Dewi Santoso, Jakarta – Pasar Pagi (the morning market) existed long before most malls and shopping centers in the city.

"I used to have a lot of customers. They came here for many things, from clothes and toys to school supplies and kitchenware, because they could get them here at cheaper prices," said Amen, the owner of a grocery shop in the Pasar Pagi complex.

Slamet Susanto, Sleman – A former general manager of a Yogyakarta start-up newspaper was sentenced to nine months in jail on Wednesday for defamation.

The verdict ignored demands earlier by media workers outside court room, who said that the judge must not criminalize the media and should respect the freedom of expression.

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta – As the Anticorruption Court scheduled the first hearing for his graft case, Aceh Governor Abdullah Puteh was rushed to the hospital with an unspecified ailment in the wee hours of Wednesday.

His legal counsel, O.C. Kaligis, said Puteh was taken to the M.H. Thamrin hospital in Salemba, Central Jakarta, due to asthma.

Indonesia's military needs at least 70,000 more troops to ensure security and would ideally be almost double its current size, a report quoted the head of the army as saying.

The United States welcomed creation of a joint Indonesia-East Timor commission on the 1999 bloodshed in the former Portuguese colony, but made clear the necessity of a separate UN inquiry as well.

Yuli Tri Suwarni and Luh Putu Trisna Wahyuni, Bandung – Former West Java governor Nuriana has been accused of bribing all 100 members of the previous provincial legislative council to cover up his alleged role in a Rp 224 billion (US$24.8 million) graft case.

John Mcbeth, Jakarta – With palace aides already worried about a slide in his popularity, the time has arrived earlier than he would have wished for President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to demonstrate a much more assertive brand of leadership.

Kurniawan Hari, Jakarta – The popularity of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has dropped sharply over the past month due to people's unmet reform expectations, according to a survey by the Indonesian Survey Institute (LSI).

Semarang – The Central Java provincial government has proposed that, starting from January next year, provincial councillors will get a monthly payment of Rp 5 million as a housing allowance.

Shawn Donnan, Jakarta – Indonesia and East Timor announced this week they would establish a bilateral "truth and friendship commission" to heal wounds between the two countries left by the 1999 violence in which Jakarta's military and associated militias laid waste to East Timor.

M. Taufiqurrahman and Kurniawan Hari, Jakarta – A Golkar party leader said on Wednesday that there would be no abrupt changes in relations between the House of Representatives (DPR) and the executive following the election of Vice President Jusuf Kalla as the party's new chairman.

Eva C. Komandjaja – Public enemy No. 1 and bombing fugitive Azahari bin Husin had worked undetected in a building near the Australian Embassy to plan the September 9 attack, a top police officer said on Wednesday.

There have been mixed reactions this week to a proposal by Indonesia and East Timor to set up a joint commission to investigate the violence in East Timor four years ago. The plan was announced on Tuesday after talks between Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and his East Timorese counterpart Xanana Gusmao in Bali.

John Aglionby, Jakarta – Indonesia and East Timor have agreed to set up a truth and friendship commission to address the issues of 1,500 murders and thousands of other human rights violations committed during the 1999 independence referendum in East Timor.

Zakki P. Hakim, Jakarta – It seems that confidence in investment climate in Indonesia may have started to improve, with hundreds of potential investors, foreign and domestic, having expressed enthusiasm to participate in next month's infrastructure summit.

Veeramalla Anjaiah, Jakarta – With its huge population and dynamic economies, Asia is increasingly poised to become the new strategic center of gravity in global politics, and Indonesia, a Southeast Asian regional power, has a big role to play in that set up.

Marwaan Macan-Markar, Bangkok – The new leader of the world's most populous Muslim country, Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, has a serious challenge ahead, having stepped into the political limelight just as Southeast Asia's identity as a symbol of moderate Islam becomes increasingly bruised by the region's own Muslims.

What is a good inconsistency?! For our honored Constitutional Court, that is probably the only way to describe their recent decisions. Last week, we were baffled by the court's decision to annul the Electricity Law. This week, however, we are encouraged by the court's verdict to uphold the Oil and Gas Law.

Jakarta – A group of Muslim hard-liners called on the House of Representatives on Wednesday to begin work on a bill that would limit the construction of other religions' places of worship.

The activists, from the Muslims Forum, said the regulation would serve to prevent unchecked proselytization by each of the religions in the country.

Jakarta – Army chief of staff General Ryamizard Ryacudu has revealed that army businesses, particularly those which are part of foundations "only" generate 30 billion rupiah per year. "That's if [we're] lucky. Perhaps this amount could decline further in the future", he told Tempo at the army's headquarters in Jakarta.

Eworaswa, Jakarta – The executive director of the Indonesian Survey Institute (LSI), Denny J.A., says that fuel price increases will become the hottest issue for the government of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono next year.

Tim Johnston, Jakarta – The case against the alleged leader of Jemaah Islamiah, the terror group behind the Bali bombings, was boosted yesterday when Abbas, a confessed senior member of JI, gave a detailed account of Abu Bakar Bashir's involvement in the running of the group.

Kurniawan Hari, Jakarta – The Golkar Party held a coordination meeting Tuesday evening to discuss its new political stance following the election of Vice President Jusuf Kalla as its chairman. Tuesday's meeting was presided over by vice chairman Agung Laksono and attended by the party's chairpersons, Secretary-General Sumarsono and some of his deputies.

Jakarta – Fresh from his election as the new leader of the Golkar Party, Mr Jusuf Kalla has strongly signalled that Golkar is out of the Nationhood Coalition of opposition parties, saying there is no such permanent bloc in the country's Parliament.

