Indonesia

The Dutch began to colonize Indonesia in the early 17th century; Japan occupied the islands 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 transfer sovereignty in 1949. Indonesia's first free parliamentary election after decades of repressive rule took place in 1999. Indonesia is now the world's third-largest democracy, the world's largest archipelagic state, and home to the world's largest Muslim population. Current issues include: alleviating poverty, improving education, preventing terrorism, consolidating democracy after four decades of authoritarianism, implementing economic and financial reforms, stemming corruption, holding the military and police accountable for past human rights violations, addressing climate change, and controlling avian influenza. In 2005, Indonesia reached a historic peace agreement with armed separatists in Aceh, which led to democratic elections in Aceh in December 2006. Indonesia continues to face low intensity armed resistance by the separatist Free Papua Movement.

Economical characteristics

 * Currency: Rupiah (ISO code: IDR)
 * Central bank discount rate: 10.83% (31 December 2008)
 * Commercial banks lending rate: 13.6% (31 December 2008)
 * Stock of money (M1): $41.71 billion (31 December 2008)
 * Quasi money (with M1 makes M2): $131.1 billion (31 December 2008)

Notable events:

 * Banking crisis: November 1992, 1994, 1997-2002
 * Hyperinflation: 1966
 * Years in inflation: 31.1% (share of years 1949-2009 with annual inflation above 20 per cent per annum)
 * Public default: 1966-1970, 1998-2000, 2002 (external)

Links

 * Indonesia on Wikipedia
 * Central bank of Indonesia
 * Country profile (pdf) from the Enterprise Studies page (part of the The World Bank Group)
 * Studies from the Library of Congress (1986-1998)
 * BBC country profile