Indonesia

Location:

Southeastern Asia, archipelago between the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean

Border Countries:

Timor-Leste 228 km, Malaysia 1,782 km, Papua New Guinea 820 km

Terrain:

mostly coastal lowlands; larger islands have interior mountains

Geography:

archipelago of 17,508 islands (6,000 inhabited); straddles equator; strategic location astride or along major sea lanes from Indian Ocean to Pacific Ocean

Capital:

Jakarta

About Indonesia

The Dutch began to colonize Indonesia in the early 17th century; the islands were occupied by Japan from 1942 to 1945. Indonesia declared its independence after Japan's surrender, but it required four years of intermittent negotiations, recurring hostilities, and UN mediation before the Netherlands agreed to relinquish its colony. Indonesia is the world's largest archipelagic state and home to the world's largest Muslim population. Current issues include: alleviating poverty, preventing terrorism, consolidating democracy after four decades of authoritarianism, implementing financial sector reforms, stemming corruption, holding the military and police accountable for human rights violations, and controlling avian influenza. In 2005, Indonesia reached a historic peace agreement with armed separatists in Aceh, which led to democratic elections in December 2006. Indonesia continues to face a low intensity separatist movement in Papua.

Population:

237,512,352 (July 2008 est.)

Language:

Bahasa Indonesia (official, modified form of Malay), English, Dutch, local dialects (the most widely spoken of which is Javanese)

Religion:

Muslim 86.1%, Protestant 5.7%, Roman Catholic 3%, Hindu 1.8%, other or unspecified 3.4% (2000 census)

Phone Service:

domestic service fair, international service good

Currency:

Indonesian rupiah (IDR)

Climate:

tropical; hot, humid; more moderate in highlands

Natural Hazards:

occasional floods, severe droughts, tsunamis, earthquakes, volcanoes, forest fires