The terrorism trial of Indonesia's Abu Bakar Bashir wrapped up in characteristically fiery fashion, with the Muslim cleric telling judges they would face God's punishment if they convicted him.

Bandung – Flooding in the past few days has damaged several thousand hectares of rice fields in several regencies in West Java, which will mean little or no harvests this season in the affected areas, a senior official has said.

Muninggar Sri Saraswati and Tiarma Siboro, Jakarta – The government is considering modifications to the implementation of special autonomy in Aceh to put an end to three decades of rebellion in the province.

Puji Santoso, Pekanbaru – Historically thick haze from forest fires and burn-offs blanketed several parts of Riau on Friday, including the capital of Pekanbaru, disrupting flights and forcing schools to close.

Banda Aceh – Entering its third month, indications of corruption in the handling of the disaster in Aceh are starting to be uncovered.

Jakarta – Radical reform of the Indonesian administration and bureaucracy is imperative to help curb endemic corruption among civil servants, an Asian Development Bank (ADB) report has said.

Rendi A. Witular and Leony Aurora, Jakarta – The government is aiming to revitalize the country's capital market industry by trying to streamline bureaucracy and improve legal certainty, and make the industry one of the key drivers in the country's economic growth.

"With a sincere heart, I must say that I am very happy today that I officially handed over the Army's command baton to Pak Djoko. He is my junior and my former deputy. We've been together since our military academy days.

Some say the best way to stop corruption among state officials and officeholders is to pay them better salaries. During a conversation some years ago, the then chairman of the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) confronted a post-Soeharto president who advocated this approach.

Yuli Tri Suwarni, Bandung – A team of four experts from the Office of the State Minister for the Environment has been assigned to determine whether the management of the Leuwigajah dump was responsible for the garbage collapse on Monday that buried more than 100 residents.

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said on Friday that the government was focusing its antigraft efforts on the prevention of corruption in the future rather than pursuing graft cases that took place in the past.

Bill Guerin – Indonesia's President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono this week pledged an "integrated crackdown" on military and police personnel and officials from the ministries of forestry and immigration suspected of involvement in the world's biggest timber trafficking racket.

Jakarta – Political observers questioned on Friday Governor Sutiyoso's motives in granting Rp 15 million (US$1,620) monthly housing allowances to each of 71 city council members, and Rp 20 million allowances for city leaders, arguing that they did not deserve such generous facilities due to their poor performance.

Jakarta – Out of all the planes owned by the Indonesian Air Force, only 40 percent can be operated optimally. The remaining 60 percent cannot be operated optimally because of several problems, including the lack of engines for Hercules planes.

Matthew Moore, Jakarta – For seven months Jakarta's motorists have waited patiently in traffic even heavier than normal as they watched the latest public transport dream take shape in Asia's most congested city.

Jakarta – Despite potential objections from the House of Representatives, the government will press ahead with its plan to increase domestic fuel prices, saying it is only trying to fulfill the fuel subsidy allocation as required by the 2005 state budget.

Matthew Moore, Jakarta – The second round of talks to end 29 years of conflict in Aceh has ended with the separatist rebels successfully positioning themselves as moderates prepared to modify their long-held demand for independence.

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta – The government expects to reach a peace accord with the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) in June or July after two rounds of talks to settle 32 years of conflict in the province.

If a peace deal is struck, there is a possibility that GAM will contest the regional election.

Hoping to restore closer links with the west, Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono appears to be preparing to block the rise of a hardline general to the country's top armed forces job.

Tiarma Siboro, Jakarta – In an apparent attempt to lobby for the job as new Indonesian Military (TNI) commander, outgoing Army Chief of Staff Gen. Ryamizard Ryacudu invited retired and active Army officers for a gathering on Thursday to brief them on his "achievements" while leading the Army.

Medan/Jambi/Pekanbaru – Haze thickened on Thursday in several parts of Sumatra, causing flight delays and school shutdowns. The flight delays affected many people, including the Minister of Forestry M.S. Kaban, who is partly responsible handling the haze problem.

Yuli Tri Suwarni, Bandung – The Cimahi Police have started questioning officials in charge of the Leuwigajah dump in south Cimahi, where mountains of garbage collapsed on Monday killing 67 people. A total of 89 others are still missing.

Bambang Nurbianto, Jakarta – City councillors now have every reason to smile. Governor Sutiyoso has set councillors' monthly housing allowance at Rp 20 million for leaders and Rp 15 million for members, tripling their income from the previous Rp 6.5 million to over Rp 20 million.

Endy M. Bayuni, Jakarta – Amid growing public discontent over the lack of progress in punishing those involved in corruption, a new study says that because corruption is largely systemic, or institutionalized, the key to solving the problem is to reform the system and improve governance.

Bandung/Yogyakarta – Heavy rain over the last two days has increased the area under water in south Bandung regency, with 18 out of 45 districts inundated on Thursday in what is said to be the worst flooding in the last 10 years.

Jakarta – A day ahead of the national gathering of the United Development Party (PPP), a survey by the Indonesian Survey Institute (LSI) revealed on Thursday that the popularity of the country's largest Islamic political party may further tumble at the next general election unless changes are made in the party's leadership.

