Lindsay Murdoch, Semarang – Nersia Emaculada De Nercio sits on the edge of a bed in the dormitory of an orphanage she shares with dozens of other children in central Java.

Vaudine England, Surabaya – The first talks in months between East Timorese independence leaders and West Timor-based anti-independence groups took place in Surabaya yesterday to discus

[Who is a Free Aceh rebel, how does he operate, and what fuels Aceh's separatist war? Lee Kim Chew visited the guerilla bases in the strife-torn north Sumatran province to find out.

Chris McCall, Wamena – Police in Irian Jaya's remote Baliem Valley say they have removed all separatist Morning Star flags from the troubled region.

Devi Asmarani, Jakarta – Dangerous radioactive materials have been stolen from a factory warehouse in Java, the Indonesian Nuclear Energy Control Board (Bapeten) said yesterday.

Jakarta – Indonesian forces shot dead three alleged rebels during armed clashes in the troubled province of Aceh in north Sumatra, as separatist representatives seek a team to probe the

Jakarta – Indonesia signalled its intention to crack down on bosses of failed banks yesterday, naming timber tycoon Mohamad "Bob" Hasan and two other businessmen as suspects in probes o

Devi Asmarani, Jakarta – Indonesia yesterday deported a United States citizen, accused of spying in Irian Jaya, as the US accused the Defence Minister of whipping up anti-American feeli

Jakarta – Some 800 people from seven Islamic organizations staged a rally in front of the National Police Headquarters on Monday, urging the police to immediately solve various high-pro

Jakarta – Human Rights Watch called Tuesday on Indonesia to stop registering East Timorese refugees for repatriation or resettlement, saying there were no safeguards for them to chose f

Bandung – Before the law on regional autonomy is implemented in January next year, more than 2.6 of the 4.2 million central government employees will be transferred to provincial admini

Budi Sugiharto/Hendra & GB, Sidoarjo – Sidoarjo, Surabaya, East Java, was a hot-bed of destructive demonstrations after around 3,000 striking workers from Indonesian electrical good

Taufik Subarkah/PT & Fitri, Jakarta – Around 300 prawn farmers from Dipasena Lampung in South Sumatra have staged a demonstration in front of the Presidential Palace, on Jl Medan Me

Vaudine England, Surabaya – A court yesterday ordered the release of East Timorese militia leader Eurico Guterres, who was originally arrested without a warrant and was seeking police p

Djoko Tjiptono/Hendra & GB, Jakarta – Chairman of the People's Democratic Party (PRD) Budiman Sudjatmiko met the National Ombudsman Commission and then went to the Supreme Court to

Jakarta – Abortion is on the rise in Indonesia, especially among unmarried women, and has now reached an alarming level, a family planning group said yesterday.

Vaudine England – Excitement pervaded the airport at Sentani, near Irian Jaya's capital Jayapura.

Jakarta – Indonesia's top security minister on Monday defended the actions of police who shot dead separatist supporters during a protest in remote Irian Jaya province 17 days ago, spar

Jakarta – Some 65 migrants were trapped in a hinterland town in Indonesia's separatist province of Irian Jaya after thousands of local tribesmen prevented them from leaving, a report sa

Melbourne – Church leaders from Australia and Irian Jaya called here Friday for an East Timor-style independence ballot to stop escalating violence in the troubled Indonesian province.

Michael Perry, Sydney – Pro-Jakarta militia in Indonesian West Timor have abandoned hit and run attacks on East Timor and begun infiltrating deeper into the territory, the United Nation

Banda Aceh – At least four civilians, including a five-year-old child, were killed and three others seriously injured in the latest violence in the restive Indonesian province of Aceh,

Yogyakarta – The Yogyakarta branch of the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) sent a letter to the National Police Chief Gen.

Susan Sim, Jakarta – President Abdurrahman Wahid has been telling insiders this new joke for some weeks now: "There are three bodies beginning with the initials A.S.

