Latest Indonesia News
Prayers and tears mark 20 years since the Indian Ocean tsunami that killed some 230,000 people
BANDA ACEH, Indonesia (AP) — People gathered in prayer and visited mass graves in Indonesia’s Aceh province on Thursday to mark 20 years since the massive Indian Ocean tsunami hit the region in one of modern history’s worst natural disasters. Many wept as they placed flowers at...
After 20 years, the post-tsunami generation stays vigilant for future disasters
LHOKNGA, Indonesia (AP) — Qurrata Ayuni, a 28-year-old survivor of the earthquake and tsunami that devastated her hometown two decades ago, has transformed her resilience into purpose. Defying Aceh's male-dominated coffee culture, she runs a café that serves as a welcoming space for everyone,...
Trauma lingers on for survivors of the deadly tsunami that hit Thailand 20 years ago
BAN NAM KHEM, Thailand (AP) — The 20-year-old freshman student was still asleep that Sunday morning at the family's house on the Andaman Sea coast of southern Thailand when her mom, sensing something wasn't right, woke her up saying they needed to leave right away. The day is...
AP PHOTOS: Scenes of devastation from the aftermath of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami
On Dec. 26, 2004, a 9.1 magnitude earthquake struck off the west coast of Sumatra, causing a massive wave that devastated Asian coastal communities across thousands of miles. Some 230,000 people died as the tsunami leveled remote villages, ports and tourist resorts in Indonesia,...
Indonesians mark 2 decades since the tragic tsunami that killed hundreds of thousands
BANDA ACEH, Indonesia (AP) — Two decades after a catastrophic tsunami destroyed her village, Tria Asnani still cries when she recalls how she lost her mother while trying to escape the giant waves. Asnani, now a school teacher, was only 17 at the time. Her father, who was a...
Ailing French man on death row pleads to return home as Indonesia to pardon 44,000 prisoners
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — An ailing French national on death row for drug offenses has made a last-ditch plea to be returned home, Indonesian authorities said Friday, as the new administration of President Prabowo Subianto planned to give pardon to 44,000 inmates nationwide. ...
Global demand spurring Indonesia's mining boom comes at a cost for many communities
KABAENA, Indonesia (AP) — The crystal blue waters that once surrounded Kabaena are murky brown now, and the octopi and colorful fish that locals used to catch nearby to eat and sell have fled. The lush seaweed they used to harvest is gone. And parents who grew up swimming happily in the Flores...
Filipina who won a last-minute reprieve from an Indonesian firing squad seeks clemency
MANILA, Philippines (AP) — A Filipino woman who spent years on death row in Indonesia for drug trafficking, and who was nearly executed by firing squad in 2015, said Wednesday she's happy to be back in the Philippines but is asking its president to set her free. Mary Jane Veloso...
Filipina who won a last-minute reprieve from an Indonesian firing squad returns home
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — A Filipina woman who had been on death row in Indonesia, and who was nearly executed by firing squad in 2015, arrived home early Wednesday after longstanding requests from her home country. Mary Jane Fiesta Veloso had spent almost 15 years in prison for...
A zoo elephant dies in Indonesia after being swept away in a river
GIANYAR, Indonesia (AP) — An elephant that lived at the zoo on Indonesia’s tourist island of Bali was found dead on Tuesday after being swept away by a strong river current. Molly, a 45-year-old female Sumatran elephant was one of two being guided by a mahout to a holding area...
