
Rising cost of living, dissatisfaction with free school meals, and declining approval ratings
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The free school lunch program began in January 2025 as a signature policy of the Prabowo administration.
[Jakarta Current Affairs] Opposition to Indonesia's Prabowo administration is growing. This week, large-scale protests broke out in the capital Jakarta. Amid growing concerns about the rising cost of living, the government is struggling to respond to concerns about President Prabowo's ``free school lunch'' program and corruption, which have surfaced.
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On the 27th, multiple citizen and student groups gathered in front of the National Assembly in Jakarta. The demonstrations, which are said to have attracted several thousand people, turned violent by nightfall, with some setting fire to police bases and motorcycles, forcing authorities to use tear gas to calm them down.
Liang (30), a motorbike taxi driver who participated in the demonstration, complained of the plight of people, saying, ``The prices of everything are going up.'' Amid growing concerns about the worsening situation in the Middle East and the rising cost of living due to currency depreciation, corruption among high-ranking officials working on free school lunch programs has been discovered one after another. Mr. Lian called for business closures and tougher penalties for corruption.
Free school meals began in January 2025 as the administration's signature policy. The project has been rapidly expanded nationwide by drastically cutting the budgets of other ministries and agencies, but there have been strong calls for a review as food poisoning cases have been occurring frequently in school lunches and there have been criticisms that it has led to soaring food prices.
According to a public opinion poll released on the 26th by the leading newspaper Tempo's research organization, only 37% of respondents said they were satisfied with the government's performance, a significant drop from 75% in December last year. Regarding the current economic situation, 68% answered that it is "bad" or "deteriorating."
In Indonesia, demonstrations broke out in August 2025, sparked by opposition to high allowances for members of parliament. Demonstrations intensified after the death of a motorcycle taxi driver who was hit by a police vehicle and spread across the country. There were over 10 deaths.

トランプ米大統領が米国とカナダの国境にあるオンタリオ湖を「アメリカ湖」に改称する大統領令に署名し、米地質調査所が手続きを進めている。地元住民からは名称変更に困惑や疑問の声が上がっている。

男系継承を反映した改正皇室典範が10月24日に施行される中、明治時代に男系男子による皇位継承が初めて明文化された背景について、国際日本文化研究センターの瀧井一博教授は、欧米列強の君主が軍最高司令官である国際標準に合わせた結果だと指摘。また、明治憲法の真の起草者と評される井上毅が歴代天皇の男系性を「発見」し、ウィーン大教授ローレンツ・フォン・シュタインの助言が継承順位の法定化に影響を与えたことを明らかにした。男系継承が古来の伝統だという主張には懐疑的な見方を示す。

米国による国際刑事裁判所(ICC)の赤根智子所長への制裁を受け、高市早苗首相は制裁が日本の立場と相いれず深刻に受け止めていると述べ、赤根氏とICCの保護を強調した。政府は追加制裁に警戒を強め、茂木外相が米国と電話会談を行うなど対応に当たるが、同盟関係を考慮し強い姿勢を取れるかは不透明であり、弱腰批判に直面している。

7月閉幕の特別国会で衆院に提出された質問主意書が、2025年通常国会比で約9割減少した。2月の衆院選での野党議員の大量落選が主因とみられ、議会の政府監視機能の低下を懸念する声が上がっている。

11月の米中間選挙のアラスカ州上院選で、共和党現職のダン・サリバン氏と同姓同名の新人候補が出馬。共和党側は誤投票による影響を懸念しており、接戦が予想される選挙戦の波乱要因として注目されている。

横浜市の山中竹春市長は28日、幹部職員らへのパワハラ問題の責任を取り、辞職する意向を表明した。辞職願はすでに受理されており、今後は出直し選への出馬などが焦点となる。調査報告書では「ポンコツ」などの発言がパワハラと認定されていた。