https://www.scmp.com/rss/517283/feed Anand reported on Southeast Asia for over a decade and previously worked for Coconuts Media and the Jakarta Globe. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Anand Mathai Anand Mathai Indonesia’s 2025 unfolded as a year of collision and contrast – President Prabowo Subianto asserting his authority, mass protests erupting in the streets, global diplomacy expanding outwards, climate disaster striking at home and a viral moment that turned aura farming into the country’s top cultural export of the year. Prabowo takes charge Prabowo entered his first full year in office with a strong mandate and an unusually high level of public goodwill. Over 2025, he moved quickly to... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3337718/indonesia-2025-year-collision-and-contrast-prabowo-takes-charge?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3337718/indonesia-2025-year-collision-and-contrast-prabowo-takes-charge?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 26 Dec 2025 08:00:16 +0000 Anand Mathai Anand Mathai As the streets of Dili thrum with anticipation, East Timor is preparing for a diplomatic victory decades in the making. Next weekend, Asia’s youngest nation is set to take its place as the 11th member of Asean – concluding a campaign for acceptance hard won through an unflinching belief in its own destiny. For the country of some 1.4 million people on the eastern half of Timor island, it represents both a declaration of belonging and an affirmation that its future lies squarely within Southeast... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3329435/asias-youngest-nation-nears-end-its-years-long-quest-belong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3329435/asias-youngest-nation-nears-end-its-years-long-quest-belong?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 18 Oct 2025 00:00:15 +0000 Anand Mathai Anand Mathai A viral hot mic moment in which Indonesia’s President Prabowo Subianto was heard asking US President Donald Trump if he could meet his son Eric shortly after the Gaza ceasefire summit in Egypt has raised questions about Jakarta’s diplomatic strategy and whether the move was tied to any business agenda. The offhand exchange, however, is not expected to have much political bearing in Indonesia as observers note Prabowo enjoys strong support back home. The brief conversation between the two... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3328998/indonesian-presidents-hot-mic-moment-trump-amplifies-private-public-debate?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3328998/indonesian-presidents-hot-mic-moment-trump-amplifies-private-public-debate?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 14 Oct 2025 11:45:49 +0000 Anand Mathai,Bloomberg Anand Mathai,Bloomberg Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto removed Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati from her post, risking renewed financial turmoil for Southeast Asia’s biggest economy following days of violent protests against his administration. Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa, who has served as chairman of the Deposit Insurance Corporation since 2020, was sworn in as the new finance minister by Prabowo late on Monday. Rumours that Prabowo could replace Sri Mulyani led the benchmark stock index to pare early gains to... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3324759/indonesia-removes-finance-minister-sri-mulyani-after-protests?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3324759/indonesia-removes-finance-minister-sri-mulyani-after-protests?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 08 Sep 2025 09:51:29 +0000 Anand Mathai Anand Mathai Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto made a swift trip to Beijing to attend China’s World War II victory commemoration parade on Wednesday, with his spokesman citing the importance of maintaining strategic ties and the easing of unrest at home. Analysts said the tightly timed visit reflected Jakarta’s effort to reassure key diplomatic partners and project stability abroad following global coverage of Indonesia’s violent protests over the weekend, but warned it carried “political risks” at home... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3324211/prabowo-walks-diplomatic-tightrope-china-visit-amid-indonesia-protest-lull?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3324211/prabowo-walks-diplomatic-tightrope-china-visit-amid-indonesia-protest-lull?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 03 Sep 2025 10:39:06 +0000 World leaders from China to Malaysia and the United States have congratulated Prabowo Subianto after Indonesia’s election commission announced he had won the presidential poll, with Chinese President Xi Jinping hailing the two countries’ friendly ties and seeking the “construction of a community with a shared future”. “I attach great importance to the development of China-Indonesia relations and look forward to working together with President-elect Prabowo to lead the construction of a community... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3256204/indonesias-prabowo-subianto-congratulated-chinas-xi-us-blinken-over-victory-amid-election-challenges?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3256204/indonesias-prabowo-subianto-congratulated-chinas-xi-us-blinken-over-victory-amid-election-challenges?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 21 Mar 2024 07:29:27 +0000 Following Indonesia Defence Minister Prabowo Subianto’s projected victory in Wednesday’s presidential election, based on unofficial quick-count results, many are concerned about how the former general will steer the country’s foreign policy, particularly when it comes to China. While some analysts believe Prabowo may take a more hardline stance towards Beijing, based on his past nationalistic rhetoric and military background, others say he is likely to maintain the pragmatic approach of outgoing... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3252127/indonesia-china-ties-will-president-elect-prabowo-confront-beijing-or-maintain-widodos-economic?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3252127/indonesia-china-ties-will-president-elect-prabowo-confront-beijing-or-maintain-widodos-economic?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 16 Feb 2024 02:00:21 +0000 With Indonesian Defence Minister Prabowo Subianto set to be the country’s next president, questions remain on whether he will continue with incumbent President Joko Widodo’s policies or take the nation in a new direction. While the rival-turned-ally of Widodo has not articulated extensively on Indonesia’s economic and social blueprints, he has hinted at a more assertive foreign policy centred on the country’s rightful place on the world stage. Prabowo is “a wild card” and the world should be... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3252003/indonesia-2024-election-prabowo-subianto-wild-card-nationalistic-agenda?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3252003/indonesia-2024-election-prabowo-subianto-wild-card-nationalistic-agenda?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 15 Feb 2024 04:00:21 +0000 On Wednesday, Indonesians from across the archipelago nation will head to the polls for a general election that will see ballots cast for officials at all levels of government. But all eyes are on the three candidates running to become the country’s next president, following outgoing leader Joko Widodo’s 10 years of highly popular leadership. Although surveys show Prabowo Subianto has a virtually insurmountable lead in the polls, his two rivals have a realistic chance of keeping him below 50 per... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3251782/indonesia-elections-2024-who-are-3-candidates-vying-lead-worlds-3rd-largest-democracy?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3251782/indonesia-elections-2024-who-are-3-candidates-vying-lead-worlds-3rd-largest-democracy?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 13 Feb 2024 03:01:06 +0000 The South China Sea has long been one of the most disputed stretches of water on the planet with territorial tensions festering for many years and 2023 is no different – with one exception: the number of incidents among claimant nations and exchanges of belligerent rhetoric have escalated. Analysts say that the Philippines’ increasingly confrontational stance against China’s “grey-zone” tactics – particularly over flashpoints in waters around the Second Thomas Shoal and the Scarborough Shoal –... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3246702/south-china-sea-beijing-asean-claimant-states-risk-pushing-beyond-grey-zone-between-peace-and-war?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3246702/south-china-sea-beijing-asean-claimant-states-risk-pushing-beyond-grey-zone-between-peace-and-war?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 30 Dec 2023 01:30:14 +0000 The legacy of former US diplomat Henry Kissinger, who has died aged 100, sharply divides Southeast Asia, where he is respected in Singapore as a pivotal anti-Communist ally, but reviled from Vietnam to East Timor for sacrificing the lives of millions in his ruthless pursuit of American interests. The former US secretary of state and presidential adviser to Richard Nixon – and his successor Gerald Ford – was awarded a Nobel Prize in 1973 for carving out a peace agreement with North Vietnam. But... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3243412/henry-kissingers-legacy-southeast-asia-war-criminal-vietnam-close-friend-singapore?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3243412/henry-kissingers-legacy-southeast-asia-war-criminal-vietnam-close-friend-singapore?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 30 Nov 2023 12:54:33 +0000