Perhaps no one ever imagined that the citizens of this country would need a police guard to commune with God; yet, this has now become a reality. Is God being held hostage by worldly threats, or is it the people?

Palembang – Some 250 travel drivers from various cities of South Sumatra province visited Palembang Municipal Council on Thursday, to demand that city councillors revoke a bylaw that prevents minivans for hire or travel vans from entering the city.

M. Taufiqurrahman, Jakarta – Most political parties contesting the legislative elections have turned a blind eye to the Election Law requiring them to be financially accountable and have gotten away with failing to submit reports on campaign funds, an international poll watchdog says.

Jakarta – Around 80 per cent of TNI (armed forces) businesses have no definable assets, in other words they are illegal. These undefined types of businesses are those outside of businesses managed by TNI foundations or economic enterprises which have clearly definable assets.

Jakarta – Fears of attacks by Islamic militants are forcing some Christians in Indonesia to abandon traditional churches in favour of more discreet and secure venues this Christmas.

Tony Hotland, Jakarta – Newmont Mining Corp. has admitted to having put tons of mercury vapors into the air in Buyat Bay, North Sulawesi, but insists that the mercury did not have negative impacts on the bay and its people.

Jakarta – Police have arrested nine businessmen and confiscated trucks, boats, heavy machinery and 107,337 cubic meters of timber worth Rp 600 billion (US$66 million) in a series of raids on illegal logging operators over the past month.

The series of raids took places from Nov. 28 to December 18, in East Kalimantan.

Damar Harsanto, Jakarta – Activists slammed the Rp 13.839 trillion (US$1.483 billion) draft city budget on Thursday, saying would be a gold mine for dodgy deals because it had not been allocated transparently.

Jakarta – Ahead of Christmas and New Year's Eve, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has given two precious gifts to Papuans and the family of the late rights campaigner, Munir.

He signed on Wednesday night presidential regulations on the establishment of the long-awaited Papua People's Assembly and an independent team to probe Munir's death.

Tiarma Siboro, Jakarta – Claiming that security threats will remain high in 2005, the Indonesian Military (TNI) is planning to send personnel to conflict-prone areas to engage in what it calls a "non-physical civic missions" (hearts and minds missions).

Jakarta – The head of the Aceh desk at the ministry of politics, legal and security affairs, Police Inspector General Demak Lubis, says that the operation to restore security in Aceh is going well.

Indonesia has rejected UN plans for a commission that would study Jakarta's resolve to punish those responsible for human rights abuses in East Timor in 1999.

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta – The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) announced on Wednesday that all members of the United Indonesia Cabinet have submitted their wealth reports ahead of the December 20 deadline.

Rusman, Tenggarong – Police officers violently broke up a picket inside the Kutai Kartanegara regental administration compound here on Wednesday, beating several picketers who were camping out to protest the appointment of an acting regent.

Medan – Leaders of a union on Wednesday reported alleged arbitrariness by plantation company PT Tolan Tiga Indonesia to Medan councillors.

Jakarta – Hundreds of workers took part in a rally in front of City Hall on Tuesday, demanding the administration to increase the monthly minimum wage to Rp 759,953 (US$81.72) for 2005.

Banda Aceh – At least two separatist rebels were killed and another 30 taken into custody in Indonesia's conflict-hit Aceh province in the past two days, the military said on Thursday.

Dewi Santoso, Jakarta – Pasar Pagi (the morning market) existed long before most malls and shopping centers in the city.

"I used to have a lot of customers. They came here for many things, from clothes and toys to school supplies and kitchenware, because they could get them here at cheaper prices," said Amen, the owner of a grocery shop in the Pasar Pagi complex.

Slamet Susanto, Sleman – A former general manager of a Yogyakarta start-up newspaper was sentenced to nine months in jail on Wednesday for defamation.

The verdict ignored demands earlier by media workers outside court room, who said that the judge must not criminalize the media and should respect the freedom of expression.

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta – As the Anticorruption Court scheduled the first hearing for his graft case, Aceh Governor Abdullah Puteh was rushed to the hospital with an unspecified ailment in the wee hours of Wednesday.

His legal counsel, O.C. Kaligis, said Puteh was taken to the M.H. Thamrin hospital in Salemba, Central Jakarta, due to asthma.

Indonesia's military needs at least 70,000 more troops to ensure security and would ideally be almost double its current size, a report quoted the head of the army as saying.

The United States welcomed creation of a joint Indonesia-East Timor commission on the 1999 bloodshed in the former Portuguese colony, but made clear the necessity of a separate UN inquiry as well.

Yuli Tri Suwarni and Luh Putu Trisna Wahyuni, Bandung – Former West Java governor Nuriana has been accused of bribing all 100 members of the previous provincial legislative council to cover up his alleged role in a Rp 224 billion (US$24.8 million) graft case.

John Mcbeth, Jakarta – With palace aides already worried about a slide in his popularity, the time has arrived earlier than he would have wished for President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to demonstrate a much more assertive brand of leadership.

Kurniawan Hari, Jakarta – The popularity of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has dropped sharply over the past month due to people's unmet reform expectations, according to a survey by the Indonesian Survey Institute (LSI).

Semarang – The Central Java provincial government has proposed that, starting from January next year, provincial councillors will get a monthly payment of Rp 5 million as a housing allowance.