Robert Go, Jakarta – President Abdurrahman Wahid has announced temporary immunity from legal prosecution for three of Indonesia's biggest debtors in yet another controversial disclosure

Jakarta – The man spearheading the independence movement in Indonesia's Irian Jaya province on Saturday played down fears of further bloodshed in the remote area over flying the separat

Jakarta – Noted rights activist Munir refused on Friday to help the government draft a revision of the Emergency Law and argued that such a lawis completely unnecessary.

Jakarta – Indonesia's Foreign Minister, Mr Alwi Shihab, has said President Abdurrahman Wahid will probably postpone a working trip to Australia next month, ministry officials and report

Michael Millett, Tokyo – The Australian official shrugged his shoulders: "Do you penalise a whole country for the activities of a bunch of thugs?"

Jakarta – Dozens of East Timorese militia members rallied at The Habibie Center on Jl. Kemang Selatan, South Jakarta, on Friday, demanding that its founder B.J.

Joanna Jolly, Kupang and Vaudine England, Jakarta – Militia leaders fear betrayal in the ranks and suspect the Indonesian military will use other senior militiamen against them.

Derwin Pereira, Jakarta – Parliamentary Speaker Akbar Tandjung sought to downplay suggestions yesterday that he would team up as a running mate to Ms Megawati Sukarnoputri in the case o

Derwin Pereira, Jakarta – Indonesia's Parliamentary Speaker Akbar Tandjung said yesterday that it was very hard for the beleaguered President Abdurrahman Wahid to last out his term unti

Joanna Jolly, Kupang – East Timorese militia leaders in West Timor say they will meet all conditions set down by the United Nations, including facing justice, in order to return home.

Elected on October 20, 1999 amid a growing division among people – especially between supporters of B.J.

Jakarta – Jakartans saw at least three rallies, each of which had a different theme, in the capital on Thursday.

Anastasia Vrachnos, Jakarta – "Vasectomies! Vasectomies!" screams a bright-red poster in the white, shiny waiting room of the Family Clinic. But the words miss their mark.

Titis Widyatmoko/Hendra & PT, Jakarta – Chairman of the People's Democratic Party (PRD) Budiman Sudjatmiko has met the National Ombudsman Commission, complaining about the continuin

Jakarta – An East Timorese militia leader claimed yesterday his life was in danger because he had threatened to expose details of the Indonesian army's involvement in last year's destru

Michael Millett, Tokyo – International donors will provide another $US4.8 billion in aid for Indonesia, despite expressing serious misgivings about its political, economic and environme

Joanna Jolly, Kupang – Former Indonesian president Bacharuddin Habibie vowed to cleanse East Timor of "everything but ants" if it voted for independence, militia leaders claim.

Lindsay Murdoch, Jakarta – Police have backed away from today's deadline for the lowering of separatist flags in West Papua, saying that any attempt to enforce it would have provoked mo

John McBeth, Jakarta – Lenders are likely to have harsh words for Indonesia when they meet in Tokyo on October 17-18, if a promise to disarm and dismantle pro-Indonesian militias in Wes

Jakarta – Indonesia's underfunded military should be allowed to hold on to its vast business interests, as long it ensures they are more accountable and transparent, experts and militar

Jakarta – The government says it will form a new intelligence body so that President Abdurrahman Wahid will receive reliable information and no longer have to rely on rumors and hearsay

Budi Sugiharto/BI & GB, Surabaya – Around 15,000 workers from PT Maspion, an Indonesian electrical manufacturing company in Sidoarjo, Surabaya, East Java, have continued their strik

Jakarta – Scepticism ran high in the Indonesian capital on Thursday at a reported claim by East Timorese ex-militiamen that former president BJ Habibie had personally ordered the violen

Jakarta – The government is revamping the State Intelligence Coordinating Board (Bakin) in order to gain accurate information and intelligence data, Coordinating Minister for Political,

DSB & HD/GB, Jakarta – New revised laws concerning the introduction and implementation of a State of Emergency are to be passed by the parliament by 30 October according to the Mini

Jakarta – Conflict between three factions within the Indonesian Defense Forces (TNI) is hampering efforts to reform the military, says an academic.