Jakarta – The head of Indonesia's Supreme Court has defended its recent decision to clear parliamentary speaker Akbar Tandjung of corruption. The ruling has been seen by many as a setback for judicial reform in Indonesia.

Chief Judge Bagir Manan also accused a lower court judge, who resigned in protest at the Akbar ruling, of lying.

Banda Aceh – During a military operation in the troubled province of Aceh on Friday, government troops discovered various types of weapons and logistic supplies belonging to the separatist Free Aceh Movement (GAM), local military spokesman Lt Col Asep Sapari said in Lhokseumawe on Saturday.

The Indonesian military says it has stopped publishing figures for separatist rebels killed by its troops in Aceh province.

The military says the move is temporary and denied it is linked to criticism from rights activists.

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, Jakarta – Clarity of functions between the central and local governments, and the yawning disparity between poor and rich regencies have posed a real threat to regional autonomy in Indonesia, a World Bank (WB) study reveals.

Jakarta - The Democratic Party has been accused of flirting with the Aceh Emergency Military Command by three Acehnese women's non-government organisations. They say that political party membership cards are being used as a replacement for the red-and-white identification cards.

Achmad Sukarsono, Jakarta – An Indonesian court sentenced a Muslim militant from Malaysia to 12 years in jail on Thursday for planting a bomb in a Jakarta church that killed one person and wounded more than 60 during a Mass three years ago.

Haidir Anwar Tanjung, Pekanbaru – A special team of Kampar regency councillors on Wednesday recommended the dismissal of Regent Jefri Noer and his deputy, Zakir, following massive protests by teachers and students in the province.

Jayapura – Dozens of civil servants at the Justice and Human Rights office here have protested for three consecutive days, demanding that the government cancel the appointment of Sukarno as the head of the office, as he was incapable of leadership.

Sukarno has served three years as the head of Immigration at the office.

Jakarta – City Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Prasetyo said eight policemen had been named suspects for beating student protesters in front of the Supreme Court on February 12 and would be taken to public courts for trial.

The students were protesting during the reading of the Supreme Court's verdict on Akbar Tandjung's appeal.

Atambua, E Nusatenggara – At least 319 resettlement units in Belu distrit set up in Indonesia's East Nusatenggara province between 2000 and 2002 for local people and former East Timor refugees have been abandoned, an Indonesian official said here Thursday.

Suherdjoko and Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Semarang/Jakarta – Despite mounting public opposition, the House of Representatives is set to endorse the controversial water resources bill when it convenes for a plenary session on Thursday.

Dili – Indonesian presidential candidate General Wiranto has won a political reprieve in East Timor after a UN judge denied a prosecutor's demand for a public hearing over a requested arrest warrant.

Matthew Moore, Jakarta – A study has found that, despite entrenched corruption in Indonesia's legal system, the country's poor are having some success in fighting corruption through the courts at a local level.

Dili – United Nations Secretary- General Kofi Annan has recommended that the UN's peacekeeping mission in East Timor continues after its planned May withdrawal, but with a significant reduction in personnel.

Ridwan Max Sijabat, Jakarta – A seminar featuring respected intellectuals, analysts and religious leaders has urged the government to lift Presidential Instruction No. 1/2003 on the formation of two new provinces in Papua, and consistently enforce Law No.

21/2001 on special autonomy for the resource-rich province to help solve the increasingly complex issues.

Kupang – The United Nations Peacekeeping Force (UNPKF) in East Timor aired its pessimism over the security conditions there following the withdrawal of the UN mission scheduled for May 20, an Indonesian Military officer said on Wednesday.

William Hardiker – In considering what constitutes an act of terrorism, one must first determine if terrorists were in fact those responsible. Next, one must ask what exactly is a terrorist. It would seem that the general consensus, despite the nature of the atrocity, is that those who act without government support and sponsorship are those who in fact constitute terrorists.