Shawn Donnan, Jakarta – Indonesia and East Timor announced this week they would establish a bilateral "truth and friendship commission" to heal wounds between the two countries left by the 1999 violence in which Jakarta's military and associated militias laid waste to East Timor.

M. Taufiqurrahman and Kurniawan Hari, Jakarta – A Golkar party leader said on Wednesday that there would be no abrupt changes in relations between the House of Representatives (DPR) and the executive following the election of Vice President Jusuf Kalla as the party's new chairman.

Eva C. Komandjaja – Public enemy No. 1 and bombing fugitive Azahari bin Husin had worked undetected in a building near the Australian Embassy to plan the September 9 attack, a top police officer said on Wednesday.

There have been mixed reactions this week to a proposal by Indonesia and East Timor to set up a joint commission to investigate the violence in East Timor four years ago. The plan was announced on Tuesday after talks between Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and his East Timorese counterpart Xanana Gusmao in Bali.

John Aglionby, Jakarta – Indonesia and East Timor have agreed to set up a truth and friendship commission to address the issues of 1,500 murders and thousands of other human rights violations committed during the 1999 independence referendum in East Timor.

Zakki P. Hakim, Jakarta – It seems that confidence in investment climate in Indonesia may have started to improve, with hundreds of potential investors, foreign and domestic, having expressed enthusiasm to participate in next month's infrastructure summit.

Veeramalla Anjaiah, Jakarta – With its huge population and dynamic economies, Asia is increasingly poised to become the new strategic center of gravity in global politics, and Indonesia, a Southeast Asian regional power, has a big role to play in that set up.

Marwaan Macan-Markar, Bangkok – The new leader of the world's most populous Muslim country, Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, has a serious challenge ahead, having stepped into the political limelight just as Southeast Asia's identity as a symbol of moderate Islam becomes increasingly bruised by the region's own Muslims.

What is a good inconsistency?! For our honored Constitutional Court, that is probably the only way to describe their recent decisions. Last week, we were baffled by the court's decision to annul the Electricity Law. This week, however, we are encouraged by the court's verdict to uphold the Oil and Gas Law.

Jakarta – A group of Muslim hard-liners called on the House of Representatives on Wednesday to begin work on a bill that would limit the construction of other religions' places of worship.

The activists, from the Muslims Forum, said the regulation would serve to prevent unchecked proselytization by each of the religions in the country.

Jakarta – Army chief of staff General Ryamizard Ryacudu has revealed that army businesses, particularly those which are part of foundations "only" generate 30 billion rupiah per year. "That's if [we're] lucky. Perhaps this amount could decline further in the future", he told Tempo at the army's headquarters in Jakarta.

Eworaswa, Jakarta – The executive director of the Indonesian Survey Institute (LSI), Denny J.A., says that fuel price increases will become the hottest issue for the government of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono next year.

Tim Johnston, Jakarta – The case against the alleged leader of Jemaah Islamiah, the terror group behind the Bali bombings, was boosted yesterday when Abbas, a confessed senior member of JI, gave a detailed account of Abu Bakar Bashir's involvement in the running of the group.

Kurniawan Hari, Jakarta – The Golkar Party held a coordination meeting Tuesday evening to discuss its new political stance following the election of Vice President Jusuf Kalla as its chairman. Tuesday's meeting was presided over by vice chairman Agung Laksono and attended by the party's chairpersons, Secretary-General Sumarsono and some of his deputies.

Jakarta – Fresh from his election as the new leader of the Golkar Party, Mr Jusuf Kalla has strongly signalled that Golkar is out of the Nationhood Coalition of opposition parties, saying there is no such permanent bloc in the country's Parliament.

Uba/Ant, Jakarta – Muhammadiyah, Indonesia's second largest Islamic mass organisations, is moving to establish a new political party. Not because of discontent with the National Mandate Party (PAN) – but the longing and enthusiasm of the new generation of Muhammadiyah members to have their own party.

The throng of young men in combat pants, Mujahidin jackets and Muslim songkok skullcaps have been largely quiet during the second terrorism trial of radical cleric Abu Bakar Bashir.

Apart from the odd pumped fist and cry of "God is Great" in the cavernous, makeshift court housed in a south Jakarta auditorium, the Bashir faithful have had little to shout about.

Ewo Raswa, Jakarta – The Indonesian Survey Institute (LSI) says that the popularity of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has experienced a decline of as much as 13 per cent over the last month.

Indonesia and East Timor announced plans for a historic joint commission to draw a line under past hostilities and resolve the 1999 bloodshed that marred the East Timorese march to independence.

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, Jakarta – In order to give the nation's fight against corruption a boost, the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) and the government agreed on Tuesday to widen the former's authority in revealing irregularities in the disbursement of state budgets.

Jakarta – The Minister of Defense, Juwono Sudarsono, estimates that the integration of the TNI (armed forces) headquarters into the department of defense – in accordance with the mandate of the Law on the TNI – will be implemented in within the next three years.

Tiarma Siboro, Jakarta – The New Year will mark an end to the existing system of military arms procurement, which allows each armed force to directly purchase arms.

Jakarta – The Constitutional Court on Tuesday upheld a 2001 oil and gas law that was designed to liberalize the sector and to gradually reduce the role of state firm Pertamina, saying the law did not violate the 1945 Constitution and should therefore remain in place.

Eva C. Komandjaja – Police and activists, close friends and family members of noted rights campaigner Munir agreed on Tuesday to form an independent investigative team to assist the police investigation into Munir's death.