Damien Kingsbury – Those who view East Timor's politics as largely benign describe the mood before tomorrow's presidential election as "dynamic". Those who view the situation more ominously describe the environment as "fluid". Either way, it is likely that the outcome expected just a few days ago has been thrown into doubt.

John Martinkus – There was a moment this week in Dili when it looked as though the increasingly bitter race for the presidency would spill over into violence.

On Thursday afternoon, as supporters of Prime Minister Jose Ramos Horta gathered to attend a rally, a convoy of rival Fretilin supporters drove past.

It's five years on from independence, and as the troubled country gears up for Monday's elections, people there tell Joe Humphreys how they see the future.

Fabio Scarpello – Fiery campaigner Ceu Lopes, 50, was active during her fledgling nation's 24-year struggle against the occupation by Indonesia.

[Reluctant Indonesians: Australia, Papua and the future of West Papua By Clinton Fernandes Scribe, $22.]

David Costello – The issue is on the backburner now but West Papua will inevitably blow up again and drag relations between Australia and Indonesia into crisis.

Jakarta, The level of confidence of Papuan civil society towards the central government has declined as the result of a number of basic problems. despite the fact that improving confidence in the central government represents the most important aspect in achieving reconciliation.

Niniek Karmini, Jakarta – An Indonesian passenger jet was flying at up to 265 mph, almost double the normal landing speed, when it crash-landed one month ago, killing 21 people, a chief investigator Saturday.

Presi Mandari, Jakarta – Indonesia's small, plastic identity cards may seem innocuous enough but campaigners who are trying to have the compulsory religion category dropped say they are behind many sectarian killings.

Hestiana Dharmastuti, Jakarta – The law is impartial, it does not recognise position or rank so whoever is guilty of murdering Munir must be indicted by the courts.

Suciwati, the widow of the late Munir, welcomes the national police's plans to reveal a new suspect in the death of the human rights activist.

Dili – Half the candidates in East Timor's presidential poll said Friday they fear many attempts have been made to manipulate the election process ahead of Monday's vote.

Karen Michelmore, Dili – The distinctive buzz of motorcycles can be heard in the distance, growing increasingly louder.

Within seconds more than 30 motorbikes, engines revving and adorned with party flags and posters, spill into the dilapidated compound, the headquarters of East Timor's major political party, Fretilin, in the capital Dili.

Stephen Fitzpatrick, Dili – East Timorese resistance hero Xanana Gusmao has promised he will unlock hundreds of millions of dollars in oil revenue held in a New York escrow bank account if he is elected prime minister.

Ridwan Max Sijabat, Jakarta – A special rapporteur has submitted a report on the 2004 murder of Indonesian rights activist Munir Said Thalib to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCHR).

The report stresses the importance for Jakarta to make public the results of an investigation by an independent team and thoroughly settle the case.

Jakarta – Members of the United National Liberation Party (Papernas) on Wednesday reported the Islam Defenders Front (FPI) and Islam Defense Warriors to the city police for attacking them in a rally last week.

Ary Hermawan, Jakarta – The government will allocate more money for infrastructure development in next year's budget in an effort to ease the distribution bottlenecks that have seriously hampered the country's economic growth.

Urip Hudiono, Jakarta – The government's efforts to recover the assets of seven foundations associated with former president Soeharto has received strong support from the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK).

Emmy Fitri, Jakarta – One may well wonder whatever happened to public health and social services for it is still easy to see beggars with missing arms, legs or fingers at the traffic lights on downtown streets.

Is the presence of beggars proof of poorly or half-implemented services? The answer is always either one.

Multa Fidrus, Tangerang – Overcrowding and poor sanitation at Tangerang Penitentiary (LP Pemuda) are said to be the main causes of the deaths of 50 inmates over the past four months.

Djoko Tjiptono, Jakarta – Rumours that there is a new suspect in the Munir murder case are growing. And the rumour has it that the new suspect is a general. Furthermore, investigators from the national police headquarters will soon announce the name of the suspect, although it is still not possible to confirm exactly when.

Djoko Tjiptono, Jakarta – After "sleeping" for so very long, there has been a new twist the Munir murder case. The team of investigators has promised that within a short time there will be a new suspect.

Yermias Ignatius Degei – Papuan students in Java and Bali who are members of Front Persatuan Perjuangan Rakyat Papua Barat (F-PEPERA-PB) or The United struggle front of West Papuan People held protest in front of the Netherlands embassy in Jakarta, Indonesia, Thursday (5/4).

Irwan Firdaus, Jakarta – The editor-in-chief of Playboy Indonesia was acquitted Thursday of charges that he violated the Muslim nation's indecency laws by publishing pictures of scantily clothed women.

Banten – Safety inspectors have seized hundreds of items of marine safety equipment aboard ferries crossing the Sunda Strait in Merak Port, Banten, due to their allegedly falsified expiry dates.

Port authority head Dalle Effendi said Tuesday the confiscated equipment had expired in 1998 but the expiry date on its packaging was 2010.

Jakarta – There was once a period when rival ideologies were deep and prevalent across this land. At that time political ideologies became the supreme commander. Political forces were divided based on ideological differences. This competition took the form of demonstrations and political pamphlets in the streets.

London – Candidates in Timor-Leste's presidential election on April 9 should publicly commit to addressing the country's human rights problems and propose needed institutional reforms, Human Rights Watch said today.

Governments of this country come and go but torture and human rights violations continue in many parts of Indonesia. In particular, the Papuan people have been the victims of various acts of terror, arrest, kidnapping and death, ever since the 1960s.

