Labor groups and government officials are pushing to rein in rampant abuses of workers in the fishing industry, where migrant laborers are frequently subjected to slavery and violence from employers. One out of every five fish is caught through illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing in conditions where abuses of workers are common, according to a United Nations estimate. Some 128,000 workers are thought to be currently trapped in forced labor on remote fishing vessels around the world, according to the International Labour Organization. Child labor or forced labor has been…
Tag: Indonesia
Can the U.S. Handle China While Supporting Israel and Ukraine Wars?
For some countries, the rekindled conflict over the Palestinian issue has also inflamed old beliefs that the United States is anti-Muslim, or at least too biased toward Israel. After years of watching Washington avoid confronting the often harsh mistreatment of Palestinians by both the Israeli government and extremist Israeli settlers, some no longer trust the United States to be a fair broker. When Mr. Austin, the defense secretary, gets to Indonesia, he is likely to face an angry public, if not anti-U.S. protests, despite his efforts to advise Israel’s military…
Israel-Hamas War Adds to Surge in Global Weapons Sales
Just days after the assault by Hamas ignited a new war in the Middle East, shipments of American weapons began arriving in Israel: smart bombs, ammunition and interceptors for the Iron Dome missile-defense system. When President Biden meets in Israel on Wednesday with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, more military aid is a likely topic. The conflict between Israel and Hamas is just the latest impetus behind a boom in international arms sales that is bolstering profits and weapons-making capacity among American suppliers. The surge in sales is providing the Biden…
Why you will never hear an Australian leader call out Indonesia on West Papua
As reported by the Guardian, Australia is seeking to strengthen its defence relationship with Indonesia, despite well-documented human rights abuses by the Indonesian military in West Papua. As tens of thousands of West Papuan civilians are turned into refugees in their own land and innocents are allegedly tortured and gunned down by Indonesian soldiers, Australia is embarking on further training and support for the Indonesian military and its counter-terrorism police. Human rights considerations appear to have been pushed down the list of diplomatic priorities. Indeed, it is an open secret…
BRICS May Add More Countries to the Group. Here’s What to Know.
Dozens of countries have expressed interest in joining BRICS, a group encompassing Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa that views itself as a counterweight to the West, and is meeting this week in Johannesburg. Argentina, Egypt, Indonesia and Saudi Arabia are thought to be among those most likely to be admitted. Iran has also expressed interest. China’s leader, Xi Jinping, backs expanding the group. But Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India is said to be concerned about adding nations close to Beijing; India and China have border disputes and…
At BRICS Summit, Putin Tries to Rally Support
The five-nation BRICS summit is focused on whether to expand the club and how to be a counterweight to Western powers, but the meeting opened in Johannesburg on Tuesday in the shadow of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, with President Vladimir V. Putin attempting to rally the members via video to Moscow’s side. In a speech to fellow leaders of the Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa group, Mr. Putin blamed the West for Russia’s exit from an agreement on Ukrainian grain exports that had helped stabilize global food supplies…
How Geopolitics Is Complicating the Move to Clean Energy
He is known as the Minister for Everything. From the government offices of Indonesia’s capital to dusty mines on remote islands, Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan commands authority as the nation’s essential power broker. A four-star general turned business magnate turned cabinet officer, Mr. Luhut’s paramount aspiration is transforming Indonesia into a hub for the production of electric vehicles. But as he pursues that goal, he and his country are increasingly vulnerable to geopolitical forces beyond their control. Though this archipelago nation has long sidestepped entanglements in ideological rivalries, it is increasingly…
China’s Nickel Plants in Indonesia Created Needed Jobs, Plus Pollution
For most of his 57 years on the island of Sulawesi, Jamal was accustomed to scarcity, modest expectations and a grim shortage of jobs. People mined sand, caught fish and coaxed crops from the soil. Chickens frequently disappeared from front yards, stolen by hungry neighbors. Mr. Jamal, who like many Indonesians goes by one name, regularly rode his motorbike to construction jobs in the city of Kendari, a half-hour away. Then, six years ago, a towering smelter rose next to his home. The factory was built by a company called…
Blinken Meets China’s Top Diplomat in Latest Bid to Ease Tensions
Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken met with China’s top diplomat, Wang Yi, on the sidelines of a regional summit in Jakarta, Indonesia, on Thursday, the latest in a string of diplomatic meetings between U.S. and Chinese officials as the two countries try to ease tensions. The talks between Mr. Blinken and Mr. Wang touched on regional and global issues, including “peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait,” said Matthew Miller, a spokesman for the State Department, who described the discussions as “candid and constructive.” “The meeting was part of…
China and the U.S. Are Wooing Indonesia, and Beijing Has the Edge
When the U.S. defense secretary, Lloyd J. Austin III, visited Indonesia in November, he pressed his counterpart there about a deal to buy 36 American fighter jets. He left without an agreement. Just days before, the same Indonesian official, Prabowo Subianto, met with China’s defense minister, and the two countries pledged to resume joint military exercises. Located across the southern edge of the South China Sea, Indonesia, the resource-laden nation with a fast-growing trillion-dollar economy and a large population, is a big prize in the geopolitical battle between Washington and…