Dili – Tens of thousands of people are preparing for their third bout of flooding since 2006 in camps for internally displaced people (IDPs) as the rainy season once again descends on Timor-Leste.

The police chief of East Timor's second biggest city has been arrested amid rising tensions within the force. Stephanie March reports Baucau police commander Aderito da Costa Ximenes was arrested by members of the UN police on Thursday.

Who does not think Yogyakarta is special? Only a few who have had the privilege to taste the lifestyle in this ancient city fail to leave enamored.

Most end up making Yogyakarta their spiritual home, or at the very least, they carry a part of the city with them forever.

Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – The Golkar Party is facing the threat of internal disintegration, with influential members and affiliated groups seemingly at odds with party chairman and Vice President Jusuf Kalla.

Jakarta – Palm oil companies are clearing massive swathes of untouched forest in Indonesia's remote easternmost Papua region, environmental group Greenpeace said Friday.

"Palm oil companies have obtained the land conversion permits for tens of thousand of hectares," Greenpeace campaigner Bustar Maitar told AFP.

Desy Nurhayati and Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – Anti-corruption observers have criticized the Attorney General's Office for dropping investigations into two high-profile cases, saying the halts expose the incompetence of the law enforcement body in resolving such cases.

Dili – East Timor celebrated Cuba's Independence day within the World Drive Against the Blockade with a new telephone line (roaming) joining both countries.

East Timor's President and chief prosecutor are at odds over the prosecution of senior military figures for their role in illegally arming civilians during the 2006 crisis.

Last week, the prosecutor general said it was the president's fault he'd not yet been able launch the action, while Jose Ramos Horta says there are other priorities.

Presenter: Stephanie March

Many ordinary people were celebrated as heroes for the role they played during East Timor's struggle for independence from Indonesia.

Dutch journalist Tjitske Lingsma, who reported on the conflict, tracked down a young man who saved the Timorese enclave of Oecussi by smuggling a desperate plea for help inside his flip flops.

Aditya Suharmoko, Jakarta – When the US Congress approved a bailout plan last week, it was expected to ease the global financial crisis.

Fast-forward three days, and world markets, including Indonesia's, were plummeting. Coupled with the volatile rupiah, the inevitable question is raised: Will Indonesia suffer another economic crisis?

Desy Nurhayati, Jakarta – The government has decided to extend the tenure of Yogyakarta Governor Sultan Hamengkubowono X by three years, in a bid to prevent a vacuum of power in the province.

On Tuesday, Home Affairs Minister Mardiyanto said President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono had signed a decree on the extension of the governor's term of office.

Jakarta – Indonesia is to sign up to a charter committing Southeast Asian nations to the principles of democracy and human rights, its foreign ministry said Wednesday.

A special committee from the House of Representatives has determined to ratify the agreement, ministry spokesman Teuku Faizasyah said.

Jakarta – Indonesia must do more to save pristine rainforests in Papua from destruction, particularly with plans to open up huge tracts of land to develop palm oil plantations, environmentalists said on Wednesday.

Jakarta – The Indonesian Military (TNI) announced Tuesday the names of 22 generals who will be promoted or dismissed in the first major military reshuffle since July.

Erwida Maulia, Jakarta – A witness confirmed Tuesday the use of Bank Indonesia funds to make state prosecutors drop investigations into alleged graft involving two former top officials at the central bank in 2003.

Dian Kuswandini, Jakarta – Informal lobbying within the House of Representatives special committee deliberating the presidential election bill is expected to expedite a decision on the minimum percentage of votes a party must secure to nominate a presidential candidate.

Aditya Suharmoko, Jakarta – Exports in August fell 0.43 percent to US$12.5 billion from the month before, as crude oil prices continued falling, dragging down other commodity prices.

Dian Kuswandini, Jakarta – The House of Representatives voted not to pass a controversial bill stipulating an extended mandatory retirement age for the chief justice of the Supreme Court, meaning incumbent Bagir Manan, who turns 67 today, must step down.

