Jakarta, Indonesia – Indonesian police have arrested dozens of people in the easternmost region of Papua following protests last week in which buildings were set ablaze, a police spokesman said Sunday.

Jakarta – The legal team representing Indonesian People's Front for West Papua (FRI-WP) spokesperson Surya Anta has confirmed that their client was arrested by police at a shopping centre in Jakarta on the evening of Saturday August 31. Anta was arrested on charges of treason (makar).

James Massola, Dili – Joanna Remejio has a crystal-clear memory of the night her first child, Pedro Unamet, entered the world. She was 20 and her husband, Simplicio, was 17. It was Tuesday, September 7, 1999.

Alison Bevege, Sydney – Thousands of people turned out on Friday night to celebrate East Timor's independence on the 20th anniversary of the 1999 referendum that led to the end of Indonesian occupation.

Fireworks, music and song erupted at Tasi Tolu outside Dili, where the crowd sang the national anthem "Patria" which means "Fatherland", ABC News reported on Saturday.

Jakarta – On Friday August 30 the Metro Jaya regional police arrested two people on charges of treason (makar) for allegedly flying the Morning Star flag in front of the State Place during a rally on Wednesday August 28.

Norman Harsono, Jakarta – Indonesia's tax office has announced several tax incentives for oil and gas contractors operating in the country.

Jonas Guterres – Every year on August 30, Timor-Leste celebrates Popular Consultation Day 1999. It commemorates an event of historical importance: when the people of Timor-Leste were finally given the chance to vote on their future, with a strong majority – 78.5 percent of voters – choosing independence from Indonesia.

Luke Henriques-Gomes – In my family, the thought of Timor always lingered in the air.

At birthday dinners, or Easter or Christmas with the cousins (like all Timorese, cousins is an imprecise term), we would talk about the football or our jobs or studies.

In 1999, Navy Captain Shaun Fogarty was deployed to East Timor as a military liaison officer with the United Nations.

Capt Fogarty was in town for the country's independence referendum and to make sure it was free from political interference.

While the vote went off without a hitch, the results triggered violence around the country from pro-Indonesian militia.

Anne Barker – It was Timor-Leste's biggest party since independence itself.

Thousands turned out last night at Tasi Tolu ("Three Lakes") just outside Dili, to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the 1999 independence vote that led to Timor-Leste's freedom from Indonesian occupation.

Telly Nathalia, Jakarta – The government wants those responsible for provoking unrest in Papua and West Papua to immediately stop their actions, Chief Security Minister Wiranto said on Friday evening.

Jakarta – West Papua National Committee (KNPB) spokesperson Victor Yeimo says that they are calling for a national strike throughout the territory claimed to be West Papua to demand a referendum or an act of self-determination through a popular vote.

Andita Rahma, Jakarta – Police Chief of Public Information Brig. Gen. Dedi Prasetyo said his office and the national armed forces (TNI) despatched 2,500 joint personnel to Jayapura, Papua, after the peace rally that turned to riot in the region.

"In total, there is 2,500 Police-TNI personnel. It's in Jayapura alone," Dedi said Saturday, August 31.

Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo is seeking to speed up the development of four priority tourist destinations across the country, as part of his administration's efforts to boost the country's tourism industry.

Sandra Fulloon – Australian inventor and entrepreneur Dr Len Humphreys has found a way to convert used plastic into products such as fuel – and he says it's a game changer.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has announced a major funding package for the East Timor defence force to counter China but former president Jose Ramos-Horta says he is more worried about its influence in Australia.

Kate Lamb, Jayapura – At the base of the verdant mountains of Sentani, where dense, tropical jungle overlooks a sprawling teal lake, worshippers stream into church, men in suits and ties and sandals or batik shirts, women with colourful woven bags strung from their foreheads and slung over their backs.

Jakarta – Amid reports of intolerance between ethnic groups and religious communities, pictures showing a Christian funeral service in the courtyard of a mosque has attracted people's attention on the internet.

Jakarta – Scores of students from Papua and West Papua plan to surrender themselves to the Metro Jaya regional police following the arrest of two activists who took part in a rally at the State Palace in Central Jakarta which ended in the raising of the Morning Star flag.

They are currently gathering on the sidewalk in front of the Metro Jaya police headquarters.

Wahyoe Boediwardhana, Surabaya – The East Java Police have named another suspect involved in a protest that led to racist abuse against Papuan students in Surabaya, East Java, on Aug. 16, a day before the country's independence day.

Indonesia's plan to build a new capital from scratch on the island of Borneo has sent real-estate developers scrambling for land in the vicinity of the proposed city. And the industry's representative body says that is already pushing up prices.

The Timor-Leste government has presented the Australian union movement the Medal of the Order for their assistance in achieving independence.

Australian unions have been presented the Medal of the Order of Timor-Leste in recognition of the role the movement played in the campaign for the country's independence 20 years ago.

An Australia-based human rights group has condemned the fatal shooting of West Papuan protesters by Indonesian security forces this week.

This comes amid widespread protests in cities and towns across Papua region which began almost two weeks ago as anti-racism rallies but have developed into the biggest West Papuan pro-independence demonstrations seen in decades.

James Massola, Dili – Prime Minister Scott Morrison has dismissed calls for the Australian government to drop the prosecution of whistleblowers Bernard Collaery and Witness K.

Mr Morrison was asked about the cases during a trip to East Timor where he finalised a long-awaited revenue-sharing agreement for the Greater Sunrise oil and gas fields.

