Jakarta – Some 90% of people in Indonesia's Aceh province say they agree with Islamic laws that punish gamblers with caning and force women to cover their heads in public, according to an opinion poll released Thursday.

Aceh is the first province in secular but Muslim-majority Indonesia to be allowed to implement laws based on the Islamic legal code, or Sharia.

Rudy Madanir and Christine Tjandraningsih, Jakarta – A recent survey has found that the majority of people in Aceh are satisfied with the current condition in the northernmost Indonesian province and believe in lasting peace, a year after the government and the separatist Free Aceh Movement signed a peace deal in Helsinki.

Achmad Sukarsono, Jakarta – Indonesia plans to hold the first direct elections in once-volatile Aceh province by December 10, a government minister said on Thursday.

Lhokseumawe – Around 1000 women from the Inong Aceh League demonstrated in the North Acehnese city of Lhokseumawe on Monday August 7.

Lam Kabeue – Rebels in Indonesia's Aceh province are trading their guns for chain saws and cashing in on a logging binge that is jeopardizing the future of the world's third largest tropical forest reserves.

Nani Afrida, Banda Aceh – The Free Aceh Movement (GAM) has demanded the immediate revision of a number of articles of the Aceh Governance Law that are not in compliance with the Helsinki peace deal.

Jakarta – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has asked foreign monitors in Aceh to stay on through the province's crucial elections, planned for later this year, a spokeswoman said Wednesday.

Tb. Arie Rukmantara, Jakarta – Nearly 10 percent of more than 500,000 children under five years old living in tsunami-devastated Aceh and Nias Island are acutely malnourished and not 60 percent as earlier claimed, Unicef says.

Jakarta – Women and the poor are experiencing unfair treatment due to overzealous enforcement of sharia bylaws in Nanggroe Aceh Darusssalam, an influential think tank said.

Thirty former members of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM), who were recently released from prison, arrived back home Tuesday in Banda Aceh, Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam.

Indonesia may well be the world's largest Muslim country, but only Aceh has the legal right to apply Islamic law in full. Aceh was granted the right as part of the search for a political solution to the long-running separatist conflict in the fiercely independent and deeply religious region.

Denmark – On Monday July 31, members of the Acehnese community residing in Denmark sent a special letter to the High Representative of the European Union Javier Solana and the secretary general of the United Nations Kofi Annan.

Banda Aceh – Two people in Indonesia's Aceh have been caned for adultery, the latest case of public punishments since courts in the province were allowed to implement Islamic sharia law. Indonesia is the world's most populous Muslim nation but only Aceh has the right to adopt sharia law in the judicial system.

Jane Perlez, Masjid – For a moment, the villagers in this seaside community glimpsed a vision of a splendid future: houses with shady verandas, a new elementary school and an end to the squalid barracks that had been their world since the Asian tsunami swept all before it 19 months ago.

James Balowski, Jakarta – Less than two weeks after the House of Representatives passed the Aceh governance bill – which the government says will pave the way for greater autonomy in Indonesia's northern-most province – on June 21, the Aceh governor issued a decree declaring 16 Acehnese groups "illegal".

Radzie, Banda Aceh – The Aceh Monitoring Mission (AMM) is asking the Indonesian government to clarify a number of points in the Aceh Governance Law (UU-PA) that are not in compliance with the Helsinki Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). The AMM's mission in Aceh is also to be extended until November 2006.

Fajran Zain, Indiana – Despite the House of Representatives' endorsement, the new law on Aceh governance is still being debated.

Tony Hotland, Jakarta – Despite opposition from former separatists and many other local people, legislators and analysts Thursday praised the passage of the Aceh governance law as a milestone in the effort to bring peace to the formerly rebellious province.

Banda Aceh – How do the readers of Aceh Kita regard the Law on Aceh Governance (UU-PA) that was ratified by the House of Representatives on July 11? Is it in accordance with the Helsinki Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) or has it in fact deviated from the agreement.

Lambaro Neujid – Former separatist rebels in Indonesia's Aceh have enjoyed a year of peace but, as they slowly try to build new lives for themselves, they are worried about the future.

Radzie, Banda Aceh – The Aceh chapter of the Indonesian Environmental Forum (Walhi) has been included in a list of illegal or banned organisations that was issued by the governor of Aceh through Decree Number 235/13246 dated June 21, 2006.

Jakarta – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said Friday the new Aceh governance law would help speed up the recovery of the province from the devastating December 2004 tsunami.

Nani Afrida, Banda Aceh – The Aceh Monitoring Mission (AMM) will not step into the controversy about the newly passed Aceh governance law, chief Pieter Feith said Wednesday.

He said the law on the administration of Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam was not a sudden "incident", but rather the result of the lengthy efforts of Indonesian legislators.

Banda Aceh – The head of a foreign monitoring mission overseeing a peace pact between ex-rebels in Indonesia's Aceh and the Jakarta government has given an initial nod to a law cementing the deal.

Banda Aceh – Many residents in Indonesia's Aceh say they are unaware of the specifics of a new law giving the ravaged province greater autonomy, but don't want any opposition to it to derail a new-found peace.

Nani Afrida, Banda Aceh/Jakarta – Usually bustling streets in towns along the eastern seaboard of Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam were brought to a standstill Tuesday, with transportation workers taking part in a general strike called to protest the endorsement of the Aceh governance law.