East Timor's prime minster says he will not allow a new wave of instability as the opposition Fretilin party prepares for a demonstration in the capital Dili.

Jakarta – Former Bank Indonesia (BI) legal bureau head, Oey Hoey Tiong, on Tuesday admitted to using BI money to prevent the arrest of former BI governor Sudrajat Djiwandono, who was implicated in BI liquidity support corruption case.

Nethy Dharma Somba, Jayapura – The Greenpeace ship Esperanza and its crew of activists arrived in Jayapura on Monday, beginning a two-week campaign on forest protection that is focusing on a moratorium on deforestation in Papua.

Police in East Timor have been ordered to set up checkpoints and step up patrols to stop officers from taking weapons home, amid signs of mounting tensions in the force.

Police have been ordered to search cars for illegal weapons, with one aim of the operation to stop police from unlawfully taking their weapons home when they finish work.

Aditya Suharmoko, Jakarta – Indonesia may start feeling the pinch of the economic meltdown in the United States and in some European countries as early as next year, dragging down fairly outstanding growth in Southeast Asia's largest economy.

Jakarta – The leader of radical Islamist group Jemaah Islamiyah was prohibited from visiting convicted Bali bombers at Batu prison, Nusakambangan island, Monday.

Abubakar Ba'asyir arrived at the Wijayapura pier in Cilacap at 10:30 a.m., requesting permission from local guards to cross to the island to visit the Bali bombers and other terrorists at various prison complexes.

Rizal Sukma, Jakarta – On Sunday, Oct. 5, the Indonesian Military (TNI) celebrated its 63rd anniversary, although its official commemoration will be held on Oct. 14 in Surabaya.

Dian Kuswandini, Jakarta – In an attempt to promote transparency and prevent illegal funding in the presidential election, the House of Representatives has agreed on prison terms for candidates who fail to report their campaign funding.

Erwida Maulia, Jakarta – Up to 427 people have died and 1,408 others have been injured in traffic accidents during this year's Idul Fitri exodus, the National Police reported.

These figures were tabulated from reports made between Sept. 25 and Oct. 4, of a total 970 accidents involving 1,258 vehicles, National Police spokesman Insp. Gen. Abubakar Nataprawira said.

Agnes Winarti, Jakarta – Those offering "laundry by the kilo" services are beaming over the plight of Jakartans inundated with dirty clothes and abandoned by their maids during Lebaran, just as mall restaurants happily draw in families bent on avoiding the kitchen stove.

Philip Dorling – One hazard of being prime minister is you never quite know who you'll meet next.

Kevin Rudd's office goes to considerable lengths to avoid surprises, but at conferences and public forums anyone may be next in line to shake his hand. So it was on September 9, when he was at the national congress of the Returned and Services League in Townsville.

Aditya Suharmoko and Ika Krismantari, Jakarta – The Finance Ministry is recalculating the state budget deficit's tolerance level, as the shortage in global liquidity and higher costs of protecting sovereign debts from default threaten to make fund-raising harder.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees says it won't resettle more than a hundred refugees from the Indonesian province of Papua to a third country.

Our PNG correspondent Steve Marshall reports the refugees are now living in Papua New Guinea. The Papuan refugees crossed the border into Papua New Guinea many years ago and settled in Port Moresby.

Jakarta – The Huria Batak Protestant Church followers say the pornography bill is "not needed" to maintain Indonesians' morality.

It would be better for the government intensify moral education and consistently uphold existing rules, they said.

Fadli and Jon Afrizal, Batam, Jambi – Coastal erosion is progressing at an alarming rate in Batam and Jambi as a result of widespread illegal logging of mangrove forests, the Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Ministry says.

An estimated 800 to 900 hectares of mangrove forests that function as buffers against strong waves are illegally logged each year.

Aditya Suharmoko, Jakarta – The Indonesian economy is estimated to grow by more than 6 percent during the year's third quarter on the back of robust private consumption, investment and export, the Finance Ministry says.

