Indonesia was once a Dutch Colony. After World War Two Indonesia gained its independence from the Netherlands. The first President was Sukarno. He was followed by President Suharto, who ruled with an iron hand from 1965 until 1997. Mr. Habibie became the third President at the departure of Suharto, but he lasted only a little more than a year. After an election in 1999 in which it looked for a while as if Sukarno's daughter would become president, Indonesia got its fourth president since independence -- Abdurahman Wahid.

With more than 200 million citizens, Indonesia is the fourth most populous nation in the world. In addition to being the habitat of the Komodo Dragons, it is the home of Jakarta, the enchanting island of Bali, and the troubled province of East Timor. Recently Indonesia has been in the news because of attempts at secession from Idonesia by the people of East Timor. Since the disturbances in East Timor began during the fall of 1999, Jefferson State has begun to receive applications for admission from Indonesia. Many of the websites about Indonesia are in Bahasa Indonesia, the local language, but the links below are usually entirely in English.

• Search for Info about Indonesia This is a searchable index of historical, geographical, and other information.
• A General Overview of Indonesia Detailed almanac of information about Indonesia.
• Recent Photos from Jakarta and East Timor
• More Photos of Jakarta, Indonesia's Capital and largest City.
• Inside Indonesia An online weekly news magazine published in the English language.
• Bahasa Indonesia: the Official Language. This site is an quick guide to basic phrases in Bahasa Indonesia.
• Jiffest: The Jakarta International Film Festival. Indonesia is also in the motion picture business.
• The Indonesian View of the Crisis in East Timor.
• KOMPAS: An Indonesian On-Line Newspaper. An English translation of a popular Indonesian newspaper.

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This page last revised on: November 23, 1999.