air quality can be tracked through IQAir.