Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has suspended indefinitely Banten Governor Djoko Munandar to facilitate his prosecution for a corruption case.

Bandarlampung/Puncak Jaya/Kupang – The greed of corrupt local officials is ensuring needy families throughout the country are missing out on the fuel compensation money.

Urip Hudiono, Jakarta – The Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) has found that at least one-eighth of last year's Rp 80.42 trillion ($7.99 billion) in subsidized fuel, or Rp 9.7 trillion, was lost due to smuggling and that the total subsidy itself may have been overestimated by Rp 3.64 trillion.

Washington – Indonesia s failure to reform its abusive military makes it essential for the US Congress to maintain its restrictions on US military assistance, Human Rights Watch said today.

Jakarta – Vice President Yusuf Kalla said on Sunday the government cannot ban Jamaah Islamiyah (JI), an Islamic militant group blamed for a series of terror bombs in Indonesia, arguing that it has never been recognized under the law in the first place.

Yuli Tri Suwarni, Bandung – Riouwstraat (now Jl. Riau/Jl. Martadinata) was known as an upscale residential area during the Dutch colonial era, even though there were several old buildings that functioned as prisons to detain independence fighters.

Days after terrorists attacked Bali for the second time in three years, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono attended a ceremony on Wednesday to mark the 60th anniversary of the Indonesian Military (TNI). So it was understandable that terrorism figured prominently in the President's speech, in which he asked the TNI to play an active role in the fight against terrorists.

Because President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was elected democratically, many now wrongly believe that Indonesia's military has been reformed. But it continues to be responsible for routine abuses, has failed to address past crimes and remains beyond effective civilian control. – Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch.

Multa Fidrus, Tangerang – The Tangerang Regental Council (DPRD) has endorsed a bylaw that upgrades 77 villages in the regency into subdistricts, and regent Ismet Iskandar has sworn in village chiefs there as acting subdistrict heads.

Dili – Indonesia and its former territory East Timor may seek foreign funding for their Commission of Truth and Friendship investigating past bloodshed, East Timor's Foreign Minister Jose Ramos Horta said Monday.

Tb. Arie Rukmantara, Jakarta – Environmentalists urged on Sunday that President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono take environmental issues more seriously by introducing a ministry that focuses on natural resources management.

Pradana Boy ZTF, Malang – The factors that have caused Papuans' desire to be free from Indonesia cannot easily be determined. Papua's desire is rooted in many different factors ranging from the issues of race, culture and socio-political rights to economic reasons.

Ridwan M. Sijabat, Jakarta – There was nowhere to go; all thought was on escaping their burning homes. In an instant, residents in Aceh became refugees in their own homeland.

They lived in refugee camps while waiting for clashes between separatist rebels and government armed forces to end. However, the conflict never looked like stopping and raged for nearly 30 years.

Banda Aceh – The drafting of a bill on Aceh's governance has excluded representatives from the Free Aceh Movement (GAM), which demanded self-rule in the province.

"Formally, GAM is not involved in formulating the draft law on governance in Aceh. But they (its leaders) have often taken part in discussions and seminars," Acting Aceh governor Azwar Abubakar said on Sunday.

Apriadi Gunawan, Medan – Under scorching midday sun, Chief Sgt. Abdul Manaf steered left his motorcycle entering the compound of the East Medan district military command. Parked his motorcycle, he then took his rest in the guard post.

A'an Suryana, Jakarta – The role of the Babinsa, non-commissioned officers assigned to villages, is again in the spotlight, following the Indonesian Military (TNI) chief's suggestion they be reinstated to fight terrorism.

Eva C. Komandjaja, Jakarta – Auditors have found massive corruption at the Ministry of Agriculture including a 2004 case relating to the production of bird flu vaccines for infected poultry.

Jakarta – The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) issued on Friday a circular warning state officials against accepting "inappropriate gifts" from others in relation to Idul Fitri.

Tiarma Siboro, Jakarta – A top antiterror official has voiced support for the Indonesian Military (TNI)'s controversial plan to reactivate its territorial function to help curb terrorism in the country, saying the policy would give military intelligence officers the ability to "infiltrate" communities where terrorist groups develop their networks.

Tomi Soetjipto, Kuta Beach – Police questioned more witnesses in the Bali backpack bombings on Saturday after narrowly failing to capture a key suspect in a series of blasts in Indonesia over the past several years.

M. Taufiqurrahman, Jakarta – For good or ill, 1965 has very special meaning for Ilham Aidit, son of doomed Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) leader Dipa Nusantara (D.N.) Aidit.

Mike Casey, Bali – Investigators desperate for a breakthrough in the Bali terrorist attacks on Saturday dropped thousands of photos of the two suspected masterminds over a city close to where one of the fugitives narrowly escaped capture a day earlier.

Dwi Atmanta, Jakarta – A usually cool President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono seemed to be about to lose his patience when he ordered the Indonesian Military (TNI) to actively help the country's fight against terrorism on Thursday.

M. Taufiqurrahman, Jakarta – Dipa Nusantara (D.N.) Aidit, the doomed leader of the Indonesian Communist Party (PKI), was demonized by the New Order regime as the ruthless mastermind of the Sept. 30 coup attempt, a bloody event blamed on the communist party.

