Slobodan Lekic – The retired four-star general heading for victory in Indonesia's presidential elections, may use his background to succeed where the country's post-dictator Suharto politicians have so far failed, bringing the powerful military brass under civilian control.

Dadan Wijaksana, Jakarta – Waves of optimisms greeted the trouble-free runoff vote on Monday, with experts hailing the smooth process as a powerful starting point towards the much-needed revival of investor confidence in the economy.

Adam Tyson, Toronto – Aceh has always been an essential part of the vast Indonesian archipelago, being of great historical, economic and symbolic importance.

Michael J. Webdell, Jakarta – Nike, Samsung, Tommy Hilfiger, Guess, Sony: These are just a few brands popular to people across the world. In shopping malls from Jakarta to London, and New York to Seoul, they are symbols of a lifestyle consumers pay premium to be part of.

Zakki P. Hakim, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta – A lack of effective regulations governing the standards of electronic goods in the country is hurting the industry at a time when ASEAN is set to liberalize the sector by 2007, according to an industry leader.

Gary LaMoshi, Denpasar – Indonesia's first direct presidential election has ended with a Bambang and a whimper. Surveys of results announced at the more than 500,000 polling stations give former general Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono more than 60% of the vote in Monday's runoff election against President Megawati Sukarnoputri. Official results won't be released until early next month.

Jane Perlez, Jakarta – Indonesia's next president, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, moved swiftly up the military ranks during the authoritarian rule of Gen. Suharto and then played a back-seat role in the undoing of that government.

Jakarta – The city was quiet as a whisper on Monday, with no jams on the streets, most shops closed and even air traffic reduced, as 38 flights to and from Soekarno-Hatta airport were delayed. Meanwhile, all the action was taking place at polling stations, with Jakartans turning out in droves to vote.

Former Australian peacekeepers in East Timor accused the federal government of stealing from the fledgling nation today as talks resumed over the carve-up of gas and oil reserves in the Timor Sea, five years to the day since the first peacekeepers arrived.

Manjit Bhatia – In Indonesia's July 5 direct presidential poll – the country's first since the corrupt Suharto dictatorship's downfall in 1998 – contender Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono thumped incumbent Megawati Sukarnoputri into second place. Yudhoyono won 33.58% of the popular vote, Megawati 26.29% and ex-general Wiranto 22.21%.

Apriadi Gunawan, Medan – A survey by the Sumatran Orangutan Conservation Program (SOCP) found at least 1,000 orangutans in North Sumatra and Aceh provinces are disappearing each year due to poaching and loss of habitat.

Multa Fidrus, Tangerang – Hundreds of shrimp farmers who manage some 2,000 hectares of shrimp ponds along the northern coast of Tangerang regency complained of industrial waste in Cisadane River destroyed their shrimp farms.

Jakarta – Over 100 million people are expected to flock to hundreds of thousands of polling stations on Monday to cast their votes in the final round of the country's first-ever direct presidential election.

Reporter: Peter Lloyd

Soothing and strong with a Mr. Clean image, US-trained former general Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is expected to win Monday's run-off poll in Indonesia and become the country's next president.

Among the foreign observers here for the runoff of Indonesia's first direct presidential election on Monday, the largest contingent consists of the 220 members of the European Union Election Observation Mission. The following are excerpts from an interview with its chief observer, Glyn Ford, who spoke to The Jakarta Post's M. Taufiqurrahman.

Syofiardi Bachyul Jb, Padang – Two non-governmental organizations (NGOs), joined by Padang's North Siberut Alliance for the Preservation of Mentawai Culture (AMAPM), are urging the government to put a stop to logging activities on the island of Siberut, which is among the Mentawai Islands.

Jakarta – Jakarta General Elections Commission (KPUD) Muhamad Taufik said Sunday that the number of registered voters for Monday's presidential election declined by 103,528 to only 6,617,980, while the number of polling stations is reduced by 10 from 224,224 stations into 224,214.

Oyos Saroso H.N., Bandarlampung – Bandarlampung municipal administration is planning to demolish some 5,000 stilt houses in Lampung Bay, in line with its plan to implement the so-termed Waterfront City Project.

Kurniawan Hari, Jakarta – The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) withdrew on Friday its proposal to insert an article into the military bill being deliberated by the House of Representatives banning newly retired military personnel from politics.

A deadly attack on Australia's Jakarta embassy days before Indonesia's presidential polls may help a former general unseat President Megawati Sukarnoputri but is unlikely to prove the poll's tipping point, analysts say.

The bombing of the Australian embassy in Jakarta has elevated terrorism, as an election issue, from a shade above nowhere to a point just visible on Indonesia's political horizon.

But the hopes and priorities of Indonesian voters, as they head to the polls on Monday, will be vastly different from those held by anxious regional neighbours.

Jakarta – Two days before the presidential election runoff on Monday, the campaign team for Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was kept busy countering allegations that could harm its candidate.

A tabloid called Fakta (Fact) hit the streets in Jakarta on Saturday, running one-sided stories about what it called Susilo's "public deception".

Suwarjono, Jakarta – Don't miss an opportunity, that's the journalist's motto and this includes the final moments in the lead-up to the "finals" of the second-round of the presidential election.

Hera Diani, Jakarta – As the projector flickered, people in interfaith relationships told their stories.

Indah said she and her siblings were labeled illegitimate and mocked because their parents were of different religions.

A married couple claimed there was never a problem; the differences, in fact, helped their children become more tolerant.

[The following statement was issued by the HAK Association, Haburas Foundation, Oxfam Australia, Alola Foundation, La'o Hamutuk (East Timor Institute for Reconstruction Monitoring and Analysis), East Timor Community Radio Association (ARKTL), the Mirror of the People (Labeh), Forum Tau Matan (FTM) and the East Timor Students Association.]