M. Taufiqurrahman, Jakarta – After five months of intense deliberations, the House of Representatives passed the Aceh governance bill into law Tuesday, with legislators' declaration that it paved the way for greater autonomy receiving a cool response in the conflict-torn province.

Jakarta – Indonesia's parliament has passed a bill to extend political autonomy for Aceh, but human-rights activists and former Achenese rebels say the law does not satisfy a 2005 peace agreement.

The conflict has revived tensions between Jakarta and Aceh's separatist movement.

Jane Perlez, Jakarta – The Indonesian Parliament passed a law today that under the terms of a peace accord with former separatists in Aceh is intended to give the province greater autonomy.

Jakarta – A human rights group suspects there have been "systematic attempts" to shatter the peace in Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam.

Banda Aceh – A former separatist rebel was killed and a policeman wounded in an attack witnessed by members of a foreign peace monitoring mission in Indonesia's Aceh province, police said Tuesday.

Ridwan Max Sijabat, Jakarta – The House of Representatives is scheduled to endorse the long-awaited and much-debated Aceh governance bill on July 11, with the main focus then on holding the first direct gubernatorial election in the province.

Sarah Smiles, Canberra – Nearly $1 million of Australia's foreign aid budget is feared to have been used fraudulently in the past four years.

Much of the money was part of AusAID's tsunami aid program in Indonesia, according to an audit report released yesterday. AusAID's total budget for the period was $7 billion.

M. Taufiqurrahman, Jakarta – The House of Representatives and the government have agreed on joint management of oil and gas in Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam by the provincial administration and central government, reneging on a promise to let the Acehnese control their natural resources.

Jakarta – Activists are demanding legislators ensure women's political rights are protected in the Aceh governance bill expected to be passed into law by the middle of next month. The bill should allocate quotas for women in local political parties, they said.

Radzie, Banda Aceh – Civil activists in Aceh are urging the Indonesian government to immediately form an Acehnese Truth and Reconciliation Commission (KKR) and Human Rights Court in order to resolve problems that took place in the past. The call was conveyed by a number of Acehnese activists after they decided to resign from the Aceh Reintegration Agency.

Radzie, Banda Aceh – A statement by Indonesia's senior representative on the Aceh Monitoring Mission (AMM), Major General Bambang Darmono, which categorised the Aceh Referendum Information Center (SIRA) as an illegal organisation has been condemned by civil activist groups in Aceh.

Ahmad Dani, Jakarta – Common crimes committed by members of the TNI (Indonesian military) in Aceh must be tried in civilian courts. Unfortunately, the Draft Law on Aceh Government (RUU-PA) in fact seeking the opposite. Common crimes by members of the TNI will still be processed in military courts.

Jakarta – The Corruption Eradication Commission has set up a monitoring mission of reconstruction projects currently underway in the tsunami-hit Aceh and parts of North Sumatra.

KPK head Taufiequrrahman Ruki said the team would oversee a multimillion dollar project carried out by the Aceh Nias Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Agency (BRR).

Adi W, Banda Aceh – Indonesia's senior representative on the Aceh Monitoring Mission (AMM), Major General Bambang Darmono, has confirmed that there are no longer any illegal groups in Aceh. If there still are, then these groups must be disbanded immediately.

Oktamandjaya Wiguna, Jakarta – Elements of the Acehnese people, including the Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam Regional House of Representatives (DPRD) and the Aceh Traditions Council (MAA) met with the Aceh Government Draft Bill (RUU PA) formulation team at the Hotel Santika, Jakarta, yesterday (20/6).

M. Taufiqurrahman, Jakarta – Prospects of a lasting peace in Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam appear stronger after the House of Representatives and the government accommodated long-standing demands of locals in the nearly finalized Aceh governance bill.

Nani Afrida, Banda Aceh – In response to the lack of involvement of women in the peace and integration process in Aceh, several women's rights activists have formed the Aceh Women's League to accommodate the political aspirations of women in the area.

Jakarta - A number of non-government organisations from the Aceh Working Group (AWG) are urging the Aceh Rehabilitation Agency (BRA) to give greater focus to its task and initial role as mandated in Section 3.2 of the Helsinki Memorandum of Understanding on the stages of the reintegration process.

Chazizah Gusnita, Jakarta – Non-government organisations (NGOs) are urging the government to immediately acknowledge the existence of militia groups in Aceh. Without such an acknowledgement, the reintegration process in Aceh will be obstructed.

Chazizah Gusnita, Jakarta – The Aceh Reintegration Agency (BRA) continues to be criticised with its poor performance considered to be threatening the peace process.

Adi Warsidi, Banda Aceh – Yesterday (11/6), the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) resigned from the committee of the Aceh Reintegration Board (BRA), the organization for Aceh reintegration, which was part of the peace agreement in Helsinki.

M. Taufiqurrahman, Jakarta – House of Representatives lawmakers are unhappy with the performance of the Aceh-Nias Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Agency (BRR).

Nani Afrida, Takengon (Central Aceh) – "These are the best times I've experienced in my whole life," said Aman Masnah, 70, a resident of Keunawat village, Lut Tawar district in Central Aceh regency.

M. Taufiqurrahman, Jakarta – The government and the House of Representatives should not water down powers granted to future Aceh administrations because they would be in violation of last year's Helsinki peace accord, a coalition of non-governmental organizations says.