Max Lane – On February 12, the Indonesian Supreme Court voted, with one dissenting voice, to overturn a guilty verdict for corruption from two lower courts against parliamentary speaker Akbar Tanjung.

Jakarta – The death toll from a dengue fever outbreak hitting Indonesia's sprawling archipelago has climbed to 161, said health ministry data on Wednesday.

Dengue fever has traditionally been a killer across the world's fourth-most-populous nation, but the death toll so far this year is more than double the same period last year.

United Nations – Secretary-General Kofi Annan called for the withdrawal of almost all UN peacekeepers in East Timor and a shift in the UN's focus to helping the newly independent country consolidate its political institutions.

Anton Aliabbas, Jakarta – Hundreds of students from a number of different organisations demonstrated today in front of the People's Representative Assembly (DPR). They demanded that the Golkar Party be disbanded and that its general chairperson, Akbar Tanjung be jailed. A bit late maybe?

Aras Napal – The European Union's Environment Commissioner Margot Wallstrom ended a visit to a huge EU-funded conservation project, expressing alarm that a planned road network could spell disaster for it.

Dili – A former militia commander was sentenced to seven years in jail Tuesday for killing a pro-independence leader during East Timor's bloody break from Indonesia in 1999.

The impact of the financial crisis which devastated the economy is still being felt by taxpayers. Seven years after the crash of 1997 – Indonesians are now set to face a multi-billion dollar bill. In two weeks time the government agency charged with recovering the fortune spent on propping up the country's banks during the crisis, will close its doors.

The Army today admitted it made mistakes in investigating the case of a senior Special Air Service (SAS) soldier accused of kicking the corpses of two militiamen shot dead in East Timor in 1999. An apology had been made to the unnamed soldier.

Mataram – The Indonesian military will deploy soldiers to Batek Island in neighboring East Nusa Tenggara province, which borders East Timor, a senior officer said on Monday.

"So far we have not stationed any soldiers on the island because there have been no serious threats," Udayana Military Commander, Maj. Gen. Supiadin AS, said.

Juli Hantoro, Edy Can, Multazam – A Jakarta court has ordered the Jakarta local government to postpone its plan to hike drinking water rates. A victory for the residents?

Atambua – Illegal border crossing into Indonesia's East Nusa Tenggara province from East Timor is something hard to control, a local military official said.

"Illegal border crossing is something hard to prevent or control because many of the border-crossers take narrow paths and do so at night," chief of the Security Border Task Force, Col Djoko Setiono said here Friday.

Dadan Wijaksana, Jakarta – The controversial acquittal of House of Representatives Speaker Akbar Tandjung from corruption charges did not have any significant impact on domestic financial markets as both stocks and the rupiah ended firmer on Friday.

Palembang – Student activists, non-government organisations and academics held a silent protest in front of the Monument to the Mandate of the People's Suffering in Palembang, South Sumatra, on Friday evening, February 13.

Jakarta – As the Golkar Party fraction celebrated following the release of Golkar Party general chairperson Akbar Tanjung [from corruption charges], Yudi, a student from the Jakarta State University (UNJ) is still languishing in the Pondok Indah hospital in Jakarta.

Banda Aceh – The Emergency Military Commander in Aceh, Major General Endang Suwarya, has said that they are waiting to see what the government's decision will be on foreign observers in the 2004 election in Aceh.

Jakarta – Students nationwide again took to the streets on Friday, rejecting the Supreme Court's decision that acquitted Akbar Tandjung of graft charges.

The second day of protest went peacefully, unlike the day earlier, when at least 60 student protesters were hospitalized after clashes with police.

Evi Mariani and Dewi Santoso, Jakarta – The Jakarta police chief has revealed that his officers charged into and severely beat dozens of protesting students in front of the Supreme Court building on Thursday because a single bottle tossed toward the police line made them lose control and deviate from procedures.

Robert Go, Jakarta – Flowers and congratulatory notes yesterday flooded the Jakarta house of Indonesian parliament Speaker Akbar Tandjung, whose corruption conviction was overturned by the Supreme Court on Thursday.

