Devi Asmarani, Jakarta – Indonesian judges are in the spotlight again, incurring the wrath of corruption watchdogs, for refusing to make their wealth public.

Jakarta – The government has asked US-based copper and gold mining company PT Freeport Indonesia to immediately deal with the pollution emanating from its mines near the Papuan towns of Tembagapura and Timika.

Debbie A. Lubis, Jakarta – Noted Muslim leaders cautioned the United States on Wednesday against forcing Indonesia to crack down on hardline religious groups in the country.

Tiarma Siboro and Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, Jakarta – With just one day to go until the convening of the People's Consultative Assembly Annual Session, noted legal practitioner and human rights activist Todung Mulya Lubis warned of a possible vacuum should the political parties not agree to proceed with the constitutional amendment process.

Ahmad Junaidi, Jakarta – The 1945 Constitution (UUD 1945) has gone through at least seven crucial phases since it was endorsed by the Preparatory Committee for Indonesian Independence (PPKI) on August 18, 1945, just one day after the Declaration of Independence.

Muklis Ali and Dean Yates, Jakarta – Indonesia's president insisted on Thursday there were no quick fixes to the country's many woes and said crippling a rebel movement in Aceh was vital to ending violence that has killed thousands in the troubled province.

Kel Dummett – Everywhere you go in Papua the message is the same – Merdeka! Merdeka! Freedom! Freedom! This is particularly true today, the anniversary of the 1967 Act of Free Choice, which led to Indonesia's annexation of the former Dutch colony.

Army Chief General Ryamizard Ryacudu has urged the people of Papua to help the Indonesian Defense Forces (TNI) quell separatism in the resource-rich province.

Ryacudu made the statement Thursday in an address read out at a ceremony by the province's military chief Major General Mahidin Simbolon.

[Australia and East Timor are squaring off for their first serious disagreement, government-to-government. Over the next 30 years Australia stands to earn billions of dollars in royalties from oil and gas reserves in the Timor Sea. East Timor is getting some of the royalties, but believes it should be getting more.

Craig Skehan, Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei – East Timorese Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri last night denied his government had tried to link negotiations on sharing oil and gas revenues to Australia providing maritime surveillance in the Timor Sea.

Jakarta – Both employers and labor unions slammed the House of Representatives and the government for the much-criticized labor bills, saying the House and the government team preparing the two bills had failed to bridge the gap between employers and workers.

Yemris Fointuna, Kupang – At least 5,700 East Timorese who have chosen to stay in Indonesia threatened on Tuesday to snub the 2004 general election to protest the government's failure to heed their demand for compensation.

New York – US Secretary of State Colin Powell should urge Indonesia to demonstrate effective civilian control of the military and take action to hold senior military officers accountable for human rights abuses, Human Rights Watch said in a backgrounder released today.

Tim Dodd, Bandar Seri Begawan – East Timor has asked Australia to take over part of its maritime security in a new treaty that would substantially increase the ocean area in which the two countries share billions of dollars in oil and gas revenue.

Bruce Hextall – East Timor's latest proposal in the sharing of the Timor Sea's vast oil and gas reserves could be viewed as a positive step in resolving some of the issues now subject to debate.

Max Lane, Jakarta – On July 22, several political parties organised a seminar to discuss the contemporary implications of the July 27, 1996, attack by pro-Suharto thugs on the headquarters of the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI). During that raid, PDI members loyal to Megawati Sukarnoputri were killed, injured and some have disappeared.

Jakarta – The military and police in Aceh are anticipating a mass strike during the celebration of Independence Day on August 17 in the restive province.

Police chief Insp. Gen. Yusuf Manggabarani told a media conference the security personnel had heard rumors of a mass strike circulating in the westernmost province.

Brendan Pereira, Malaysia – As expected, Asean ministers flagged terrorism as a major threat at the end of its annual ministerial meeting in Brunei.

Along the corridors of the cavernous convention centre, diplomats from member countries spoke passionately about the need to make the region an inhospitable place for terror cells.

Dan Murphy, Jakarta – Pius Lustrilanang says he's bled his last drop for President Megawati Sukarnoputri.

In 1998, as Indonesia's Suharto dictatorship fought to restrain the democracy movement Megawati had inspired, Mr. Lustrilanang was snatched off a Jakarta street and taken to a dank military interrogation center. His crime: leading a pro-Megawati student group.

[Tomorrow Indonesia's National Assembly the MPR is to begin its annual session. Over ten days 500 assembly members will vote on groundbreaking changes to Indonesia's constitution. But first up on the MPR agenda is President Megawati Sukarnoputri's 12 month progress report to the assembly.

Berni K. Moestafa, Jakarta – A poll shows that 69.5 percent of 4,133 respondents are ready to vote in a direct presidential election, as lawmakers will meet next week to decide whether to adopt a direct election in 2004.

Tiarma Siboro, Jakarta – As the Annual Session of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) draws near, the Indonesian Military (TNI), along with the National Police, has maintained its opposition to the ongoing constitutional amendment process and is calling for a return to the (unamended) 1945 Constitution.

Jakarta – Indonesia's armed forces chief said yesterday that the soldier thought to be directly responsible for the mysterious death of an independence leader in Indonesia's Papua province had been arrested.

Kurniawan Hari, Jakarta – Public pressure is now growing for the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) to establish an independent constitutional commission, just two days before the Assembly begins its Annual Session to endorse changes agreed in the fourth phase of the constitutional amendment process.

Chris McCall, Jakarta – West Papua's separatist presidium fears it will be declared illegal and its members arrested under a new operation ordered by the region's police chief.

