Semarang – Employees of state-owned telecommunications firm PT Telkom's Central Java and Yogyakarta regional offices will strike on Monday to protest plans to transfer the unit to state-owned telecommunications company PT Indosat, according to a labor union chief.

A'an Suryana and Kurniawan Hari, Jakarta – A team established to save Golkar is accusing certain leftist groups of trying to dissolve the party by exploiting corruption allegations against its chairman Akbar Tandjung, a suspect in a Rp 54.6 billion financial scandal involving the State Logistics Agency (Bulog).

I Wayan Juniartha, Denpasar – Indonesia's second-largest Muslim organization, Muhammadiyah, ended its annual meeting here on Sunday, calling on the international community to put an end to what it sees as a new form of imperialism.

Tertiani ZB Simanjuntak, Jakarta – The dissolution of the Environmental Impact Control Agency (Bapedal) has ignited fears that all previous efforts by the organization to conserve the environment will come to a standstill, activists said.

Jakarta – The Indonesian government will not extend any logging contracts until a survey is conducted of all forest concessions, Forestry Minister Muhammad Prakosa said Monday.

Robert Go – Tattooed and multiple-pierced 19-year-old Ismail, aka Pluto, cannot remember how long he has been homeless.

All he knows is that he started out in Medan on Sumatra Island and roamed the tough streets of Jakarta before ending up in Yogyakarta in Central Java. "I'm well travelled, compared to other Indonesians," he said wryly.

Jakarta – New witness testimony in a corruption case against Indonesia's parliament speaker Akbar Tanjung has further discredited his claim that he used state funds to buy food for the poor.

Tanjung is under investigation by state prosecutors for the suspected embezzlement of 3.8 million dollars from the state logistics agency Bulog in 1999.

Jakarta – Two Indonesian national parks, homes to the endangered Komodo dragon and Javanese rhinoceros, have been earmarked by the United Nations for a million dollar ecotourism project.

Mark Baker in Manila and Lindsay Murdoch in Jakarta – The Indonesian Government is under mounting pressure to crack down on the fundamentalist Jemaah Islamiah movement after new evidence linking it to Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda network and terrorist raids across South-East Asia.

Lindsay Murdoch, Jakarta – A Melbourne-educated Indonesian lawyer has been appointed to judge crimes committed in East Timor in 1999 despite having represented former armed forces chief General Wiranto and having helped prepare the prosecutions.

Ahmad Junaidi, Jakarta – As a governor, Sutiyoso should abide by the law. Ironically, he has long violated a ministerial decree that bans him from holding the post of commissioner at the city-owned market operator, PD Pasar Jaya.

Devi Asmarani, Jakarta – Two top separatist leaders in Indonesia's Papua and Aceh provinces have been killed in the last three months, raising suspicions that the Indonesian government is out to cripple the separatist movements by targeting their leaders, even as it promises to negotiate with them.

Jakarta – An Indonesian general predicted a long war against separatist rebels in Aceh despite the killing of their military leader. "This war will still be long," said Kostrad strategic reserve commander Lieutenant General Ryamizard Ryacudu, whose men shot dead Abdullah Syafii on Tuesday.

Jakarta – The proposed formation of a Riau Islands province has stirred strong discord pitting the central government and the islands' inhabitants – some of whom oppose the idea – against the current Riau province on the mainland, which seeks a democratic compromise on the issue.

Rita A. Widiadana, Denpasar – Indonesia will soon become "the backyard" nation among Asian countries if it fails to combat serious corruption and a lousy work ethic, says noted Muslim scholar Nurcholish Madjid.

Rendi A. Witular, Jakarta – Due to its alleged "inhuman and violent practices" recently, the City Public Order Agency (Tramtib) has come under strong criticism from some members of the public and non-governmental organizations, with some groups calling for its dissolution.

Yuli Tri Suwarni, Bandung – West Java, a large province closest to the capital, Jakarta, has hidden its decade-long teacher crisis behind its achievements in the field of education.

Annastashya Emmanuelle, Jakarta – The Health Ministry secured Rp 500 billion (US$48 million) this year from the state's fuel subsidy reduction to provide medical services for the country's 37.3 million poor.

Denpasar – Muhammadiyah, the second largest Muslim organization in the country, is certain to play a more active role in mediating and moderating the current political and social problems both on domestic and international levels because of itscredibility and independence, says its chairman.

Lindsay Murdoch, Jakarta – A key Indonesian parliamentary committee has demanded that the Government of President Megawati Sukarnoputri consider cancelling the Prime Minister's planned visit to Indonesia next month.

Damar Harsanto, Jakarta – State-run oil and gas company Pertamina revealed on Friday how it misled the public about the price of kerosene. It's explanation partly explains why the price is about double the Rp 600 "retail price" set by the company.

Ahmad Junaidi, Jakarta – Owing to the rising costs of fuel and spare parts, the city administration has said that it will soon increase city bus fares by between 10 and 20 percent.

Jakarta – A man at the center of a bribery claim involving ex-Indonesian president Abdurrahman Wahid and the son of former dictator Suharto has spent part of the money on gold and his house, media reported Saturday.

Ahmad Junaidi, Jakarta – City councillors have expressed regret at the violence and repression used by some Jakarta administration officials during its controversial identification card raids early this week.

Annastashya Emmanuelle, Jakarta – State Minister of the Environment Nabiel Makarim has said the construction of both the toll road, which leads to the Soekarno-Hatta airport and the Pantai Indah Kapuk real estate are a cause of the city's flooding problems.

