Richard Woolcott – John Howard may regard intervention in East Timor as Australia's "most positive and noble act" in 20 years, but our most senior former diplomat sees only needless damage to relations with Indonesia and unnecessary suffering for the East Timorese.

Bambang Nurbianto, Jakarta – Several housewives from Cipinang Besar Selatan subdistrict in East Jakarta said they have been intimidated by two subdistrict officials after they reported a reduction of rice aid for the poor from the Jakarta City Council.

Kurniawan Hari, Jakarta – A House of Representatives (DPR) special committee of inquiry into corruption at state oil firm Pertamina alleged on Friday a number of former ministers and cronies as well as family members of former president Soeharto were involved in various graft cases at the company.

Tony Sitathan, Singapore – After last October's bombing in Bali, Indonesia's foreign investment was hit hard, sliding to a record low. According to the Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM), foreign direct investment (FDI) approvals plummeted by 35 percent to US$9.7 billion last year from $15.06 billion in 2001.

Prime Minister John Howard denied yesterday bullying East Timor over a lucrative gas project as Parliament passed the crucial Timor Sea Treaty.

The laws, rushed through on the last sitting day before a March 11 deadline to ratify the treaty, underpinned the $3 billion Bayu-Undan gas development in the seabed shared between Australia and the fledgling nation.

Steve Lewis and Nigel Wilson – Relations between Australia and East Timor have deteriorated even as they signed a breakthrough agreement yesterday paving the way for billions of dollars in shared revenue.

Richel Langit, Jakarta – Using threats by poorly equipped separatist movements and prolonged religious conflicts as a pretext, Indonesia's powerful military is seeking to regain the domination it previously enjoyed for more than three decades during the Suharto dictatorship.

M. Rizal Maslan, Jakarta – The Coalition for Democracy is of the opinion that granting powers to the commander of the armed forces (TNI) to mobilise troops in an emergency situation, without a decision of the President, is a move to give legality to the TNI commander to take a political decision in violation of the Law on the State Defence and the 1945 Constitution.

Mark Phillips – Australian troops in East Timor have broken up an organised crime gang after a gun battle that left a gangster dead and another fighting for his life.

It was the first live fire incident involving Australian troops in East Timor for almost two years.

M. Munab Islah Ahyani, Bandung – As many as 1000 activists from the Students Executive Council (BEM) from all institutions of higher education, except for the Bandung Institute of Technology, demonstrated in front of the West Java parliament today. For the umpteenth time, BEM declared its mistrust of the elite.

Cynthia Banham – The Howard Government is facing dissent from its backbenches over a decision to deport more than 1000 East Timorese refugees.

Mark Baker – East Timor has bowed to intense political pressure from Australia and will today rush through the signing of an agreement to clear the way for joint development of the vast oil and gas reserves of the Timor Sea.

The formal indictment of Indonesia's former armed forces chief, retired General Wiranto, and seven of his senior military officers for war crimes in East Timor is no watershed in the quest for justice in the former Indonesian-controlled territory.

Jakarta – A top Indonesian Cabinet minister warned East Timor not to press ahead with the prosecutions of several Indonesian generals for alleged crimes committed during the former province's independence drive in 1999.

Mark Baker, Singapore and Mark Riley, Canberra – East Timor has bowed to intense political pressure from Australia and will today rush through the signing of an agreement to clear the way for joint development of the vast oil and gas reserves of the Timor Sea.

Jakarta – A charismatic Muslim cleric in Indonesia has adopted as his foster daughter a singer whose dancing has stirred controversy in the country.

Kurniawan Hari and Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta – The recent indictment of several Indonesian military officers in East Timor shows that the international community has no trust in either the ongoing human rights trial or the country's judiciary, a noted rights activist says.

Jakarta – Indonesia said on Thursday it had imposed a ban on sand exports to all countries in a bid to curb rampant mining which was causing damage to the environment.

"We have decided to stop sand exports from Indonesia to any country, including Singapore," Trade and Industry Minister Rini Soewandi told Reuters.

Jakarta – Army chief Gen. Ryamizard Ryacudu said the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) is not only an enemy of the Indonesian Military (TNI), but is also an enemy of the state.

Robert Go, Jakarta – Indonesia's former military chief Wiranto has been making a not-so-quiet pitch for the top job in the country.

Pontianak – Haze from forest and bush fires returned here on Thursday, forcing some residents to wear masks, head of West Kalimantan provincial metereology office Suwardi said on Thursday.

Chris McCall, Laivai – L7 is disgusted with East Timor's government. Its leaders ran away from war to save their skins, he said, and are now back to squabble over the spoils of independence.

"They went away and they did nothing for this country," he said. "In the end Falintil struggled on its own. In the end Timor was independent."

Johanna Son, Kuta – Nearly five months after the Bali bombing, the site of the blasts is curiously clean, areas of emptiness in stark contrast to the maze of stores, cafes and hotels that have long marked Indonesia's idyllic – and now wounded – haven for tourists.

The Australian Parliament is expected to ratify the Timor Sea Treaty this week, ensuring a 20-billion dollar contract for natural gas can go ahead. East Timor ratified the Treaty in December and has been nervously waiting for its bigger neighbour to do the same before a crucial March 11 deadline.

Dili – East Timor on Wednesday created a new post of vice-prime minister in a bid to boost government efficiency in the world's newest nation.

Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri appointed Justice Minister Ana Pesoa to the new post. Pesoa, of the ruling Fretilin party, is to be replaced at the Justice Ministry by her deputy, Domingos Sarmento, the prime minister said.

