Aubrey Belford, Jakarta – With its harrowing scenes of rape and abuse and its rousing calls for equality, a new film on the oppression of women in Islamic societies is courting controversy in Indonesia.

Camelia Pasandaran – The Constitutional Court is scheduled to hear the first legal challenge to the controversial Pornography Law today, after several Christian, student and ethnic minority organizations from North Sulawesi Province filed for a judicial review.

Adianto P. Simamora, Jakarta – Andi Yuliani Paris, a legislative candidate from the National Mandate Party (PAN), could not conceal her fear of losing votes after failing to provide cash or basic commodities as demanded by her "constituents" during the campaign.

Jakarta – The Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) will support the nomination of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Vice President Jusuf Kalla if the two decide to contest the election in July as a team.

"Why? PKS forecasts a gloomy economic development in the years to come," PKS deputy secretary general Zulkiflimansyah told a discussion Friday.

Mustaqim Adamrah, Jakarta – Vice President Jusuf Kalla sent Friday a clearer signal of his preparedness to contest the presidential election that could put his party on a collision course with his boss Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

Ad hoc judges have been introduced in human rights and corruption courts, but efforts to reform the criminal justice system in the country have so far proved unconvincing, an expert says.

Jakarta – The new election system and the massive campaigns of some prominent politicians may have caused women legislative candidates to lose their confidence before struggling to participate in the polls.

Chairman of the Indonesian Muslim Intellectuals (ICMI) Muslimin Nasution said Friday that confidence was all women needed to win legislative seats.

Heru Andriyanto – An anti-graft group on Friday accused the Attorney General's Office of being willing to negotiate with corruption suspects after the AGO declared publicly that suspects who return stolen money would not be detained during an investigation.

Washington – With its giant population and moderate brand of Islam, Indonesia is fast emerging as a cornerstone US ally for President Barack Obama's administration, observers say.

Endy M. Bayuni, Sydney – Australia wants a better investment climate and Indonesia wants assistance with its own production capacity. The two countries have now agreed that both items, along with trade liberalization, would go into the economic agreement that they are working on.

Jakarta – Indonesia's central bank will support the rupiah currency and may "add more ammunition" to contain the volatility, the central bank governor said on Friday, reiterating earlier comments as the currency weakened.

Anita Rachman & Heru Andriyanto – The Indonesian Council of Ulema, or MUI, is demanding a public apology from Transparency International Indonesia following the publication of survey results that indicated the council was one of the most graft-ridden institutions in the country.

Muninggar Sri Saraswati – Presidential hopeful Prabowo Subianto on Friday expressed optimism that his past human rights record while he was in the Army would not get in the way of his bid for the nation's top slot this year.

Muninggar Sri Saraswati – The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle, or PDI-P, says it is breaking new political ground by requiring all of its legislative candidates to stake their right to run again in 2014 on their ability to meet broad development targets if elected this year.

Adianto P. Simamora, Jakarta – Golkar looks likely to nominate a presidential candidate from within the party, after most regional members vowed to have a candidate of their own.

With Vice President and party chairman Jusuf Kalla giving his blessing to the move, many party officials are convinced Kalla's partnership with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono may soon be over.

Febriamy Hutapea – The Golkar Party admitted on Wednesday that it would have to work a lot harder for a strong showing in the April 9 national legislative elections.

Based on three surveys commissioned by Golkar, party members feared that they were losing popularity in five key provinces.

Camelia Pasandaran – Election observers and the head of the Constitutional Court on Wednesday condemned a General Elections Commission, or KPU, request that the government issue a government regulation-in-lieu-of-law, or Perpu, to change the way candidates can win House seats in the coming April 9 elections.

Erwida Maulia, Jakarta – The door has now been firmly closed shut by the Constitutional Court on candidates for the presidential elections who have no backing either from major political parties or from strong party coalitions.

Nethy Dharma Somba, Jayapura – Around 300 supporters of a Papuan student activist facing trial for treason staged a rally at Jayapura District Court on Wednesday.

Heru Andriyanto – Muchdi Purwoprandjono, who was cleared last December of charges that he ordered the murder of prominent human rights activist Munir Said Thalib, on Wednesday demanded that the Supreme Court reject an appeal lodged by prosecutors seeking to overturn his acquittal.

A written statement submitted by the Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC), a non-governmental organisation with general consultative status.

Human Rights Council
Tenth session

The Prime Minister Kevin Rudd opened a conference in Sydney on Thursday the 19 February. The conference is on Bilateral Relations titled "Australia and Indonesia: Partners in a New Era".

The Conference is to include sessions on:

Muhammad Taufiqqurahman, Jakarta – Students demonstrating against US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Thursday February 19 'forced' police to help them trample on US flags. The police were left smiling resentfully.

United Nations – Oil-rich East Timor can maintain double-digit economic growth in 2009 because falling prices for commodities should reduce spending on imports, East Timor's president told the UN Security Council Thursday.

Suherdjoko, Temanggung, Central Java – Thousands of farmers joined a rally Monday at a public park in Temanggung regency, Central Java, to protest a bill on the health impacts of tobacco products.

