Jakarta – The Islamic fasting month of Ramadan started yesterday and the Indonesian entertainment industry is grumbling over local edicts to close nightclubs, massage parlours and amusement centres for the entire period.

Jakarta – Parts of Indonesia have been enveloped in one of the worst days of haze this year, officials said, as residents donned face masks to ward off thick, choking fumes.

The haze, caused by forest and ground fires across the country, descended on the province of South Kalimantan on Wednesday, reducing visibility and filling the air with noxious burning smells.

Jakarta, Kompas – In examining the Draft Law on the Fundamentals of Intelligence, the National Intelligence Agency (BIN) has the potential to became a body which will be inseparable from the state. The stipulations in the law could turn BIN into a super-body, with excessive powers and a tendency to take over judicial functions.

Tiarma Siboro and M. Taufiqurrahman, Bogor – Five prospective candidates who would likely fill posts in the Cabinet of president-elect Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono were summoned for interviews on Friday, the first time such a mechanism has been used in the selection of ministers, at least in the public eye.

Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – After many delays, state prosecutors finally submitted the file on Abu Bakar Ba'asyir to the South Jakarta District Court on Friday, charging him with masterminding the Bali bombings and the JW Marriott Hotel attack.

Nethy Dharma Somba, Jayapura – A group of suspected Papuan separatists remained in control of a hamlet in Puncak Jaya on Friday, as efforts to negotiate the release of bodies of five migrants killed in a Tuesday attack failed and fears rose of further bloodshed.

Jakarta – The coordinator of Indonesia's NGO Coalition for International Human Rights Advocacy (HRWG), Rafendi Djamin, hopes that president-elect Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY) will repeal the state of civil emergency in Aceh as part of the program of the first 100 days of his administration and in such a way establish a process of development and the pre-conditions for peace in Ace

Jakarta, Kompas – The Aceh Working Group or AWG is urging the government to investigate human rights violations which have taken place in Aceh, many of which have been suffered by political prisoners in a various Acehnese jails.

Bruce Loudon – At the time, the authorities dismissed it as a straightforward case of journalists tragically caught in the crossfire.

Jakarta – The central bank expects the rupiah to strengthen against the US dollar leading up to the year-end on the back of a better economic outlook and high hopes for the new government of Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

Andi Hajramurni and ID Nugroho, Makassar/Sidoarjo – Police here named at least 14 of 75 South Sulawesi legislative council members as suspects on Thursday in a graft case, while East Java prosecutors sought a six-year jail term for Sidoarjo legislature speaker on similar charges.

Jakarta – Eight suspected separatists and a marine were killed in a fierce gunbattle in Indonesia's restive Aceh province, a military spokesman said Friday.

Bogor – Indonesia's President-elect Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said yesterday he would pick a non-military defence minister as part of efforts to rein in the powerful armed forces through civilian control.

Tony Hotland, Jakarta – Indonesia's global competitiveness has improved over the past year, and yet it is battered by an inefficient bureaucracy, inconsistent policies and corruption, according to the World Economic Forum (WEF).

Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – Director of the National Police economic crimes division Brig. Gen. Samuel Ismoko will soon be questioned for allegedly taking a bribe worth US$20,000 to allow Adrian Waworuntu, one of key suspects in the Rp 1.7 trillion (US$185 million) Bank Negara Indonesia (BNI) scandal, to escape.

M. Taufiqurrahman, Jakarta – Despite the growing democracy over the last six years, the people still harbor deep concerns over the role of the military in public life, which they say has spurred the prevalence of violence, a study has found.

Urip Hudiono, Jakarta – Wearing face masks and unfurling banners, some 100 students from 21 elementary schools throughout Jakarta made an impassioned plea for cleaner air in the metropolis at the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle on Wednesday.

Martin Jenkins, Jakarta – In Indonesia, much debate has recently centered on how the government should tackle the problem of rising fuel subsidies as the price of crude oil on the international market moves ever higher.

Yogyakarta – A student protest marred the inauguration of the Sunan Kalijaga Islamic State University on Thursday in Yogyakarta, with students calling on the government to prevent education from being commercialized by "irresponsible parties".

The protest was held as Minister of National Education Malik Fadjar was presiding over a ceremony at the university.

Taxation Director General Hadi Purnomo's estimate of Rp 676.5 trillion (US$74.34 billion) in potential tax revenue lost annually during the past three years seems to be too high – a sum 240 percent larger than the Rp 272.17 trillion tax receipt target set for this year.

Ben Terrall – Shortly after being declared victor over Megawati Sukarnoputri, Indonesian President-elect Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono told reporters, Our big theme will be reconciliation and working together within democracy for the country's future. He didn't clarify which social groupings he was referring to.

Urip Hudiono, Jakarta – The Central Jakarta District Court sentenced on Wednesday eight officers from the Central Jakarta Police's riot squad to three months and 12 days in prison for assaulting student protesters in February.

Tiarma Siboro, Bogor – Representatives of the Consultative Group on Indonesia (CGI) met with president-elect Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on Wednesday in an apparent show of support for the incoming government.

Susilo's spokesman, Dino Pati Djalal, said the closed-door talks centered on, among other things, programs to boost foreign investment in the country.

Rendi A. Witular, Jakarta – A recent remark by outgoing President Megawati Soekarnoputri that she has been deserted by most of her close circle following her defeat in the presidential election to her former security chief Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono may not be far from the truth.

Ridwan Max Sijabat, Jakarta – Low-income workers have endured hard times since the economic crisis hit the country in 1997, and many have come to expect nothing better.

