BE Satrio, Litbang Kompas – Democratisation in Indonesia appears to be taking a step back. After successfully holding peaceful general elections in 2004, these days political upheavals are centred on the political processes with the political parties.

Oyos Saroso H.N., Bandarlampung – The Wan Abdurrahman forest preservation area in Mount Betung National Park, South Lampung, is in a sorry state, with 76 percent or 17,000 hectares of the 22,249-ha forest destroyed by illegal logging and land clearing, an environmentalist says.

Port Numbay (Jayapura) – Around 500 indigenous Papuans organised by the Papua Youth Group (Kelompok Pemuda Papua) held a demonstration against the integration of West Papua in to the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia on the morning of Sunday May 1 at the Trikora Abepura Square.

George Monbiot – It all seems a very long way away. But what is happening in an obscure island nation in the south Pacific has now become our business. A few weeks ago BP, the British company that has invested most in "corporate social responsibility", received final approval to start developing a gas field in West Papua, the western half of the island of New Guinea.

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta – Some Indonesians might still remember the case of Samantha, a little girl who made headlines here during the 1990s in an international child abduction case.

The girl was a child of a mixed marriage. Her mother, Erna, was an Indonesian and her father was Dutch. They married in the Netherlands and hold their respective citizenships.

Jakarta – Lively commemorations of May Day on May 1 were celebrated in demonstrations by labour organisations, political parties and other social organisations in a number of parts of the country. The largest demonstrations were held in Jakarta and the West Java provincial capital of Bandung.

Jakarta – Thousands of people across the country took to the streets on Sunday to mark Labor Day with demands for better working conditions and the protection of workers' rights, as well as calling for the government to declare the day a public holiday.

Ridwan Max Sijabat, Jakarta – Labor unions have blamed the government for the worsening labor conditions in Indonesia, which they say are a result of a bad investment climate, the absence of legal certainty and the high unemployment rate.

See also below: West Papua Solidarity Meeting clarification

AJI/AT, Jakarta – The commemoration of international labour day (May Day) in Jakarta today involved thousands of workers and other social organisations such as students, the urban poor, farmers and women.

Gunawan Mashar, Makassar – Like pelting the holy wall with stones to excise evil. That's what it was like at a demonstration in the South Sulawesi provincial capital of Makassar during the commemoration of May Day – they pelted effigies of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Vice-president Jusuf Kalla with bottles of Aqua and stones.

Budi Hartadi, Malang – Thousands of workers in East Java city of Malang commemorated May Day by blockading the road in front of the mayor's office on Jalan Tugu.

As well as the demonstration in front of the mayor's office workers also held an action in the grounds of the Gajayana Stadium and the Malang City square.

Iqbal Fadil, Jakarta – Commemorating May Day on May 1, thousands of workers inundated the Hotel Indonesia roundabout in Central Jakarta resulting in a massive traffic jam on Jalan Sudirman.

The workers, who were from a number of trade unions from Jakarta and the satellite cities of Bogor, Tangerang and Bekasi, arrived at the roundabout at around 9am on Sunday.

Ahmad Yunus, Bandung – May Day was also commemorated by workers in the West Java provincial of Bandung. Around 3,000 works spilled into the streets of Bandung organising a long-march and convoy.

Deni Mukbar/Siswanto, Jakarta – May Day was commemorated today by hundreds of workers and mass organisations from Greater Jakarta at the Hotel Indonesia roundabout in Central Jakarta.

Indra Harsaputra, Madura – Eyes glistening with tears, Lina (not her real name) slowly, painfully recalled for her visitor the horrors she had suffered in Batam, where the 13-year-old Madura native had been offered a job as a shopkeeper but instead was forced to work as a prostitute.

Women and children in East Timor will continue to suffer in poverty unless the nation is able to determine its own wealth, East Timor's first lady Australian-born Kirsty Sword Gusmao said.

Reporter: Rachel Carbonell

Elizabeth Jackson: A dispute between the church and state in East Timor has escalated, with fresh calls from Catholic leaders for the Government to resign.

Protesters have been demonstrating in the capital Dili for almost two weeks, upset over plans to change religious education in schools in the majority Catholic country.

The government of the Philippines and the University of the Philippines say they do not support a meeting discussing the issue of independence for West Papua.

Jakarta – Vice-President Muhammad Jusuf Kalla has requested the Phillippines government not to interfere in Indonesia's internal affairs in relation to the problem of Papua. Because according to Indonesia, Papua is part of the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia (NKRI). This position is not negotiable.

Jakarta – Police investigators questioned on Friday another Garuda stewardess in connection with the poisoning death of human rights activist Munir aboard a Garuda flight from Jakarta to Amsterdam almost eight months ago.

Tia Dewi Ambari, who was accompanied by Garuda lawyers M. Assegaf and Wirawan Adnan, was quizzed at National Police headquarters for six hours.

Tony Hotland and Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's introduction of concrete antigraft measures at state institutions will have little impact unless law enforcement institutions are reformed and his Cabinet totally supports the move, observers say.

Hera Diani, Jakarta – After 10 years of implementing the declaration of the United Nations conference of women in Beijing, most Asian countries including Indonesia have yet to meet the mandates, particularly in increasing the numbers of women in positions of power.

The Timor Sea Justice Campaign today welcomed signs that the Australian Government was taking on board public pressure to give East Timor a fair go and approach the ongoing negotiations in a more cooperative manner.

The United Nations will stay in East Timor (Timor Leste) for another year under a new political mission that will significantly reduce the UN troop presence there.