A. Junaidi – If there was one person known to talk in seminars or discussions about the gay and transvestite communities in Indonesia as recently as five years ago, only one name would probably have come up: Dede Oetomo, chairman of GAYA Nusantara and a sociolinguist from the Surabaya-based Airlangga University.

Suko Sudarso, Jakarta – The presidential election on September 20, is likely to become a battle of symbols – the popular-change symbol of Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono challenging the authority-stability symbol of Megawati Soekarnoputri.

Ivy Susanti, Jakarta – The idea behind staging a televised presidential dialog – not a debate – was to give voters the opportunity to learn more about the candidates' platforms, and what could be expected of them if elected president.

Bandung – President Megawati Soekarnoputri handed over Rp 230 billion in bank loans to small- and medium-scale entrepreneurs across West Java and Banten during her visit here on Friday. The loans, disbursed by state bank BRI, require no collateral.

Kurniawan Hari, Jakarta – Golkar's decision to suspend several of its members would affect a major coalition led by the biggest party to help President Megawati Soekarnoputri retain power in Monday's election runoff, analysts say.

As Indonesians prepare to go to the polls on Monday, the East Timor Action Network (ETAN) stated, "No matter which presidential candidate prevails, the Indonesian military has already won."

Damar Harsanto, Jakarta – The city administration began implementing the revised three-in-one traffic policy on Friday, though it did little to alleviate the usual heavy congestion along the major thoroughfares of Jl. Thamrin and Jl. Sudirman.

Workers began flooding out of their offices along these two streets at about 3 p.m. in order to avoid the restricted zone.

Ridwan Max Sijabat, Jakarta – Ignoring main stake holders' aspirations, the House of Representatives is determined to complete the deliberation of the much-criticized bill on national social security system (SJSN) next week.

Gary LaMoshi, Denpasar – A Jakarta court on Thursday sentenced a leading magazine editor to a year in jail for libel in a case seen as a landmark for press freedom in Indonesia, a country supposedly in the era of reformasi. The verdict deals a harsh blow to press freedom and reinforces Indonesian courts' reputation for bizarre decisions, a key barrier to investment.

Kendari – Dozens of activists held a protest on Friday in downtown Kendari, demanding that prosecutors speed up a probe into the alleged embezzlement of Rp 11.6 billion (US$1.2 million) by Muna regent Ridwan Bae.

The regent was accused of embezzling Rp 11.6 billion in a teak tender recently in the regency.

Almost all religions forbid homosexuality as can be seen in the story of Sodom and Gomorrah in the Bible or the people of the Prophet Luth in the Koran. According to a recent study, however, homosexuality can be found even in religious institutions, including in pesantren (Islamic boarding schools).

John D'Arcy May – Now the pretext that the war in Iraq was a war on terror has worn thin, and the US President and the Australian Prime Minister face elections in which their manipulation of intelligence to justify the war is an issue, it is worth focusing on two much larger questions that were obscured at the time by political hype.

Banda Aceh – The Indonesian military said separatist rebels had killed seven civilians in the war-torn province of Aceh, according to a report Saturday.

Indonesia's Presidential election could herald significant changes to the way the government runs the country. The historic direct Presidential poll will cement the democratic constitution with Indonesia's future. If opinion polls are correct and former military general Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono wins, he will have a firm mandate to pursue his policy agenda.

Urip Hudiono, Jakarta – The Central Jakarta District Court found Tempo weekly guilty on Thursday of publishing false material and libel, and sentenced chief editor Bambang Harymurti to a suspended one-year jail term. The court, however, acquitted the journalists who wrote the article in question.

Sari P. Setiogi, Jakarta – International and domestic observers lambasted on Thursday the guilty verdict against Tempo magazine's chief editor Bambang Harymurti and called it a setback for the country's press freedom and democracy.

Jakarta/Surabaya/Madiun – The National Police announced on Thursday that they had arrested at least eight people allegedly linked to last week's deadly blast outside the Australian Embassy in Jakarta, which killed 10 people and injured over 180 others.

Tony Hotland, Jakarta – The government must establish a "country borrowing strategy" and improve the distribution mechanism of foreign loans to regional administrations to ensure the efficient and effective use of the loans in the future.

Dewi Santoso, Jakarta – While the current trend of maternal mortality rate (MMR) shows a decreasing pattern, it may be difficult for Indonesia to achieve the target of MMR of around 125 per 100,000 births set by the United Nations' Millenium Development Goals, an expert says.

Pekanbaru – Haze returned on Thursday to the skies of Pekanbaru, raising concern over new breathing problems spreading in the city.

Pekanbaru Deputy Mayor Erwandy Saleh said that the quality of the air in the city was poor.

Jakarta – Amid reports of a continuing slump in foreign direct investment (FDI), Indonesia is in for even gloomier prospects after the recent Australian Embassy bomb attack, according to Indonesian-Australian Business Council chairman Noke Kiroyan.

Kurniawan Hari and Luh Putu Trisna Wahyuni, Jakarta/Mataram – Golkar politicians suspended from the party for refusing to back Megawati Soekarnoputri in Monday's presidential election runoff, continued on Thursday in their activities in support of Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

Jakarta/Indramayu/Jayapura – While not declaring a controversial quiz a violation of campaign regulations, the Election Supervisory Committee (Panwaslu) demanded its halt on Thursday.

Donggala – Central Sulawesi General Election Commission (KPU) has fired the chief of Donggala Municipality KPU Abdullah Malabang and his four subordinates for vote markup in the July 5 legislative election.