You need to look at both sides of the coin. There is no doubt that Indonesia is a progressive country. But recently, there have been a sharp rise in religious fundamentalism. Terrorist incidents happen every now and then, and the perfect example is what happened in Bali in 2002 (more than 200 people died). Ethnic riots happen very frequently, and thousands have been killed recently in hotspots such as Kalimantan, Maluku and Papua. And even in major cities, there have been clashes in the past (one example is the May 1998 riots, in which thousands of Chinese were killed and hundreds were raped).
Indeed, in the past there have been riots as mentioned by you. but the commotion was not as bad as what was reported in the media. when the media say the number of victims is in the thousands, but in reality it is not like that and only hundreds.
But chaos and unrest will always exist in any country.
So it is necessary to also see things from two sides and from various points of view.
However, I just want to clarify that the riots that you said in 1998 were events that were triggered by the monetary crisis that caused students to take to the streets to hold demonstrations. and caused the resignation of the Indonesian president at that time.
At that time there was also a kind of clash with ethnic Chinese. but it didn't last long and didn't last long. everything can be solved.
and now various ethnic groups live peacefully in Indonesia.
What makes Indonesia unique is that even though we are of different ethnicities and languages, we are still one unit, namely Indonesia.
just information on the number of tribes or ethnicities in Indonesia, there are about 1340 ethnic groups and have the second largest number of regional languages, which are 718 different regional languages.
Each region has many tribes and many regional languages and also has diverse cultures and customs.
but the miraculous thing is that even though there are 718 regional languages in Indonesia, we have 1 language that makes us united and harmonious and we from every tribe and every region understand this 1 language, namely INDONESIAN.
even we are very open with people who come from other countries.
and the fact is that now we are here in Indonesia living side by side in peace with people who are originally from abroad.
they are even free to build a business in Indonesia with permission from the government. Such as China, Thailand, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, Arabia, India, Australia, America, Bangladesh, the Netherlands and many outsiders who build businesses here. some even have factories, hotels and restaurants.
So maybe the results of the signature campaign can be used as capital to build a business in Indonesia too hahahahaIn fact, many artists from abroad have moved to Indonesia and started their careers back in Indonesia, such as Haruka, a singer from AKB48, a girl group from Japan, and there is also a boyband artist from South Korea who now has Indonesian citizenship. and he admits that he feels at home in Indonesia. and now he is married and has children in Indonesia.
because even becoming an artist in Indonesia is very easy as long as you have good skills and abilities. because in Indonesia there are many ordinary people who suddenly become artists and become rich hahahaha
In Indonesia, there are six religions, namely Islam, Protestant Christianity, Catholicism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Confucianism. and here we respect each other and even here churches and mosques are built side by side. we help each other during our respective religious celebrations.
so don't trust media news too much. because sometimes the media exaggerate the content of the news presented.
but it's true what @Sithara007 said we need to see things from two sides. in terms of good and bad. because as peaceful as a country is, sometimes a little riot will always exist and cannot be avoided.but for now there is one area that I think is forbidden to visit, namely Papua. other than that area then you are free and can feel safe. Papua is located at the eastern end of Indonesia and the land is separated by a vast sea.
Indonesian map