Uba/Ant, Jakarta – Muhammadiyah, Indonesia's second largest Islamic mass organisations, is moving to establish a new political party. Not because of discontent with the National Mandate Party (PAN) – but the longing and enthusiasm of the new generation of Muhammadiyah members to have their own party.

The throng of young men in combat pants, Mujahidin jackets and Muslim songkok skullcaps have been largely quiet during the second terrorism trial of radical cleric Abu Bakar Bashir.

Apart from the odd pumped fist and cry of "God is Great" in the cavernous, makeshift court housed in a south Jakarta auditorium, the Bashir faithful have had little to shout about.

Ewo Raswa, Jakarta – The Indonesian Survey Institute (LSI) says that the popularity of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has experienced a decline of as much as 13 per cent over the last month.

Indonesia and East Timor announced plans for a historic joint commission to draw a line under past hostilities and resolve the 1999 bloodshed that marred the East Timorese march to independence.

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, Jakarta – In order to give the nation's fight against corruption a boost, the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) and the government agreed on Tuesday to widen the former's authority in revealing irregularities in the disbursement of state budgets.

Jakarta – The Minister of Defense, Juwono Sudarsono, estimates that the integration of the TNI (armed forces) headquarters into the department of defense – in accordance with the mandate of the Law on the TNI – will be implemented in within the next three years.

Tiarma Siboro, Jakarta – The New Year will mark an end to the existing system of military arms procurement, which allows each armed force to directly purchase arms.

Jakarta – The Constitutional Court on Tuesday upheld a 2001 oil and gas law that was designed to liberalize the sector and to gradually reduce the role of state firm Pertamina, saying the law did not violate the 1945 Constitution and should therefore remain in place.

Eva C. Komandjaja – Police and activists, close friends and family members of noted rights campaigner Munir agreed on Tuesday to form an independent investigative team to assist the police investigation into Munir's death.

Tony Hotland, Jakarta – Disposing of unprocessed hazardous waste in the environment and the absence of waste management licenses are examples of the violations committed by companies, an official said on Tuesday.

Washington – US officials do not want a planned Indonesian-East Timorese commission on 1999 violence in East Timor to supplant UN efforts to determine if justice has since been done, a senior US official said on Wednesday.

Nana Rukmana and Yuli Tri Suwarni, Cirebon/Bandung – Hundreds of students held protests on Tuesday in cities throughout Java demanding the government reverse state oil and gas company PT Pertamina's decision to raise the price of high-octane gasoline and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG).

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, Jakarta – Vice President Jusuf Kalla asserted that the government would not ban the relatives of state officials from doing business, as long as they abide by the regulations.

Brushing aside fears about collusion in favor of officials' relatives, Kalla said there was nothing wrong with them operating a business.

Tiarma Siboro, Jakarta – After claiming to have successfully cracked down on the Free Aceh Movement (GAM), the military is now planning to intensify intelligence operations against rebels in the troubled province.

Monica Sloan – Oxford MP Andrew Smith has met a West Papuan tribal leader who fled torture to highlight the oppression of Papuans by Indonesia.

Benny Wenda, 29, was held and tortured in 2002 by Indonesian forces – which are occupying the territory – until he escaped with his wife Maria and two young daughters and fled to England.

Ramidi, Jakarta – Around 500 members of the United Workers' Alliance held an action in front of the State Palace on Jalan Medan Merdeka Barat on Tuesday December 21 to protest against wage policies and fuel price increases.

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja and Wahyoe Boediwardhana, Jakarta/Denpasar – The government said on Monday it would form multi-agency intelligence teams in provinces throughout the country to prevent further terrorist attacks, a move some fear could revive the repressive Soeharto-era measures against freedom of expression.

Indonesian prosecutors' bid to link cleric Abu Bakar Bashir to Jemaah Islamiyah took a step forward when a confessed senior member of the extremist group identified the elderly preacher as its leader.

Two years ago, whilst West Papuan tribal leader and independence activist, Benny Wenda, was being tortured in an Indonesian prison cell, Oxford MP Andrew Smith was sitting at the Cabinet table in 10, Downing Street with Tony Blair and Foreign Secretary Jack Straw as the Labour Government's then Secretary of State for Work & Pensions.

Tony Hotland and Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, Jakarta – Newly elected Golkar Party leader Vice President Jusuf Kalla strongly signalled Golkar was out of the National Coalition on Monday by saying there was no such permanent bloc in the House.

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, Jakarta – Those attending the Cabinet meeting on Monday were all smiles, particularly Vice President Jusuf Kalla.

Showing no signs of fatigue, Kalla was indeed the man of the moment as all Cabinet members present, including President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, took turns in congratulating him on his successful bid for the Golkar Party's top post.

Fabio Scarpello, Jakarta – Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono may be smiling after his deputy won the leadership of the powerful Golkar Party at the end of a dramatic four-day national congress that ended in the resort island of Bali on Sunday. But many wonder how long the president's joy will last.

As if sitting on a volcano, the residents who live along Jl. Matraman have to be ready for an outbreak of fighting to erupt at any time.

Adianto P. Simamora, Jakarta – Indonesia and its former province East Timor are set to reject an idea to establish a commission of experts to review the judicial processes of human rights abuse cases involving Indonesian military and police officers during a meeting with UN Secretary General Kofi Annan this week, a spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in Jakarta.

Suherdjoko, Semarang – Some 14 former Central Java legislative council members, declared suspects in a Rp 14.8 billion (US$1.6 million) scam, have promised to pay back their ill-gotten gains, prosecutors said on Monday.

Multa Fidrus, Tangerang – Several Tangerang regency councillors have handed their letters of appointment over to pawnshops or banks as collateral for loans.