Tiarma Siboro and M. Taufiqurrahman, Jakarta – The acquittal of Golkar Party leader Akbar Tandjung will make it difficult to put corrupt officials or former officials behind bars, a legal expert says.

Wimar Witoelar, Jakarta – The main message conveyed by the Supreme Court's decision on Akbar Tandjung is that crime pays in today's Indonesia ... as long as you have common interests with those who hold political power. The verdict effectively legitimizes corruption as an accessory of power.

Matthew Moore, Jakarta – Something unusual happened in Jakarta's Supreme Court on Thursday, and it wasn't the decision to overturn parliamentary Speaker Akbar Tanjung's conviction for embezzling money meant for the poor.

Everyone was expecting Indonesia's justice system would do that and maintain its perfect record of never jailing any big name politician.

Malang - The visit by President Megawati Sukarnoputri to the city of Malang in East Java on Saturday February 14, was greeted with a demonstration by students from the University of Brawijaya (Unibraw) Student Executive Council (BEM) and the Indonesian Muslim Student United Action Front (KAMMI) in front of the Unibraw campus.

Nani Farida, Lhokseumawe – Sawang district, Aceh province, is determined to see political parties campaigning for the upcoming general election, despite the fact that it is still classified as a "black zone" by the Indonesian Military (TNI).

Matthew Moore, Jakarta – A week ago every one of the 50 waterfront rooms in Lombok's swish Oberoi Hotel was empty. And with a host of new visa regulations for Indonesia-bound tourists taking effect from the start of this month, the hotel's manager, John Halpin, reckons the island's tourism future looks as bleak as it ever has.

Gary LaMoshi, Denpasar – The Supreme Court decision overturning the conviction of House Speaker Akbar Tanjung landed with the thud of a police baton on the future of reform in Indonesia. The ruling will have its most direct impact on the July 5 presidential election, but ripples will be felt throughout society.

Gary LaMoshi, Denpasar – A group of 35 Indonesian economists launched a campaign against privatization of state-owned companies on Tuesday in Jakarta. The group calls itself Indonesia Bangkit (Indonesia Awakens), but the group seems to have slept through the sad history of state businesses and banks during the past six years.

Ridwan Max Sijabat, Jakarta – Employers and workers joined forces on Thursday to oppose the bill on national social security (SJSN) which they said would cause legal uncertainty and confusion among the public.

Derwin Pereira, Jakarta – In the end, it was not to be.

Rivals of Golkar leader Akbar Tandjung had long hoped that a guilty verdict against him would have barred the party chief from entering the presidential race.

The Supreme Court's ruling yesterday to acquit Akbar Tandjung of all charges of corruption, thereby overturning two earlier lower court verdicts sentencing the House of Representatives speaker to three years in prison, is certain to have serious consequences for this country for a long time to come.

Jakarta – The Supreme Court's decision to acquit Golkar chairman Akbar Tandjung of corruption charges paves the way for his candidacy for the presidency and boosts the party's ambition to return to power.

Political analyst Denny JA said on Thursday that Akbar would likely win the party's presidential convention as many party leaders considered him a hero.

Sari P. Setiogi and Multa Fidrus, Jakarta/Tangerang – After millions of chickens have been killed due to bird flu and other diseases over the past several months, poultry farmers are now anticipating greater losses caused by the decline in demand for Indonesian poultry products.

Jakarta – Former Republican Senate majority leader Bob Dole wants to help Indonesia in Washington but has not been hired as a lobbyist, the foreign ministry said Friday.

"It is not correct that Bob Dole has been appointed as an Indonesian lobbyist," spokesman Marty Natalegawa told a press conference. "There is no type of blanket contract."

Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – In the two weeks of full operation, the busway has seen an increase in passengers each day, but their total number is only a third of the 60,000 commuters that previously traveled between Blok M in South Jakarta and Kota in West Jakarta on the regular buses.