Jakarta – The caretaker of the Darut Tauhid pesantren [traditional Islamic boarding school], Abdullah Gymnastiar or Aa Gym, has asked that the advertisement on fuel price increases in which he starred and which were sponsored by the department of communication and information be taken off the air.

Urip Hudiono, Jakarta – Foreign direct investment (FDI) is maintaining its upward trend, data from the Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) shows, ahead of a possible slowdown due to rising fuel prices and interest rates, and jitters resulting from the Bali bombings.

Lisa Misol, New York – Now that the Indonesian military might be independently selling off its shares in private companies, the government has no time to waste in setting ground rules to eliminate military businesses. A year after a landmark law mandated that the TNI end its involvement in business, regulations have not yet been issued.

Tb. Arie Rukmantara, Jakarta – The Indonesian Military's (TNI) plan to reactivate its territorial command drew strong criticism from the country's top politicians on Thursday as they claimed the move would pave the way for the military's involvement in politics.

Hera Diani, Jakarta – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono remains a popular president, with 63 percent of Indonesians satisfied with his performance in running the country, a new survey shows.

Similarly, 58 percent of the people were satisfied with Vice President Jusuf Kalla's performance, the survey released on Thursday by the Indonesian Research Institute (LSI) says.

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta – A human rights watchdog has called on the government to reform the National Intelligence Agency (BIN) following the failure to prevent a series of bombings over the past several years.

Bill Guerin, Jakarta – The al-Qaeda-linked Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) organization once again has its footprints all over a series of suicide bomb blasts on the Indonesian resort island of Bali.

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta – Chief Justice Bagir Manan has given a directive to judges across the country to fine, not imprison, any journalist found guilty in a criminal case related to a press dispute.

Mark Curtis – As bloodshed mounts each day in Iraq, what prospect is there that British ministers will be held accountable for the illegal invasion and occupation that triggered this carnage? If past precedents are anything to go by, not much.

Jakarta – After disappearing for a while, Jakarta thugs are back on the city's streets, extorting money from motorists right under the noses of city public order officials.

Tiarma Siboro and Eva C. Komandjaja, Jakarta – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono called upon the Indonesian Military (TNI) to be active in the fight against terrorism after the latest attack on Bali, which the TNI chief interpreted as meaning restoring the military's territorial function.

Rusman, Samarinda – The sun has just risen on the horizon, and Rahmat, 65, was tilling the land to grow beans. The land, on part of which he grows vegetables, is not his, but has been lent to him by a church. He still looks strong for his age.

City Councillors took part in a protest on the steps of Oxford Town Hall to pledge their support for West Papuans fighting for freedom from Indonesian occupation.

The Oxford-based Free West Papua Campaign is calling for a referendum on the country's future.

Jakarta – State oil and gas firm PT Pertamina has increased fuel prices for industry for October by up to 21.9 percent, higher than previously expected.

Aguswandi, Banda Aceh – No matter which political camp or organization you belong to in Aceh, there is one similarity throughout: Women are not significantly involved anywhere. Women's potential and actual roles have been neglected across the board in the huge rebuilding efforts in post-tsunami and post-MOU Aceh.

Melanesian Solidarity National Facilitating Committee for Free West Papua, Papua New Guinea is calling on the Senior Official currently meeting in Suva, Fiji to put West Papua as a separate agenda on the Pacific Islands Forum agenda.

Hera Diani, Jakarta – Challenges still loom for a democratic state in Indonesia where civilians reign supreme, with a significant minority of people still believing military posts are vital for public order and security.

Terrorism will damage the Balinese tourist industry, but there are deeper structural problems which threaten the broader Indonesian economy.

A delegation of Papuan church ministers is flying out to America this week to lobby the United States Congress to investigate Indonesia's legal claim over their province. The US House of Representatives has passed a bill questioning Papua's incorporation into Indonesia.

Anton Aliabbas, Jakarta – The plan to reactivate the TNI's (Indonesian military) territorial commands has been greeted by condemnation.

Mark Forbes, Denpasar – Police have launched raids on Jemaah Islamiah strongholds across Indonesia in a widening hunt for members of the suicide cell that launched last weekend's bomb attacks in Bali.

Denpasar – Bali's Hindus celebrated one of their holiest days and its Muslims began the fasting month of Ramadan as police vowed to "work around the clock" to solve the weekend bombings.

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta – The Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Agency for Aceh and Nias (BRR) reiterated its promise on Tuesday to speed up reconstruction work in tsunami-affected areas.

Ahmad Yunus, Bandung – It is indeed appropriate for Bandung to be called a sea of factory outlets. But, did you know that some of the buildings that have magically become factory outlets are actually official military residences? That is what has happened in the city of blossoms.

A.M. Hendropriyono, Jakarta – The weekend's repeat terrorist attack on Bali comes at the worst possible moment for the resort island. Not only did the blasts claim human lives, but they will no doubt translate into a devastating reverse for Bali's tourism industry – which had only recently clawed its way back to normalcy following the October 2002 bombing.

Tom McCawley, Jakarta – Here in the world's largest Muslim country a war of ideas within Islam is playing out on an unlikely stage: a bohemian arts community in a crowded Jakarta side street. The patrons of the Utan Kayu Theater, including some of Indonesia's leading novelists and writers, normally gather to discuss such topics as avant-garde art or prewar Russian cinema.