Indonesian Foreign Minister Hassan Wirayuda yesterday described Australia as the archipelago's "backyard" and said the government had no choice but to get along with Canberra.

Even though it has been almost two and a half years since an eruption of violence in East Timor, not a single Indonesian military and police officer responsible for security in the territory at that time has been prosecuted.

Berni K. Moestafa, Jakarta – A review by a government watchdog has exposed glaring imbalances in a plan to extend the payment period for large debtors of the Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency (IBRA) that, if not revised, risked the government's effort to recoup some $13 billion in lost state funds.

Jakarta – Five suspected members of Osama bin Laden's Al-Qaeda network arrived in Indonesia from Yemen last July with a plan to blow up the United States Embassy in Jakarta, a high-ranking US official has revealed.

Singapore – East Timor's Nobel Peace Prize-winning foreign minister said Friday he was confident Indonesia would be able to crack down on suspected members of Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida network.

Jakarta – An international labour body has strongly criticised Indonesian manufacturers for refusing to pay the new minimum wage, saying world retailers were unwilling to buy from "dirty sources."

Ridwan Max Sijabat, Jakarta – The death of Free Aceh Movement (GAM) Commander Tengku Abdullah Syafi'ie, has solidified the separatist movement and increased the guerrillas' will to fight for the independence of Aceh, says GAM spokesman Ayah Sofyan.

Kurniawan Hari, Jakarta – To avoid more bloodshed following the killing of military commander of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) Tengku Abdullah Syafi'ie, the House of Representatives (DPR) urged the government on Thursday to intensify dialog with the insurgents and resolve the Aceh question through peaceful means.

Jakarta – Three cars were set ablaze and a man was shot by police when a riot broke out Thursday in an Indonesian town over an attempt to extort money from returning migrant workers, officials said.

Jakarta – Mass rioting erupted when locals clashed with police in the West Java town of Purwakarta on Thursday, leaving at least two people shot and three vehicles, including two policecars, set ablaze.

Jakarta – Separatist rebels in Indonesia's troubled Aceh province said on Friday they were still open to peace talks with Jakarta despite the shooting of its top military chiefs by security forces earlier this week.

Jill Jolliffe, Dili – A group of dissidents has accused the governing Fretilin party of trying to usurp democracy and remain in power for five years beyond its elected mandate.

Dili – East Timor has started preparing for its first presidential elections but with full independence to follow soon after, time is of the essence.

The elections in the UN-run territory are scheduled for April 14 with formal independence due to be declared on May 20.

Oyos Saroso HN, Bandarlampung – Activists and the Lampung provincial legislative council clashed on Wednesday after the activists said the province's 2002 draft budget allocated more for the bureaucracy that it did for the poor.

Ahmad Junaidi, Jakarta – City councillors are again spending millions of rupiah of public money by conducting a two-day meeting with city officials at the Horison Hotel in North Jakarta to discuss the proposed 2002 budget. At least 15 councillors grouped under the council's special budgetary team and dozens of city officials attended the meeting which started on Wednesday.

Vaudine England, Jakarta – Indonesia's armed forces claimed a major victory yesterday with the killing of the commander of the Acehnese separatist rebels, Abdullah Syafei.

Troops said they shot Syafei in the chest during a raid on the jungle headquarters of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM). GAM has yet to confirm the killing.

Jakarta – Separatist guerrillas in Aceh will press on with their 25-year-long revolt against Indonesian rule despite the killing of their military commander, Abdullah Syafii, analysts said Thursday.

Yogita Tahil Ramani, Jakarta – Long working hours and working without a day's rest may soon be a thing of the past for Indonesia's housemaids, if campaigns demanding greater respect for their legal rights gain more ground.

Jakarta – Amid mounting concern over the negative impact of its fuel price hike policy, the government said the poor should not be affected as it had allocated to them sufficient compensation funds of Rp 2.85 trillion (US$274 million) this year.

Devi Asmarani, Jakarta – President Megawati Sukarnoputri yesterday celebrated her 55th birthday with hundreds of orphans and homeless children in a modest gathering at her party headquarters in an apparent bid to offset criticism over her husband's lavish birthday bash in the resort island of Bali recently.

Deddy Sinaga, Jakarta – The Commission for Missing Persons & Victims of Violence (Kontras) says the death of Tengku Abdullah Syafi'ie, the commander of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) killed in an exchange of gunfire with the Indonesian Military (TNI) this week, shows that the Indonesian government continues to prefer repressive measures for handling problems in Aceh.

Jakarta – Only 49 of 500 Indonesian legislators showed up on time for a plenary meeting to debate the setting up of an inquiry team to investigate Golkar chairman Akbar Tanjung, clearly demon-strating their reluctance to investigate his alleged role in a financial scandal involving 40 billion rupiah (S$7.1 million).

Annastashya Emmanuelle, Jakarta – The United Nations High Commission for Human Rights (UNHCHR) stepped up its pressure on Wednesday for Indonesia to act swiftly against militiamen and others connected to human rights abuses in East Timor in 1999, promising to send international observers to monitor an upcoming rights tribunal.

Jakarta – Religious leaders in Irian Jaya have nominated a number of activists and experts to be included in the planned national commission to carry out an independent investigation into the murder of proindepedence Papua Presidium Council (PDP) Chairman Dortheys "Theys" Hiyo Eluay.

Primastuti Handayani, Jakarta – Critics condemned the Jakarta administration for continuing its controversial door-to-door ID card raids Wednesday, saying the policy violated human rights, and was also ineffective and ridiculous.