Sunil Jagtiani, Banda Aceh – Brightly coloured new homes now dot the Indonesian province of Aceh as it slowly rebuilds after the devastating 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, but some lie empty pointing to the next big hurdle in the reconstruction effort.

Jakarta – Professionals, lawmakers, academics and journalists have joined forces to urge President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to honor his campaign commitment to eradicate corruption at all levels.

In a communique issued Tuesday, the group Civil Society Professionals asked the government to target those involved in major corruption cases.

Max Lane – On March 28 and 29, a series of rightist mobilisations took place in Jakarta, including a 500-strong mobilisation aimed at disrupting a march and rally organised by the National Liberation Party of Unity (Papernas). The Papernas rally was protesting foreign domination of the Indonesian minerals sector and demanding its nationalisation.

Max Lane – East Timor's presidential election campaign is now officially underway. Voting will be held on April 9. Max Lane spoke by phone with presidential candidate Avelino Coelho, secretary-general of the Socialist Party of Timor (PST).

What issues are people raising with you in your campaign?

Ahmad Pathoni, Dili – A former East Timorese independence fighter jailed by Indonesia for six years pledged on Wednesday to unite his conflict-torn country and bring justice to its people, as the final day of election campaigning was marred by violence.

Fernando de Araujo, whose nom de guerre was La Sama, is among eight candidates running in Monday's presidential poll.

Mario de Queiroz, Lisbon – With less than a week to go to the presidential elections in East Timor, the violence has not let up in this small island nation that was born in May 2002 after nearly five centuries of Portuguese colonial rule and 25 years of brutal occupation by Indonesia.

Aboeprijadi Santoso, Amsterdam – Former president B.J. Habibie has often been synonymous with unpredictability. For a decade he was seen as Soeharto's crown prince loyalist, yet, as president, he introduced press freedom, freed political prisoners, initiated real autonomy for the regions, held free elections and presided over an orderly succession of head of state.

Dili – The candidates for next week's East Timor presidential election should publicly commit to addressing the country's human rights problems and propose reforms, a rights group said Wednesday.

"Institutional weaknesses in the police, military and judiciary have fuelled the current crisis in Timor-Leste," Human Rights Watch researcher Charmain Mohamed said.

Dini Mawuntyas, Madiun – Scores of protesters from the National Liberation Party of Unity (Papernas) in the Central Java city of Madiun set fire to pieces of white cloth symbolising the flag of the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) at a demonstration in front of the Madiun Matahari Plaza on Tuesday April 3.

Ridwan Max Sijabat, Jakarta – A majority of Acehnese people no longer believe in the effectiveness of the Aceh-Nias Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Agency (BRR) and are calling for its chief to step down, a new survey has found.

The survey was conducted by Greenomics Indonesia in March and timed with the second anniversary of the government-backed reconstruction agency.

Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – As lawmakers continue scoring political points with Muslim voters by slamming the government over Indonesia's support for UN sanctions against Iran, observers are urging the House to focus on problems at home.

Rizal Sukma, New York – These days, it is so tempting to write about Iran and the domestic reaction to Indonesia's voting in favor of the UN Security Council resolution sanctioning Tehran over its nuclear program.

Andi Haswidi, Jakarta – Despite the enactment of the Investment Law last week, business players continue to reserve their enthusiasm, maintaining that it is far from enough to improve the country's investment climate.

Jakarta – The head of the National Liberation Party of Unity's (Papernas) political affairs department, Dominggus Oktavianus, says that they will suit the mass organisations that perpetrated the attack on a peaceful action by Papernas on Thursday last week.

Alvin Darlanika Soedarjo, Jakarta – A number of human rights monitoring groups have accused the recently-completed second phase of Indonesia-Timor Leste Commission of Truth and Friendship (CTF) hearings of having distorted facts regarding human rights violations that occurred during Timor Leste's 1999 referendum.

Rod McGuirk, Dili – Machete-wielding gangs roam the dusty streets of Asia's newest nation, torching homes and shooting each other as international troops struggle to keep order. Nearly 40,000 refugees remain in crowded camps, too afraid to return home.

Karen Michelmore, Baucau – Two people were injured when supporters of rival political parties clashed during campaigning in East Timor's presidential elections, a candidate said today.

Jakarta – Indonesia's state oil and gas company Pertamina said Saturday it had shut off gas lines near a "mud volcano" for safety reasons, as railways and roads were again flooded with toxic sludge.

Prodita Sabarini, Jakarta – Members of a new leftist party on their way to a demonstration were set upon by hundreds of members of radical Islamic groups on Jl. Sudirman, Central Jakarta, on Thursday.

Imanuddin Razak, Jakarta – The Attorney General's Office (AGO) said it has made significant progress in its attempt to build an overseas corruption case against the youngest son of former president Soeharto, Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra.

Zainal Fikri, Sintok, Kedah Darul Aman – We have already seen the adoption of Islamic or sharia-based law in various predominantly Muslim regions across Indonesia.

Andi Haswidi, Jakarta – The House of Representatives finally endorsed the long awaited Investment Law on Thursday amid a walk-out by legislators of one of the main political parties, and noisy protests from non-governmental organizations.

Jakarta – The Indonesian Army has said it will be benevolent when dealing with future communal conflicts in the country's regions.

Army chief Gen. Djoko Santoso said Thursday the military would no longer resort to repressive measures when dealing with conflicts at the grassroots level.

John Aglionby, Dili – Xanana Gusmao, East Timor president, on Thursday accused the ruling Fretilin party of corruption, arrogance and mismanagement that had put the fledgling country on a path of violence and economic stagnation since its 2002 independence.