The Security Council has unanimously adopted a resolution that will send 45 civilian advisers, 75 police advisers and up to 10 human rights officers to the developing island country until May 2006.

Abdullah Alamudi, Jakarta – The controversial bill that seeks to revamp the Criminal Law is turning back the clock 90 years to the time when Dutch colonial rulers and government officials were immune to public criticism and accountability.

Otto Syamsuddin Ishak, Jakarta – Law enforcement is one of the Indonesian government's strategies for the settlement of the war in Aceh. Which law does the government seek to enforce? Who will enforce the law and how? Is this law enforcement based on morality or is it merely a political tool?

Indonesia is open to be a partner of a commission set up by the UN Security Council to review the prosecution of human rights abusers in East Timor in 1999, when East Timorese voted for independence from Jakarta, a Foreign Ministry spokesman said Friday.

A new UN mission for Timor Leste but what of the future of the serious crimes process?

Jakarta – The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) is facing an imminent split, with members opposed to the leadership of Megawati Soekarnoputri ready to set up a new party should they fail to oust the PDI-P leader. The splinter group officially opened an office on Jl. Kertanegara in South Jakarta to consolidate support for their move against Megawati.

Budi Hartadi, Singosari – Although the TNI's (armed forces) interest in participating in regional elections has drawn criticism, army chief of staff Lieutenant General Djoko Santoso has instead given his blessing to the move under the condition that officers not wear their uniforms or use TNI facilities for political activities.

Hera Diani, Jakarta – Activists have warned that the government blueprint for the reconstruction of tsunami-stricken Aceh and North Sumatra, may be inaccurate and prone to embezzlement.

The blueprint was finalized early this month, with the total cost arrived at for reconstruction projects over the next five years around Rp 46 trillion (about US$4.6 billion).

Greens Senator Kerry Nettle was in Darwin today to meet with local East Timorese and join the call for a just outcome from the Timor Sea boundary talks due to conclude in Dili today.

Nana Rukmana, Indramayu – Fishermen on West Java's north coast have complained that their operating costs since the increase in fuel prices have become unbearable, and said they hoped the government would soon disburse fuel compensation funds so as to help them out.

Jakarta – Representatives of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) from Indonesia, Peru, Ghana, Romania, and the United States state of Nevada called on Wednesday Newmont Mining, the world's largest gold producer, to reform its environmental practices at its global operations.

A strong quake measuring at least 6.0 on the Richter scale has hit Indonesia, causing panic on Nias island, which was hit by a giant earthquake last month, seismologists said.

Hera Diani, Jakarta – They fight "infidels", they rail against city nightlife, and now they have turned their overzealous worldview against popular soft rock band Dewa.

However, the Islam Defenders Front (FPI) is not the first group that has lashed out at artists over religion, accusing them of blasphemy.

Banda Aceh – Attacks by separatist rebels in the tsunami-hit Indonesian province of Aceh have intensified in recent weeks despite a renewed peace dialogue, military officials said Thursday.

Jakarta – "Do you believe that the Rp 41 trillion in funds apportioned to finance the rehabilitation and reconstruction of disaster-devastated Aceh and Nias in North Sumatra, will not be embezzled?," an activist with Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) asked when addressing a seminar here on Wednesday.

Australia and East Timor appear to remain at loggerheads over multi-billion dollar oil and gas reserves in the Timor Sea, with no resolution announced at the end of three days of talks.

But Foreign Minister Alexander Downer maintained Australia was not ripping off East Timor over the joint oil treaty and said the federal government wanted to help its tiny neighbour.

The commercial television networks have refused to screen advertisements lambasting the federal government over Timor Sea oil and gas negotiations, East Timor advocates said today.

The ads, bankrolled by Melbourne businessman Ian Melrose, depict World War II diggers verbally attacking Prime Minister John Howard over the talks with Australia's tiny northern neighbour.

Zakki P. Hakim, Jakarta – While welcoming last week's declaration of the New Asia-Africa Strategic Partnership, a coalition of NGOs criticized the absence of an action plan to address issues such as the expansion of multinational firms, debt reduction and trade liberalization.

We heard resolute words from Vice President Jusuf Kalla on Wednesday – that in three years, there should be no more elementary school buildings on the verge of collapse.

Jakarta – National Police (Polri) Chief Da'i Bachtiar said here Wednesday (27 April) setting up police stations in conflict areas and regions bordering other countries was to be have top priority in Polri's physical development programmes.

Ridwan M.

Lisbon – East Timor's government and the nation's powerful Roman Catholic Church have settled a dispute over an end to compulsory religious classes in state schools, East Timorese Prime Minister Mari Alkatari said Thursday.

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta – The government issued on Wednesday a government regulation in lieu of law (Perppu) that will enable the postponement of direct regional elections for regents, mayors and governors.

Due to poor preparation, some regions are not ready to hold the unprecedented direct elections, scheduled to start in June.

Aguswandi, London – Oppression is bad for a government's image, especially a government such as Indonesia that is still struggling to repair its reputation internationally. It deprives it of its legitimacy and provides other countries with a justified reason to censure it.

Popular rock group Dewa has been reported to city police by a number of Muslim organizations led by the Islamic Defender Front (FPI) for using the Arabic script of Allah on the cover of its Laskar Cinta (Love Militia) album. FPI accused Dewa of blasphemy and demanded an apology. The Jakarta Post interviewed residents here to get their comments on the issue.

Malcolm Brown – Fifty East Timorese who came to Australia 10 years ago or more as refugees, settled in the country and sent their children to school, have now been told they are no longer wanted here – and have just 28 days to get out.