Evelyn Leopold, United Nations – UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan announced Thursday that Indonesia and Portugal had agreed on a "direct" ballot for the people of East Timor to decide whether they wanted autonomy or independence.

Jakarta – The heads of warring factions in East Timor Thursday said they had agreed to work towards peace after a landmark meeting on hostilities in the strife-torn territory.

Jakarta – Opposition leader Megawati Soekarnoputri has claimed her party won't oppose independence for East Timor, but as long as the province remains part of Indonesia, the military has every right to defend it, says one of her aides.

Jakarta – Thousands of Indonesian students greeted President Suharto's re-appointment as president with jhoisy but peaceful demonstrations across the country.

Tight security was in force at many of the campuses, but troops and riot police did not intervene as the authorities maintained their tolerance of demonstrations within university grounds.

Jakarta – The World Bank's exposure to Indonesia is approaching its limit of 13.5 bln usd for a single large borrower, reducing the scope for additional lending in the next few years, the bank said in an interim assistance strategy document.

Christine T. Tjandraningsih, Jakarta – Indonesia will see modest economic growth next fiscal year, starting April 1, but its recovery prospects will be overshadowed by the grim global outlook and continuing political uncertainty at home, the World Bank said Wednesday.

Indonesian Attorney-General Andi Ghalib admitted yesterday that the leaked tape of a phone conversation between himself and President BJ Habibie is genuine, retracting his earlier assertion that the conversation never took place.

Lindsay Murdoch, Dili – Warnings by East Timor aid workers and political leaders of a pending food and health disaster have been reinforced by a grim diagnosis from the only foreign doctor working in the territory, who says between 50 and 100 Timorese are already dying every day from curable diseases.

United Nations – Indonesia on Wednesday denied "back-pedaling" on autonomy proposals for East Timor, but ruled out an agreement on a draft autonomy package at current talks here.

Following is the text of an International Women's Day message to Australian activists from Indonesia's only woman political prisoner, DITA SARI. Sari, a leader of the People's Democratic Party, is serving a five-year sentence in Tangerang Women's Prison in Jakarta for daring to struggle for workers' rights in her country.

Chris Latham – Last year featured the largest protest movement in the history of Indonesia. These protests, which mobilised millions of people, ended the dictator Suharto's 32- year reign. They were primarily built by students.

Jakarta – Indonesian students pressing for the trial of former President Suharto say it is the only way to restore public faith in the government of Dr B.J. Habibie, The Jakarta Post has reported.

Nurul Hidayati, Jakarta – The Minister of Justice, Muladi SH regrets [jailed People's Democratic Party, PRD, chairperson] Budiman Sujatmiko's action in rejecting clemency from the Indonesian President. Muladi was surprised by the attitude and has asked Budiman not to say too much.

150 students on work experience from Syiahkuala University, Banda Aceh, who have been placed in North Aceh protested against Mobil Oil Indonesia on Monday 8/3.

The students protested with banners and by making speeches demanding that Mobil Oil take full responsibility for the environment, work force, community development. The protest took place between 10.00 and 15.00.

Jakarta – A military prosecutor on Tuesday asked for jail sentences of between 15 to 26 months for eleven soldiers on trial for abducting pro-democracy activists in the last months of the Suharto regime.

Don Greenlees, Jakarta – Every weekend across Indonesia, convoys of buses, crammed with supposedly enthusiastic supporters of the 48 political parties approved to contest the June 7 elections, pull up at sports stadiums and parks.

Jakarta – Some 2,000 Indonesian and pro-Indonesian residents of East Timor have fled to neighbouring East Nusa Tenggara province and thousands of teachers sent there by Jakarta have demanded transfers, the state Antara news agency said Tuesday.

Jakarta – The chairperson of the People's Democratic Party (PRD), Budiman Sudjatmiko has said that they [the PRD] have never recommended to anyone to present [a request] for clemency by the President. "We have never felt we have done wrong or carried out political crimes during the period of the New Order regime", wrote Budiman and Petrus H.

Susan Sim, Jakarta – Two churches and a Christian school were destroyed partially in the West Java city of Bandung on Sunday by mobs angry over the illegal use of several shophouses for Christian services.

Jakarta – Indonesian police arrested more than 200 protestors in separate demonstrations marking International Women's Day on Monday, witnesses said,

In the first sweep policemen and policewomen rounded up 59 women protesting against violence against women and other human rights abuses outside the local office of the United Nations, witnesses said.

John Martinkus, Hatolia – Cut off by impassable roads and swollen rivers in East Timor's rugged interior, about 1,160 refugees fear for their lives as Indonesian army units and allied local militia groups move closer to their camp.

Jay Solomon, Jakarta – Indonesian presidential candidate Amien Rais said he couldn't rule out a possible coalition between his National Mandate Party, or PAN, and the ruling Golkar party following June 7 parliamentary elections.

Jakarta – Renewed Moslem-Christian clashes in the riot-torn Indonesian city of Ambon reportedly claimed five more lives Monday as an attack was reported on Christian places of worship and a school on Java island.

Jakarta – Students in Indonesia's troubled Aceh province have launched a campaign for a referendum on self-determination for the troubled territory, residents and a report said Monday.

The State Antara news agency said hundreds of banners and placards had been put up at markets and on roadsides along the east coast of the province, home to about four million people.

Jakarta – An estimated 200,000 people packed a Jakarta sports stadium Sunday in a mass show of support for Golkar, the party which kept president Suharto in power for 32 years, witnesses said.

Jakarta – The Indonesian armed forces on Sunday sent a team of 19 high-ranking military officers to riot-torn Ambon in a bid to halt ongoing Moslem-Christian violence which has left more than 160 people dead.

