Lisbon – East Timor, one of the world's poorest countries, on Monday called on rich nations to boost international aid and reduce their trade barriers in order to help lift developing c

Kurniawan Hari, Jakarta – The central government and the martial law administration in Aceh will expand the scope of a proposed screening program to local elected representatives and vi

Matthew Moore, Jakarta – An American freelance journalist who has spent five weeks with Acehnese separatist rebels says the fighting and casualties are much more extensive than reported

Devi Asmarani, Jakarta – They used to be commonly found in discotheques or dark alleyways in unsavoury parts of the city, sold by professional peddlers.

Berni K.

Bagus Kurniawan, Yogyakarta – Resolving the conflict in Aceh through war will only increase the number of civilian casualties.

Tertiani ZB Simanjuntak, Jakarta – The ongoing military operation to crush the rebel Free Aceh Movement (GAM) in Aceh has put Acehnese living outside the war-torn province, Jakarta in p

Jakarta (Agencies) – The Central Jakarta District Court on Monday jailed a Muslim youth activist for five months for insulting President Megawati Sukarnoputri during a protest in Januar

Moch. N.

Indonesia says Australian Government aid money has been used to help seperatist movements in Indonesia.

Ainur R.

Jakarta – Two separatist guerrillas were wounded when an Indonesian military patrol clashed with rebels in Papua province on Tuesday, the military said.

Tom Wright, Jakarta – The International Monetary Fund said it approves of Indonesia's plans to end its current IMF lending program when it runs out this year.

Asad Latif – Indonesia has shown real statesmanship in its dealings with Timor Leste, the latter's Foreign Minister Jose Ramos-Horta said during a visit to Singapore.

Jakarta – More groups in the archipelago joined North Sulawesi's move on Friday to reject the newly endorsed education bill by filing a petition for a judicial review with the Supreme C

Bernie K.

Lhokseumawe – At least 10,000 people fled their homes in nine villages across Juli district in Bireuen regency on Friday to escape intense firefights between government troops and Free

Nethy Dharma Somba, Jayapura – The United Nations Children's Fund (Unicef) has allocated US$1 million (Rp 8.2 billion) to help cope with the high infant mortality rate and spread of HIV

Jakarta – Three people have been arrested for an attack on two foreign bosses at an Indonesian dealer for Swedish truckmaker Volvo, police said yesterday.

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta – The National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) said on Friday that its team sent to Aceh had verified the May 21 incident at Matang Mamplan vill

Greg Sheridan – Indonesia has no plans to ban foreign journalists from the troubled province of Aceh, according to Indonesia's Foreign Minister, Hasan Wirayudah.

Kurniawan Hari, Jakarta – Golkar will give its chairman Akbar Tandjung a chance to contest the national convention, which will elect the party's presidential candidate to run in the 200

Lhokseumawe – People in Bireuen regency flocked to their respective district offices on Wednesday and Thursday to apply for new ID cards, in one of the first places in war-torn Aceh whe

M. Taufiqurrahman, Jakarta – East Timor has called on Indonesians to invest in the country, saying there are a number of business opportunities open to investors.

Jakarta – The Indonesian Forum on the Environment (Walhi) said on Thursday it would file a lawsuit against 20 companies and seven local governments in Riau later this week over forest f

Zakki Hakim and Fifi Yulianti, Jakarta – City officials, accompanied by police and security personnel, Thursday barged into homes in a densely populated Jakarta residential neighborhood

Lhokseumawe – The military's biggest setback during three weeks of the offensive to crush the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) has prompted Army Chief of Staff Gen.

Indonesian troops fired artillery and moved hundreds of villagers from their homes during an attack on a suspected separatist rebel base, a local resident said.

Suwarjono, Jakarta – Two members of the Aceh regional parliament (DPRD) are reported to be involved with the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) and are being investigated by police.

Ridwan Max Sijabat, Jakarta – State-owned social security company PT Jamsostek is encouraging employees to check their participation in the social security schemes as many employers wer

Robert Go, Jakarta – Indonesia's top bureaucrat has launched a stinging attack on the very team under his leadership.

Devi Asmarani, Jakarta – Indonesia's National Assembly Speaker and presidential hopeful Amien Rais has unveiled a star-studded list of potential running mates for next year's elections.

Jakarta – Indonesian businessmen have expressed hope that a business figure will be elected as the next president, so that the prolonged economic crisis in the country would end.

Jakarta – The popularity of the large political in the lead-up to the 2004 general elections is continuing to decline in the eyes of the public.

Nana Rukmana, Indramayu, West Java – Over 45,000 hectares of rice plants in the Indramayu and Cirebon regencies, known as the rice belt of West Java, have withered following the early a

Kurniawan Hari, Jakarta – The House of Representatives endorsed the controversial education bill on Wednesday despite the absence of the largest faction, the Indonesian Democratic Party

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, Jakarta – Coordinating Minister for People' Welfare Jusuf Kalla insisted on Wednesday that the martial law administrator in Aceh would issue a new measure soon, t

Jayapura – Trikora Military Commander Maj. Gen.

Jakarta – Six activists in Indonesia's easternmost province of Papua are facing up to 18 months in jail for holding a protest against the authorities, a report said Thursday.

Prangtip Daorueng, Jakarta – The Indonesian government is once again using nationalistic propaganda and media censorship to gain public support for its military offensive in Aceh, but j

Jakarta – The Indonesian military said Thursday it will check reports from the country's national human rights commission that a mass grave has been discovered in Aceh province.

Lhokseumawe – A military tribunal on Thursday found three low-ranking soldiers guilty of beating villagers unconscious during the military's offensive against separatist rebels in Aceh

Banda Aceh – All of Aceh's 67,000 civil servants will be re-registered and asked to attend roll-calls to affirm their loyalty to the country, a regional administration spokesman said on

Matthew Moore, Jakarta – The Indonesian Government is planning new regulations to restrict foreign access to the war-torn Aceh province, as evidence emerges that the Indonesian army has

Jakarta – East Timor's prime minister, Mari Alkatiri, called Thursday for an amnesty for prisoners currently serving sentences in Timorese jails for crimes committed around the time of

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, Jakarta – East Timor foreign minister Jose Ramos Horta reiterated here on Wednesday that his government did not intend to pursue an international tribunal against

Frida Berrigan – Far from the spotlight and far from Baghdad, another shock and awe campaign is underway.

Khairul Ikhwan, Medan – There are indications that a number of civil servants in the Aceh provincial government are involved in the Free Aceh Movement (GAM), although none have so far b

Jakarta – The Aceh provincial administration's plan to screen 67,000 civil servants and "severely punish" those found to support the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) has sparked criticism.

Luhur Hertanto, Jakarta – The government will soon conduct a special investigations (Litsus) of state civil servants in Aceh.