Rendi A. Witular, Jakarta – Lawmakers nearly got into a brawl on Thursday after failing to agree on a plan to disclose alleged irregularities in the settlement process of a dispute between the government and Mexican cement giant Cemex SA involving a broken contract with a state-owned company.

Jayapura – Over 150 people claiming to be timber company employers staged a protest on Thursday in Jayapura, demanding the government put an end to rampant extortion against them.

In the protest, held in front of the Papua provincial council, the protesters said they were routinely charged illegal fees when they were transporting logs into town.

David Nason, New York – The UN Mission of Support in East Timor looks certain to be extended, after Secretary-General Kofi Annan warned of continuing government corruption, police human rights abuses, judicial chaos and the danger of renewed hostilities on the fledgling's nation's undecided border with Indonesia.

Dili – The government, angered by published reports of famine deaths it denies, has severed relations with one of East Timor's two daily newspapers, "Suara Timor Lorosae".

There never was a good war or a bad peace. Despite the incremental pace of negotiations, the positive mood at the conclusion of a second round talks in Helsinki between the government and representatives of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) should be welcomed by all.

Sunariah, Jakarta – Around 40 members of the People's Representative Assembly (DPR) for the period 2004-2009 are suspected of being involved in corruption. Most originate from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (15), the Golkar Party (10) and the United Development Party (8).

Australia says the decision on a permanent seabed boundary with East Timor should be deferred for up to 100 years to allow oil and gas projects to go ahead. The timetable will be put to East Timor at boundary negotiations which will resume in Canberra in the second week of March.

Indonesian troops have cracked down on suspected militia members near the East Timor border, banning them from wearing camouflage uniforms as the UN sought an extension for peacekeeping forces in the fledgling nation.

Tony Hotland, Jakarta – A discussion here on Wednesday identified shortcomings in Law No. 27/2004 on the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (KKR), and called for amendments to its articles in order to make the much-touted commission actually work.

New York – United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan said here Wednesday the human rights violations that occurred in East Timor in 1999 following a UN-sponsored people's ballot were now not the concern of Indonessia and East Timor only but of the international community as well.

Yuli Tri Suwarni, Bandung – Mismanagement at the Leuwigajah dump in south Cimahi was to blame for the collapse of mountains of garbage on Monday, which killed over 55 people and flattened 70 homes, with 101 people still unaccounted for, an official says.

Urip Hudiono and Sri Wahyuni, Jakarta/Yogyakarta – To hike or not to hike. That is the question – and the fuel for many arguments currently raging about what the price of fuel should be come April 1.

Eva C. Komandjaja, Jakarta – The investigation into the murder of top human rights campaigner Munir suffered another setback as national carrier Garuda Indonesia canceled a scheduled preliminary reconstruction of the case.

Jill Jolliffe, Dili – Justice is at the crossroads in East Timor, with the United Nations formally moving to check the impunity of those accused of war crimes committed during Indonesia's bloody withdrawal from the island in 1999 and Timorese and Indonesian leaders proposing that all such charges be dropped.

Jakarta – A coalition of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) unveiled on Wednesday a possible corruption case involving the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) secretariat general in accommodating 118 Regional Representative Council (DPD) members last year.

Edward Aspinall – The international community needs to be cautious in welcoming signs of an apparent breakthrough in the recent Aceh peace talks in Finland. Some of the signs are very positive, but the devil will be in the detail.

Abdul Khalik, Banda Aceh – Standing in front of his ruined house in Lampu'uk, Lhoknga in Aceh Besar regency, 35-year-old Effendi expressed his determination to stay and rebuild his house no matter what.

Jakarta – Indonesia's president praised Thursday the progress made in peace talks between government negotiators and separatist rebels from tsunami-wracked Aceh province, but he cautioned that a speedy solution to the three-decades-long conflict was unlikely.

The Indonesian government and Aceh separatists have wrapped up peace talks, setting a date for new talks and reporting major progress, but no breakthrough, on an offer of special autonomy for the tsunami-wrecked province.

Apriadi Gunawan, Medan – For the past few weeks, M. Isa, a survivor from Meulaboh, has been trying in vain to help his son get an artificial limb after his leg was badly injured during the tsunami and later amputated.

It has taken Indonesia many years, and an international scandal, for the country to finally wake up to the immensity of the looting that has been going on for decades in its lush tropical rain forests. But now at least it seems that action may finally be taken to do something about it.

Achmad Sukarsono, Jakarta – Indonesia expects to reach a peace pact with rebels in Aceh province by mid-year, but will not grant any form of direct self-rule to the separatist organisation, vice president Jusuf Kalla said on Thursday.

A. Junaidi, Jakarta – Semsar Siahaan was a powerful artist who revealed the complexities and injustices of society with a clear eye.

Born on June 11, 1952 in the North Sumatra capital of Medan, Semsar died on Wednesday at Tabanan Hospital in Bali after suffering a heart attack.

Wahyoe Boediwardhana, Tabanan/Bali – Indonesia is mourning the passing of yet another prominent artist. Semsar Siahaan, a socialist-realist painter, passed away early on Wednesday at the Tabanan Hospital. He was 52.