Satish Mishra, Jakarta – In a country in the midst of record open unemployment, partially brought about by sharp declines in development spending, it would be surprising if the economy did not figure prominently in the new President's inaugural speech.

Parts of Indonesia have been enveloped in the worst haze yet this year, officials said as residents donned face masks to ward off thick, choking fumes.

The haze, caused by forest and ground fires across Indonesia, descended on the province of South Kalimantan on Borneo island, reducing visibility and filling the air with noxious burning smells.

Kurniawan Hari, Jakarta – Apparently wishing to prove their commitment to leading modest lifestyles, all four leaders of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) said on Wednesday that they would refuse the Volvo cars to which they were entitled.

Sjofiardi Bachyul and Ruslan Sangadji, Padang/Palu – Thousands of Muslim students and activists held protest demonstrations in various cities nationwide on Wednesday in a bid to pressure the government and businesspeople to close all nightspots and gambling dens during Ramadhan.

M. Taufiqurrahman, Jakarta – A report on Wednesday confirmed post-reform suspicions that corruption in the country had spread from the central government in the Soeharto era to regional governments after reform and the regional autonomy drive.

Zakki P. Hakim, Jakarta – More Indonesian consumers enjoyed a higher purchasing power this year, spending money on various household goods despite rising political tension during the recent seven-month-long general election, according to AC Nielsen's latest survey released on Wednesday.

Jakarta – Traffic along Jl. Letjen Suprapto in Central Jakarta was in complete chaos on Wednesday morning, as hundreds of members of the Betawi Brotherhood Forum (FBR) blocked off the entrance to the International Trade Center (ITC) Cempaka Mas.

Maria Ulfah, Jakarta – Chief of Army Staff Ryamizard Ryacudu said he would not withdraw troops from conflict areas such as Aceh and Papua.

Hasrul, Kendari – An explosion police believe to be from a homemade bomb has damaged the house of outspoken anti-corruption activist Hidayatullah early on Tuesday in Kendari, Southeast Sulawesi, the second attack on the activist's house in 15 months.

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta – The Supreme Court reminded the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) on Tuesday to submit high-profile cases to the anti-corruption court, which is now operational.

Jakarta – Police on Wednesday defused a small bomb left in a shopping centre in the central Indonesian town of Balikpapan, which is home to several international oil and mining companies, an officer said.

Kurniawan Hari, Jakarta – The successful election of leaders of the People's Consultative Assembly has inspired the Regional Representatives Council (DPD) to propose amendments to the Constitution that would encourage equality between the council and the House of Representatives.

Owen Podger, Jakarta – The Jakarta Post recognized the significance of the new law on fiscal balance in an editorial on Monday October 4, 2004, by stating: "The most important elements of the new legislation lie in its elaborate, clear-cut provisions on budget accountability and domestic borrowing by regional administrations."

Jakarta – Just a few days before Ramadhan begins, hundreds of families living in Pinang Ranti subdistrict, East Jakarta and Srengseng Sawah in South Jakarta, were forced to leave their homes in separate evictions on Tuesday.

A sunset ceremony in the waves off Bali's shores ended an emotional day of tribute to the 202 people killed two years ago when Islamic militant bombs tore through the heart of Indonesia's resort island.

M. Taufiqurrahman, Jakarta – The administration of president-elect Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono must make tackling the economic problems afflicting the country's most needy as its top priority if it wants to stay the course for the next five years, an independent survey revealed on Tuesday.

Survivors and family and friends of victims gathered on a chilly London evening to remember the 28 Britons killed by the Bali bombs two years ago but the rest of the nation seemed to have forgotten the atrocity.

Ridwan Max Sijabat, Jakarta – Outgoing Minister of Manpower and Transmigration Jacob Nuwa Wea has issued a circular delaying the implementation of the use of a more humane criteria than basic physical needs in determining regional minimum wages until 2006.

Leony Aurora, Jakarta – One afternoon, a bunch of children were kicking around a ball in an empty field when suddenly a woman – clad in training pants and clutching a cassette of dance music – arrived.

Ridwan Max Sijabat, Jakarta – Casingkem binti Aspin and Istiqomah binti Misnad are two of many Indonesian migrant workers who have been victims of human trafficking that involved corrupt government officials, local and international syndicates.

Meiwita Budiharsana, Ford Foundation David & Joyce Djaelani Gordon, YaKita – HIV/AIDS is growing at an alarming rate in Indonesia. One of the main ways in which it is spread is through the sharing of infected syringes by injecting drug users (IDUs).

Gary LaMoshi, Denpasar – On October 12, 2002, bombs targeting nightclub revelers along Jalan Legian in the heart of Bali's Kuta Beach resort killed 202 people, mainly Western tourists. At the time, experts predicted that Indonesia's US$5.4 billion tourism industry would need a decade to recover.

Police raided a squatter settlement in a Malaysian jungle, burning down shacks and arresting more than 100 illegal immigrants, mainly from Indonesia's war-torn Aceh province, a human rights group said Wednesday.

Oyos Saroso H.N., Bandarlampung – The cement shortage in Lampung and Banten provinces, triggered by mechanical problems at the PT Semen Baturaja cement factory in South Sumatra, has propelled the price of the commodity upward.

A sack of cement, which usually sells for Rp 27,000 (US$3), now costs Rp 36,000, or even as much as Rp 40,000 in several areas in Lampung.

"A mouse dying in a rice barn" is perhaps the most suitable adage to describe the dire condition of PT Asean Aceh Fertilizer (AAF), after the decision early this week by the outgoing administration of President Megawati Soekarnoputri to close down the 570,000-ton capacity urea factory due to an acute shortage of natural gas feedstock.