Derwin Pereira, Jakarta – In the movie Forrest Gump, a simpleton character wanders blithely into scenes that are later regarded as historic. A variation of that happened here recently.

On March 4, the Minister of Home Affairs and "traditional enemy" of People's Democratic Party (PRD), General Syarwan Hamid, signed a statement saying that the government had approved the PRD's registration to participate in the June 7 election after considering the recommendations of a report from the Team of Eleven.

Jakarta – Jailed East Timorese rebel leader Xanana Gusmao met with seven opposing pro-integrationists here Saturday, and hailed the first ever talks between leaders of the warring sides as a positive beginning.

The unprecedented closed-door meeting was held in the ministry of Justice building in downtown Jakarta and lasted two hours.

Jakarta – The Indonesian Legal Aid and Human Rights Association (PBHI) and the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) condemned Friday security personnel's brutal treatment of student demonstrators and journalists.

PBHI said in a statement that it would sue the Jakarta military commander and the city police chief for the security personnel's alleged brutality.

Jakarta – Attorney General Lt. Gen. A.M. Ghalib on Friday again expressed his doubts about the authenticity of the recently leaked bugged conversation he allegedly had with President B.J. Habibie. At the same time he blasted the press for exaggerating the issue.

Jakarta – The Attorney General, Muladi, has said that he will recommend clemency for jailed People's Democratic Party (PRD) activists, including the chairperson of the PRD, Budiman Sudjatmiko, who is presently interned at Cipinang Prison and Dita Indah Sari, who is in the Tangerang Women's Prison.

Jakarta – At least two people have been killed and several injured in a fresh outbreak of violence on the strife-torn Indonesian island of Ambon, witnesses said on Saturday.

One man was gunned down when the occupants of a car opened fire on residents manning a civilian roadblock at Silo church about 2.00am on Saturday.

Jakarta – Indonesia's military had the mandate to take power during the turbulent days of Suharto's downfall last May, but didn't, armed forces chief general Wiranto was quoted Friday as saying.

Jakarta – Indonesia has threatened to deport foreign nationals here to monitor the run-up to the country's June 7 elections if they do not have proper visas or are not registered with Jakarta's United Nations office, reports said Friday.

Jonathan Wright, Jakarta – Indonesian President B.J. Habibie has accepted the need for international monitors for the June 7 parliamentary election, Secretary of State Madeleine Albright said Friday.

Laura Myers, Jakarta – Secretary of State Madeleine Albright implored Indonesian President B.J. Habibie today not to allow East Timor to break down in bloody violence if the territory chooses independence over remaining an utonomous part of his country.

Huw Watkin – Residents in East Timor's capital are turning to the Catholic Church for relief as supplies of rice and other essential foodstuffs continue to dwindle amid fears of escalating civil unrest.

Sander Thoenes, Jakarta – Madeleine Albright, US secretary of state, is expected today to offer a resumption of US military aid to Indonesia if the armed forces halt human rights abuses in East Timor and other parts of the archipelago, diplomats said.

33 students from several universities are still being held at police headquarters in Jakarta after taking part in a demonstration outside the ABA-ABI (Indonesian and foreign languages colleges) campus in East Jakarta.

A journalist from Pos Kota, Totok Irianto, 36, was injured when he was struck by a hard object. He is still under treatment in hospital.

Jenny Grant, Jakarta – Muslim students demonstrated in Jakarta yesterday demanding a holy war against Christians in Ambon. About 2,000 students massed in a central square shouting "jihad" and accusing the military and Christians of ethnic cleansing in Ambon.

Scott Burchill - President Soeharto's sudden fall from power in May last year and East Timor's impending independence together constitute Australia's greatest post-war diplomatic failure. Neither event was anticipated by Canberra: the former came as a complete surprise, the latter has been strenuously opposed for more than two decades.

Louise Williams – In a city littered with the bodies of the dead and mutilated, where the markets have been burnt to the ground, where soldiers hire out their protection services for cash, and where Christians and Muslims live barricaded behind gangs of wild, armed young men, Donny Lufki no longer believes in the law.

Jonathan Wright, Jakarta – Indonesia told the United States on Thursday it was arming and training local militias but had no interest in inciting conflict in East Timor between supporters and opponents of independence.

Jakarta – The Commission on Elections (P3KPU), popularly known as the Team of Eleven, announced on Thursday that it is recommending 48 political parties to contest in the June 7 general election.

Sander Thoenes, Jakarta – The leaders of the Justice Party put their money where their mouth is. The soft-drink cooler at party headquarters in Jakarta is unlocked, relying instead on a Koranic verse to admonish members to pay for what they take: "If you pay the exact amount you already did justice," a sign reads. "Do justice, since justice is closer to piety."

Robert Karniol – The East Timorese resistance is quietly developing a coherent policy on security during pre-and post-independence periods that could devolve from a tentative agreement reached last month by Indonesia and Portugal.

Rick Mercier – A recent wave of killings in East Timor, coinciding with a propaganda offensive proclaiming the imminence of civil war, indicates that the Indonesian military has discovered the usefulness of paramilitaries in suppressing dissent while still presenting a humane face to the world.

On February 21 Green Left Weekly's SAM KING Spoke with MARCOS DA CRUZ, the chairperson of Renetil (National Resistance of East Timor Students) Yogyakarta.

Jakarta – Troops and police fought pitched battles in the streets of Jakarta Thursday, after the security forces tried to block a march by some 2,000 students calling for Indonesian President B.J. Habibie to step down.