Kate Stockdale, Darwin – Local community organisations, politicians and activists – meeting regularly as the Refugee Action Network (RAN) – are campaigning to allow all 1800 East Timorese asylum seekers to stay in Australia.

United Nations General Secretary Kofi Annan has recommended to the Security Council to slow the withdrawal of UN troops from East Timor. Citing the frequency of security-related incidents over the last three months, Mr Annan said there was a need to readjust the downsizing plan.

Presenter/Interviewer: Kanaha Sabapathy

Jakarta – Dozens of alleged members of the Indonesian Military (TNI) killed a police officer during an attack on a police station in East Jakarta on Tuesday night.

City Police chief Insp. Gen. Makbul Padmanagara confirmed the attack on Wednesday, saying the police and military police were investigating.

James Balowski, Jakarta – On February 24, hundreds of demonstrators from the People's Democratic Party (PRD) took action against US plans to attack Iraq.

The demonstration began at the Hotel Indonesia roundabout in central Jakarta then moved to the presidential palace via the British embassy, the UN headquarters and the US embassy.

Surabaya – Indonesian prosecutors demanded on Wednesday a two- and-a-half-year jail term for the highest-ranking special forces soldier on trial for the murder of a top Papua independence leader in 2001.

Seven members of the army's elite Kopassus force are on trial over the killing of Theys Eluay, an advocate of separation from Indonesia through peaceful means.

Washington – A US rights group has urged Washington and the United Nations to press Jakarta to colaborate with East Timor in trying Indonesian officials accused of crimes against humanity in the formerly occupied territory and called for the creation of an international criminal court.

Pip Hinman – Australia-based Scottish academic Lesley McCulloch and US nurse Joy-Lee Sadler were arrested in Indonesian-occupied south Aceh on September 11. They were beaten, harassed and jailed for five months and four months respectively on charges of "violating" their visas.

Nigel Wilson – Last-minute negotiations are taking place on arrangements between Australia and East Timor that could result in legislation implementing the Timor Sea Treaty being introduced into Parliament either today or tomorrow.

Reverend David Pargeter – In 1990 a large regional military power, Iraq, invaded a small neighbour, Kuwait, after accusing it of stealing oil from an oilfield straddling their common border. Both major political parties in Australia supported military intervention to drive Iraqi forces from Kuwait.

Max Lane – The article by Jose Ramos Horta defending the "aggressive strategy" of the US administration of George W Bush towards Iraq is not a surprise. Horta's approach to diplomacy throughout the struggle for East Timor's independence was always based on offering assurances to Washington that an independent East Timor would be friendly towards US interests.

Highly debatable are both the rationale used by the team of more than 30 economists to support their recommendation for abruptly ending Indonesia's reform program with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the policy measures they outline for achieving annual economic growth of 6 percent to 7 percent in the post-IMF program period.

Robert Go – When Singapore Technologies Telemedia (STT) paid 5.62 trillion rupiah (S$1.2 billion) for Indonesia's second-biggest telephone company last December, the story should have ended there.

M. Taufiqurrahman, Jakarta – Leaders of two political parties have thrown their weight behind a controversial bill giving the Indonesian Military (TNI) greater power in deploying personnel to conflict-torn areas.

Apriadi Gunawan, Parapat, North Sumatra – Ninety local and foreign environmentalists warned against the possible extinction of a total of 226 flora and fauna species in Sumatra because of intensive deforestation and development, and rampant poaching.

Jakarta – Student Executive Bodies (BEMs) from universities in Greater Jakarta canceled planned demonstrations on Saturday against President Megawati Soekarnoputri's administration, saying they were worried about the possibility of repressive police measures.

Banda Aceh – Indonesia's first Islamic courts for criminal cases were opened in the staunchly Muslim Aceh province on Tuesday as part of efforts to calm separatist passions in the area.

Aceh separatist rebels have accused Indonesian security forces of condoning a militia attack on the office of a peace monitoring team in hopes of wrecking a ceasefire in the province.

Banda Aceh – A mob yesterday attacked the office of an international peace monitoring team in Aceh, injuring one Indonesian soldier and one rebel representative, police said.

Devi Asmarani, Jakarta – Got what it takes to be Indonesia's President? A new television programme allows presidential wannabes to find out, and also to see how popular they are on top of that.

Jakarta – The East Timor government on Monday sought to distance itself from indictments issued against a former Indonesian armed forces chief over violence that ravaged the tiny territory in 1999.

Imanuddin Razak, Jakarta – Army chief of staff Gen. Ryamizard Ryacudu fired a lethal shot on February 20 when he addressed a media conference, suggesting that the military's security role be reinstated due to the threats of separatism and other security disturbances in the country.

Robert Go, Jakarta – The majority of Jakarta's 151 traditional markets are firetraps and could suffer the same ill fate as the Tanah Abang textile centre, much of which went up in flames last month, city officials said.

Gita Fajar P. Mega, Jakarta – The People's Lawyers Union (Serikat Pengacara Rakyat, SPR) which is handling a class action case over price increases to fuel against President Megawati Sukarnoputri, will send a pre-litigation letter to Megawati and Indonesian police chief General Da'I Bachtiar following three attacks on their offices by unidentified assailants.

Jakarta – Nearly 4,000 angry Acehnese surrounded an office staffed by peace monitors including three Thai soldiers in the restive Indonesian province on Monday, threatening the group until police whisked them to safety.

Semarang – Based on intelligence data, there are presently 10,000 ex-political prisoners from the categories A, B and C across Central Java/Yogyakarta, who have established political parties. They have also joined together in non-government institutes and foundations with aims and motives which it is suspected could create problems for the country.