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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Jakarta – Top Indonesian military officer claimed Friday that violence in East Timor was triggered by widespread cheating from United Nations body overseeing the territory's historic 1999 vote for independence.

Dili – Gangs from rival political parties scuffled and threw rocks in East Timor, injuring at least 20 people, authorities said Friday, in what was believed to be the first violence directly related to next month's presidential elections.

Karen Michelmore, Jakarta – An East Timorese woman has told how she was repeatedly raped by a pro-Indonesia militia member in the months after the nation's historic 1999 referendum "because the pro-independence won".

Geoff Thompson – The former head of Indonesian military intelligence has cited an Australian 60 Minutes television crew as an example of the United Nations trying to influence the outcome of East Timor's independence referendum in 1999.

Major General Zacky Anwar Makarim is a former member of Kopassus and chief of Indonesian military intelligence.

Alvin Darlanika Soedarjo, Jakarta – An ex-Indonesian Military (TNI) officer has told the Indonesia-Timor Leste Commission of Truth and Friendship that the TNI complied with Indonesian law at the time of Timor Leste's 1999 referendum.

Jakarta – The vast majority of businesses in Indonesia are not prepared to hire disabled people, despite the 1997 law that obliges companies to allocate at least 1 percent of their positions to the disabled, an employment expert said.

Agustinus, Jakarta – Despite being attacked by right-wing thugs on March 29, the National Liberation Party of Unity (Papernas) will declare itself in June. This was confirmed by Papernas general secretary Haris Sitorus during discussions with Media Indonesia in Jakarta on Thursday March 29.

Arifin Asydhad, Jakarta – The National Liberation Party of Unity (Papernas) is calling on the national police to fully investigate the attack on its members by the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI). The attack should be categorised as a criminal act.

Bagus BT. Saragih, Jakarta – Members of the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) and the Betawi Brotherhood Forum (FBR) clashed with demonstrators from the National Liberation Party of Unity (Papernas) in the Dukuh Atas area on Jl. Sudirman in Tanah Abang, Central Jakarta on Thursday March 29.

Wisnu, Jakarta – Around 2,000 people from various mass organisations from East Java, West Java and the Greater Jakarta area gathered at the Proclamation Monument in Central Jakarta on Thursday March 29 to prevent the National Liberation Party of Unity (Papernas) from holding a declaration there later in the day.

Jakarta – Acehnese cultural experts are calling for the revival of traditional and religious culture in Aceh, saying that local customs were strong prior to their erosion by the region's long history of conflict.

[The following statement was to be presented during action by the National Liberation Party of Unity (Papernas) at the Hotel Shangri-La in Jakarta on March 29 to protest a meeting on the Millenium Development Goals and the newly passed Foreign Investment Law.

Apriadi Gunawan, Medan – Nias students protested Wednesday outside the North Sumatra Legislative Council in Medan over the pace of reconstruction on the earthquake-devastated island.

Members of the Nias Students Alliance criticized the provincial government for failing to draw up a reconstruction blueprint for Nias two years after the island was struck by a massive quake.

Martin Abbugao, Singapore – Shortly after Indonesian police arrested suspects in the 2005 Bali bombings, five senior members of the extremist group Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) were secretly flown to a safehouse on the resort island.

[The following is a compilation of reports from Detik.com on the March 29 mass rally planned by the National Liberation Party of Unity against the ratification of the Draft Law on Capital Investment that was attacked and broken up by the Islamic Defenders Front. Translated by James Balowski.]

Thousand of protesters to oppose capital investment law

On Thursday 29 March 2007 at 11 am hundreds of member of the Islamic defenders front (FPI), the Betawi Brotherhood Forum (FBR) and other similar groups attacked a Papernas mass action on Jl.

Andi Haswidi, Jakarta – A coalition of non-governmental organizations has said it will seek a judicial review if the House of Representatives passes the investment bill on Thursday.

Galuh Wandita, Jakarta – Back in the late 70s, sixth-year schoolchildren in Jakarta often visited the Lubang Buaya Memorial in East Jakarta, a historical site which marked the birth of the New Order.

Adianto P. Simamora, Jakarta – At a discussion on environmental issues on Wednesday, Jakarta Environment Management Board head Budirama Natakusumah raised some basic questions about the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM).

The CDM is an element of the Kyoto Protocol that allows developing countries to host projects that reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Bill Guerin, Jakarta – Indonesia's politics of corruption has always been murky, with untold billions of dollars spirited from state coffers into politicians' personal accounts during strongman Suharto's 32-year tenure.

Ridwan Max Sijabat, Jakarta – All councillors and council speakers must return allowances they received under an annulled government regulation or face corruption charges, says a senior government official.

Ridwan Max Sijabat, Jakarta – More than a hundred legislators plan to question President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono over the government's decision to support the UN Security Council's resolution imposing new sanctions on Iran after its refusal to suspend its nuclear program.

Ridwan Max Sijabat, Jakarta – Under the spotlight of a massive rally in front of the State Palace, the House of Representatives approved Tuesday the rail transportation bill, allowing the private sector to take part in the rail industry.

Ary Hermawan, Jakarta – While last year's moderate economic growth and the establishment of a more stable macroeconomic environment were positive accomplishments, they were still insufficient to start putting a dent in unemployment and reduce poverty, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) says.

Jakarta – Public support for President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has dropped to 49 percent, the lowest in his two-and-a-half years in office, a survey revealed Tuesday.

Ridwan Max Sijabat, Jakarta – The House of Representatives approved Tuesday the bill on spatial planning, which is aimed at arresting the decline of green space in the nation's cities.

All 10 factions in the House hailed the bill as a good start at reining in the rapid growth of concrete jungle in Indonesia's urban areas.

Ridwan Max Sijabat, Jakarta – In the wake of increasing protest from the public, the House of Representatives decided Tuesday not to buy laptop computers for its 550 legislators. The House will instead use the money for other spending schemes aimed at improving its performance.

Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – Over 100 members of the House of Representatives have signed a petition to summon President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to the house for an interpellation over Indonesia's decision to support a United Nations resolution to impose more sanctions on Iran.