Jakarta (Antara) – Ombudsman of the Republic of Indonesia (RI) member Ahmad Suaedy says the security operations by the National Police (Polri) and Armed Forces (TNI) in Nduga, Papua, are hampering the public services in the region.

Paul Daley – Australia's precise role in bringing independence to Timor-Leste two decades ago continues to simmer as unsettled business at the heart of modern Australian diplomatic and military history.

Imam Hamdi, Jakarta – Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan is in the midst of composing a roadmap policy to organize street vendors that open their businesses across Jakarta. Inside that roadmap, the governor said the will give business opportunities for the vendors to sell their goods on sidewalks.

Natalia Santi – Abandoning Jakarta for a new capital in Borneo won't save the fast-sinking Indonesian megacity from disaster and could even spark a fresh environmental crisis in a region home to rainforests and endangered orangutans, critics have warned.

Dewi Nurita, Jakarta – Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs, Wiranto, demanded Papuans immediately stop the mass demonstrations staged in all areas of the province.

Jakarta – The Supreme Court has decreased the punishment for former Constitutional Court justice Patrialis Akbar to seven years in prison following a case review petition filed by the graft convict to the court.

Jakarta – Would-be holidaymakers are now able to start planning vacations for next year as the government has finalized the list of public holidays for 2020.

Ivo Mateus Goncalves, Canberra – Today, the people of Timor-Leste will commemorate the 20th anniversary of the popular consultation, through which the nation restored the independence it had prematurely declared in 1975.

Damien Kingsbury – In the weeks before Timor-Leste's historic vote for independence in 1999, there was a sense the horror and misery of the 24 years of Indonesian occupation were coming to an end.

Ali MC, Dili, East Timor – It's a Saturday morning in downtown Dili, the bustling port city and capital of one of the youngest nations in the world, East Timor.

In the central park, a broad catalogue of books is on display, including socialist texts, biographies on Marx and Lenin, key books on East Timor and novels.

Jakarta – Indonesia's chief security minister on Friday urged calm in the easternmost region of Papua on Friday after two weeks of sometimes violent protests, saying demands from demonstrators for an investigation into racism had been met.

Mackenzie Smith – Thousands of Papuans in Indonesia are occupying the governor's office, a protest organiser says, after several government buildings were torched in the provincial capital Jayapura on Thursday.

Jakarta – Coordinating Minister for Security, Politics and Legal Affairs Wiranto says that the government is open to dialogue with all parties to improve the situation in Papua, but it will not discuss a referendum or Papuan independence.

Anwar Siswadi, Jakarta – The National Counterterrorism Agency (BNPT) Chief Suhardi Alius warned academic administrators to pay close attention to radicalism that might happen within campus environments. He also asked university rectors to register students that might be involved in radical activities.

Protesters in Indonesia's easternmost region of Papua have set buildings ablaze in the provincial capital Jayapura, forcing the state power firm to cut off electricity in some districts, state media and an executive of the utility said.

Caesar Akbar, Jakarta (Antara) – The Association of Indonesian Travel Companies (Asita) asked President Joko Widodo or Jokowi to immediately resolve the issues in Papua and West Papua. Asita said that travel agents need to be able to convince potential tourists that Indonesia is safe.

Rizal Harahap, Pekanbaru – A thick blanket of haze from forest fires has forced schools in Dumai, Riau, to dismiss their students early.

On Wednesday, four principals from different elementary schools asked the Dumai Education Agency for permission to dismiss their students early because of the increasing severity of the haze.

Jon Afrizal, Jambi – Members of Suku Anak Dalam (SAD), grouping remote indigenous communities in Jambi, are marching from their villages to the State Palace to demand that President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo help them resolve a land dispute with palm oil company PT Berkas Sawit Utama (BSU).

Pacific Media Watch – Papuan demands for a referendum on self-determination have erupted more strongly amid fears of civilian casualties in the Melanesian provinces of Papua and West Papua.

A government-imposed internet blackout is in place following a two-week wave of protests triggered by racial abuse against Papuan students in East Java, reports The Jakarta Post.

The people of West Papua need urgent international attention. I am calling on all the world's governments, parliamentarians and media to shine the spotlight on West Papua. If the world and international media ignores West Papua now, the Indonesian security services may turn it into a bloodbath.

Sasmito Matrim – Indonesia's Ministry of Communication and Information Technology said Friday that it would continue to block telecommunication services in Papua and West Papua, in an effort, it said, to restore security in the wake of civil unrest that flared in several cities over allegedly racist attacks on Papuan students.

Perth's Colleen Thornton-Ward and Murray Thornton were on the ground as East Timor struggled for independence in 1999. The memories of that year are still fresh in their minds.

Jakarta – Hundreds of people and three command vehicles arrived on the grounds of the Corruption Eradication Commission's (KPK) Red-and-White building in Jakarta at 3 pm Friday August 30.

Kyle Springer – Indonesian President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo, known for various infrastructure projects during his tenure, is embarking on another mega-project yet with his plan to build a brand-new national capital in East Kalimantan province on the island of Borneo.

Rina Chandran, Bangkok – Thousands of indigenous people may be uprooted from their ancestral lands on Borneo island as large areas of forests are cleared to make way for Indonesia's new capital, human rights groups said on Friday.

Jakarta (Antara) – The Communication and Informatics (Kominfo) Minister Rudiantara announced that the lack of cellular services in Jayapura, Papua, and its vicinity are caused by the acts of "unknown people" who sabotaged the region's main optical telecommunication network.