Another tsunami disaster waiting to happen — despite 20 years to prepare
Indonesian and Acehnese officials vowed to build a stronger, safer city after the 2004 tsunami, but two decades later an early warning system is perilously degraded.
Amanda Hodge
Latest
Boxing Day tsunami, 20 years on: the triumph of human endurance
In the aftermath of the 2004 tsunami, one of the most destructive natural disasters in recorded history, reconstructing Banda Aceh was not just about replacing a flattened city but repopulating families and communities after one-third of its people perished.
Bali Nine home free: traffickers back under PM’s deal
The remaining five members of the drug-smuggling ring have been whisked home in secret, returning as free men after they were ‘plucked from jail’, with no prisoner-swap required as part of the unprecedented deal.
Strongman Indonesian leader defies doomsayers in show of compassion
Of all the forecasts that preceded Prabowo Subianto’s inauguration, the return of all five surviving Bali Nine prisoners was not a move anyone could have foretold.
Home deal closer for Bali Nine prisoners
Indonesia expects more than the ‘return of a small-time fisherman’ as a reciprocal measure for the transfer to Australia of the remaining five Bali Nine prisoners, a ruling coalition MP says.
Jakarta may follow Australia’s lead on social media ban
An Indonesian ban on social media for children has the support of senior officials from the country’s largest and most moderate Muslim organisation, as regulators warn online gaming ads are being deliberately designed to appeal to kids.
Laos party town bans Tiger liquor as families mourn
The Laos tourist town at the centre of a deadly mass methanol poisoning has outlawed Tiger Vodka and whiskey, a full fortnight after tainted alcohol killed six foreign backpackers and hospitalised at least a dozen more.
Improve ties with Phnom Penh or risk Chinese spy outpost; warns Lowy
A new Lowy Institute report urges Australia and the US to understand Cambodia’s embrace of Chinese military assistance as a reaction to its “acute sense of vulnerability towards Thailand and Vietnam”, and not just through the prism of US–China competition.
Bali Nine ball is in your court: Jakarta
Indonesia’s senior law minister reveals his government has already submitted a draft legal document for the Australian government to review.
Hicks ‘a precedent for Bali Nine return’
Under Australian law, there are no provisions for granting a pardon or early release to Australians convicted overseas and transferred home.
Original URL: https://www.theaustralian.com.au/author/amanda-hodge