Bambang Nurbianto, Jakarta – Military Police Commander Maj. Gen Sulaiman A.B. announced on Tuesday that Governor Sutiyoso was a suspect of the July 27, 1996 incident when hundreds of progovernment civilians and military attacked the headquarters of the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI).

An Indonesian army officer suspected of involvement in last year's murder of a Papuan independence leader said the man had died suddenly while being questioned by soldiers, his lawyer said.

"Lieutenant Colonel Hartomo said that Theys [Hiyo Eluay] died suddenly, maybe because of shock, while his subordinates were questioning him in his car," said lawyer Ruhut Sitompul.

Moch. N. Kurniawan, Jakarta – The government has paid no attention to the plight of child domestics, many of whom have fallen victim to sexual harassment by their employers, activists say.

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta – Convict Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra received important guests on Monday as more than 30 legislators, accompanied by hundreds of reporters, paid a visit to Cipinang penitentiary in East Jakarta.

Simon Cameron-Moore and Elaine Monaghan, Bandar Seri Begawan/Singapore – Indonesia defended its record in fighting terrorism on Tuesday as US Secretary of State Colin Powell lent support, hinting Washington was ready to consider resuming military ties.

Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei – The Association of Southeast Asian Nations has ruled out immediate membership for East Timor, the world's newest country, officials said Tuesday.

Asean foreign ministers, meeting at an informal dinner Monday, discussed bringing in East Timor as the 11th member of the regional grouping but could not reach a consensus.

Jakarta – Reebok International Ltd, the world's No. 2 athletic shoe-maker, said on Tuesday it is committed to production in Indonesia after 1,000 workers staged a protest against it in Jakarta the day before.

Mario Osava, Rio de Janeiro – Brazil will provide assistance in a wide range of areas to help rebuild East Timor, the world's newest nation and one of its poorest, whose first president, Josi Alexandre Xanana Gusmao, is visiting Latin America's largest country this week.

Bambang Nurbianto, Jakarta – The victims of the July 27 incident are unlikely to see justice served in the near future as legal enforcers are reluctant to handle the case seriously, particularly if it touches on former high-ranking officials, legislators said.

Jakarta – Five senior police and military officers charged with allowing a church massacre to take place in the former Indonesian province of East Timor pleaded innocent on Tuesday.

Jose Belo, Dili – Although it's one of Asia's poorest nations, East Timor is open to receiving 56 Sri Lankan asylum-seekers stranded on a boat in its capital's harbor, its acting foreign minister said Tuesday.

The Sri Lankans were attempting to make their way to New Zealand but were forced to abandon their journey Sunday after they ran out of food, water and fuel.

Police in Indonesia's Papua province say they plan to crack down on separatist activists in the resource-rich region if dialogue fails.

Jakarta – Indonesia's military chief said on Tuesday the problems in rebellious Aceh province should be resolved through dialogue but that separatists must drop their call for an independent state.

Devi Asmarani, Jakarta – The urban centres of Batam, Java and Sumatra will be swamped by at least 100,000 workers returning from Malaysia this week – and they won't be welcome.

Jakarta – Setting fire to a giant cardboard replica of a Reebok shoe, more than a thousand workers from the US-based manufacturer protested outside the American Embassy in Jakarta over a cut in orders they claimed has left 5,400 workers jobless.

Berni K. Moestafa, Jakarta – With new political parties sprouting fast, analysts said their prospects at the 2004 general election were dim as most of them lacked a clear support base at the grassroots level.

Banjarmasin – Activists of two student groups rallied on Monday to demand that South Kalimantan Governor Sjachriel Darham step down for incompetence.

On separate occasions, the Pro-Revolution Student Solidarity (SMPR) and the provincial chapter of the Indonesian Youth Committee (KNPI) said that Sjachriel was incapable to develop South Kalimantan during his tenure.

Vietnam and East Timor have established diplomatic relations in a brief ceremony the eve of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations foreign ministers' annual meeting in Brunei.

Vietnam's Foreign Minister Nguyen Dy Nien and his East Timorese counterpart Jose Ramos-Horta signed a joint communique on the establishment of diplomatic ties.

Robert Go. Jakarta – HIV rates in Indonesia could be on the rise after revelations by the local Red Cross unit (PMI) that there has been a dramatic increase over the last five years in the number of donated blood samples that contain the lethal virus.

Jakarta – Indonesia's top Islamic organisation Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) yesterday demanded that an article guaranteeing religious freedom be kept untouched in the country's Constitution.

NU reiterated its stand at the close of its congress that it opposed efforts to make religious practice and syariah law obligatory for Indonesian Muslims.

Jakarta – What was President Megawati Soekarnoputri doing when thousands of her die-hard supporters and victims of the July 27 bloody attack were crying out for justice last Saturday? Throwing a party for her children, brothers and sisters of her businessman husband Taufik Kiemas, and several family business friends to celebrate her one year in office.

[First to Indonesia, where the convicted favourite son of former President Suharto is likely to appeal a 15-year jail sentence for masterminding the murder of a judge and other crimes.

Jakarta – Indonesian police have been questioning witnesses to a bomb blast that ripped through a crowded market, injuring 53 people in a Christian neighbourhood of the religiously divided province of Maluku.

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, Jakarta – In a move to net potential voters who have been disappointed with the performances of existing political parties represented in the country's supreme law-making body, the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR), two noted political observers declared a new party on Sunday.

Bandar Seri Begawan – Tommy Suharto's conviction augurs well for the independence of the judiciary in Indonesia, according to Datuk Param Cumaraswamy, the United Nations special rapporteur who had last week said the country's legal system was the worst he had ever seen.