Dian Kuswandini, Jakarta – Gen. Bambang Hendarso Danuri was officially sworn in by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono at the State Palace on Tuesday as the new National Police chief.

Bambang, who attained his four-star promotion a day earlier, replaces Gen. Sutanto, who began his retirement on Sept. 30. Bambang will serve as National Police chief until 2010.

Paul Toohey – East Timor's fragile political and justice system is again being put to the test with the country's most senior military figure, Brigadier Taur Matan Ruak, facing possible prosecution over his role in arming civilians during the crisis of 2006.

Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – It is a moment for seeking and giving forgiveness, but for political figures, Idul Fitri has become an opportunity to gain public sympathy, win popularity and express political inclinations by holding an "open house".

Jose Sarito Amaral, Jakarta – Prime Minister of East Timor Xanana Gusmao dismissed Fretilin's threat to bring in thousands of supporters to urge East Timor government to hold a general election, slamming the threat as a dream and no more than that of a kid.

The election season is already in full swing. Now is the time to challenge or praise incumbents' records on East Timor and Indonesia and to ask all candidates for federal office their positions on justice for East Timor (Timor-Leste), U.S. military assistance to Indonesia, and other related issues.

An international health NGO says the death toll from a cholera epidemic in Indonesia's Papua has reached an estimated 200.

Medecins du Monde says it has recorded 150 deaths from cholera in the Dogiyai and Paniai districts of Papua since April but estimates the actual toll could be towards the figure of 290 which local church groups are reporting.

Sara Webb and Fitri Wulandari, Cilegon – Like its volcanic namesake nearby, state-owned Krakatau Steel looms large over this part of Indonesia.

Its aged, weather-beaten plants in Cilegon, West Java, push out 2.5 million tons of rolled coil and flat steel a year – enough to build around 4 million cars – making Krakatau a target for some of the world's leading steel-makers.

Famega Syafira/Wikipedia, Jakarta – Fretilin demanded a re-election in East Timor, the party Secretary General Mari Alkatiri said on Thursday when meeting the chairman of Muhammadiyah, Din Syamsuddin in Jakarta.

Alkatiri said the current East Timor government is unlegitimate and do not have a strong constitutional ground, "we want a re-election" Alkatiri stated.

Jakarta – Reforming Indonesia's army, once among the world's most corrupt and abusive, has been a slow process since the army-backed Suharto regime collapsed ten years ago. A big obstacle to this, and to the country's democratic progress, has been the forces' deep involvement in all sorts of businesses, legal and illegal.

Worrying signs are emerging of tensions within East Timor's police force, similar to the rift among armed forces that sparked deadly violence in 2006.

Nusakambangan, Indonesia – Three Islamic militants on death row for the deadly 2002 nightclub bombings in Bali sounded a defiant tone on Wednesday during celebrations to mark the end of the Muslim fasting month.

Tensions are brewing in East Timor's national police force as the government works to weed out corruption and rehabilitate the force.

The administration in Dili hopes it can eventually farewell the 15-hundred UN police, who've taken responsibility for internal security for the past two years. But police reform may not be going as smoothly as the government would want.

Kurniasih Budi/Ninin Damayanti, Jakarta – Former East Timor Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri visited President Yudhoyono during the Idul Fitri gathering at the presidential palace on Wednesday, after attending the Idul Fitri prayer at the Istiqlal Mosque.

Jakarta – Newly-installed National Police chief Comr. Gen. Bambang Hendarso Danuri said on Tuesday he would promote cultural change inside the police force to improve their image and performance.

A preliminary list of legislative candidates eligible to compete in next year's elections was published last Friday, sending many of the country's 38 registered parties into a frenzy of complaints and demands.

Abdul Khalik and Irawaty Wardany, Jakarta – Vice President Jusuf Kalla has hinted at his readiness to stand as President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's running mate in the 2009 presidential election.

"I will accept any position as long as I can contribute to the development of the country," he said on Monday.