Palu – Hundreds of farmers and NGO activists in Toili district, Banggai regency, Central Sulawesi, staged a rally Tuesday to demand ownership of their farms that they said were being claimed by PT Kurnia Luwuk Sejati (KLS).

Matthew Lee, Jakarta – Secretary of State Hillary Clinton moved Wednesday to boost US ties with Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim nation, and with its neighbors. She pledged a new American willingness to work with and listen to Indonesia and the rest of Southeast Asia.

Jakarta – Indonesian exporters, especially labor-intensive ones, may get some much-needed support – in the form of relief on debt payments and capital expenditure subsidies – to help them cope with rapidly weakening global demand.

Nurfika Osman – The Attorney General's Office was responsible for worsening the injustices already done to human rights victims and their families through its repeated failure to resolve cases involving the Indonesian Armed Forces, the National Commission for Human Rights, or Komnas-HAM, said on Wednesday.

Jakarta – House of Representatives lawmakers and human rights groups have mounted pressure on the government to submit a bill on accession to the International Criminal Court (ICC), saying the process has been underway for two years without clarity.

Lachlan Carmichael, Jakarta – US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was cheered Thursday as she visited a slum in Indonesia's teeming capital at the end of her first trip to a Muslim-majority country since President Barack Obama promised to mend fences with the Islamic world.

[The following was written in response to an article by Kelik Ismunanto titled "Indonesia: Tracing a path towards parliament", which appeared in the December 3 issue of Green Left Weekly. Translated by James Balowski.]

Reasons for the retreat of the movement

Muninggar Sri Saraswati – A man from the East Java town of Blitar says he will continue to sell "tickets to heaven" for Rp 4 million ($336), despite the Indonesia Council of Ulema, or MUI, alleging that the man's teachings are a "deviation."

Heru Andriyanto – Corruption suspects may avoid detention while being investigated by the Attorney General's Office if they return misappropriated funds under a controversial policy focusing on the recovery of state assets, a senior prosecutor said on Tuesday.

Indra Subagja, Jakarta – The University of Indonesia (UI) will not be giving permission for a concert event titled "Tribute to Munir" at its Depok campus in West Jakarta on February 20. Not surprisingly this has given rise to protests by the wife of the late Munir, Suciwati.

Ari Saputra, Jakarta – At least 50 pairs of shoes were held up then after receiving a command from the action coordinator who shouted in a shrill voice "Destroy America", the shoes glided toward a photograph of Hillary Clinton's face.

Zakki Hakim – Indonesia has lifted a yearlong moratorium on the use of peatland forests by palm oil companies, a senior Agriculture Ministry official said Wednesday, angering environmental groups who say the decision will contribute to global warming.

Febriamy Hutapea – Indonesia on Tuesday finally joined the official international campaign against the trafficking and smuggling of people by ratifying United Nations protocols that outlaw the practices.

Camelia Pasandaran – With legislative elections less than two months away, nothing is being done to correct shambolic final voter enrolment lists other than a frenzied game of finger pointing.

An Indonesian Islamic leader rejected Wednesday an invitation to dine with Hillary Clinton, as she seeks to rebuild ties with the Muslim world on her first trip abroad as US secretary of state, Antara news agency reported.

The snub came as Clinton was set to arrive later Wednesday in the world's most populous Muslim country as part of a four-nation swing through Asia.

Jakarta – US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton arrived in Indonesia on Wednesday in a visit intended to demonstrate US determination to mend ties with the Islamic world.

Erwida Maulia, Jakarta – Independent candidates have won a number of regional elections, but their quest to contest the presidential race has been halted by a legal obstacle, at least temporarily.

On February 19, 2009 the UN Security Council will review the UN Integrated Mission in Timor-Leste (UNMIT) prior to a decision on its renewal. Representatives of 60 organizations signed the letter below urging the Security Council to take concrete action to ensure justice and accountability for crimes committed during the Indonesian occupation. - IFET

Markus Junianto Sihaloho – Defense Minister Juwono Sudarsono on Tuesday said that the government would first have to significantly enhance the welfare of its soldiers before his office could agree on a bill that would see police investigate members of the armed forces for civilian crimes.

Markus Junianto Sihaloho – With the country preparing for elections and the military calling for a budget increase, the government has decided to accelerate the spending of 2004-09 state credit funds of about $1.2 billion on new weapons and equipment.

Jakarta – Activists said Wednesday that US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton should use her visit to Indonesia to urge the country's military to stop human rights abuses or risk losing US military assistance.

Aditya Suharmoko, Jakarta – The economy grew the slowest in two years in the fourth quarter of 2008 as the global economic slowdown slashed commodity prices and export demand.

Markus Junianto Sihaloho – The National Human Rights Commission, or Komnas HAM, said on Monday that the House of Representatives would be wise to approve the request of the Indonesian Armed Forces, or TNI, to allow soldiers suspected of committing civilian crimes to be questioned by military police and subsequently face trial in a military court.

Dicky Christanto, Jakarta – The AGO has come under fire for failing to build a strong case against a former top spy in the murder of human rights activist Munir Said Thalib.

Irawaty Wardany, Jakarta – The National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) has set up a public examination team to verify a court verdict acquitting former top spy Muchdi Purwopranjono of the murder of rights activist Munir Said Thalib.