Bagus Kurniawan, Yogyakarta – A demonstration rejecting militarism and demanding the abolition of the military's territorial commands(1) by activists from the National Student League fo

Nigel Wilson, Energy writer – Talks on a maritime boundary between Australia and East Timor concluded on schedule in Darwin yesterday after both sides agreed there was little chance of

Indonesia needs to tidy up at home before it seeks membership of the UN Security Council.

Banda Aceh – Aceh civil emergency administrator Insp. Gen.

Port Vila – The West Papua freedom fighters are enjoying unprecedented support from the Vanuatu Government.

John McBeth – TB Silalahi was an instructor at the Indonesian army's General Staff College when he first encountered a young Javanese army major called Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's promise this week to put national reconciliation at the top of his government's agenda once he is installed as president on October 20 could not have come at

Kornelius Purba, Jakarta – Who is willing to help a poor woman end her 39-year search for her missing father, and to restore her civil rights, which were taken from her by the state, me

Bob Briton – Australia's Foreign Minister Alexander Downer is now in a hurry to conclude an agreement with the government of East Timor over the maritime boundary between the two countr

Nick Everett, Canberra – On September 20, 70 people demonstrated outside the foreign affairs department to demand the Australian government stop trying to steal East Timor's oil and gas

New York (Antara) – The Indonesian government, under President Megawati Soekarnoputri, has taken legal action against the alleged perpetrators of human rights abuses in East Timor in 19

US-based environmental watchdog Sierra Club has criticized the US Embassy in Jakarta for chiding Indonesian police over the detention of five executives of a subsidiary of Denver-based

Jayapura – In the ongoing trial of five men charged with rebellion, the defence lawyers at a hearing in Jayapura on 28 September, called for the men's release.

Unless West Papua is granted independence from Indonesia, a time bomb will go off affecting Papua New Guinea, Australia and New Zealand, according to a West Papuan activist.

Derwin Pereira, Jakarta – Likely president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono had little qualms making this promise during his election campaign: There will be no fuel price increase for the poor

Kurniawan Hari, Jakarta – The House of Representatives and the government finished on Monday deliberating the bill amending the current autonomy legislation, with the final version of t

Muhammad Atqa, Jakarta – Hundreds of people from the Bekasi Social Forum (Forum Masyarakat Bekasi, FMB) and the Islamic Youth Movement (Gerakan Pemuda Islam, GPI) are calling for the co

Bambang Nurbianto, Jakarta – Dozens of expatriates were shocked by the recent visit of officials of the Jakarta administration to their apartments at Taman Rasuna in Kuningan, South Jak

Jakarta – A number of worker, student, urban poor and political movement organisations have come together under the banner of the People's United Action to urge the government and the p

Ivy Susanti, Jakarta – Indonesia's success in promoting democracy and peace both at home and internationally has bolstered its confidence in pursuing a permanent seat on the United Nati

Abdul Khalik and Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, Jakarta – American Ambassador Ralph L.

A direct appeal to Indonesian President Megawati has been made by the US Ambassador to Indonesia over the jailing of four employees of the Newmont mining company.

Triono Wahyu Sudibyo, Semarang – Often you hear the news that the state owned electricity company PT PLN is loosing money.

With extraordinary swiftness the National Police are pursuing the alleged pollution case in Buyat Bay, North Sulawesi.

Harry Bhaskara, Jakarta – "Change" has been Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's campaign mantra, which brought him into the top position using the tiny and little-known Democratic Party as his s

Muhammad Qodari, Jakarta – Victory for presidential candidate Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is almost certain.

Jakarta – The Indonesian Military (TNI) is ready to punish soldiers found to have tortured detained members of the Aceh separatist movement to extract information, its spokesman, Lt Col

Tiarma Siboro, Jakarta – A leading rights watchdog has called on the next Indonesian president to reopen cases of alleged abuse and torture against Acehnese prisoners, saying the milita

Mochtar Buchori, Jakarta – While the official vote-count may still be ongoing, it is almost certain that the Megawati Soekarnoputri-Hasyim Muzadi pair has lost the presidential race, an

Jakarta – The US Embassy's election observation team said on Monday Indonesia conducted the direct presidential election orderly and peacefully, without disruption to voter access to th

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, Jakarta – President Megawati Soekarnoputri signed on Monday a decree that set the maximum price of a residence for former VVIPs at Rp 20 billion (US$2.22 million)

Jakarta – The next government has been told to revise the Law No. 22/1999 on regional autonomy and Law No.

Imanuddin Razak, Jakarta – Jakartans had just commemorated the 1st anniversary of the JW Marriott Hotel blast in Kuningan business and residential area in South Jakarta last month, when

Nana Rukmana, Ambon – After a three-day investigation, the Cirebon Election Supervisory Committee (Panwaslu) has ruled Cirebon Mayor Subardi violated election rules by campaigning for i

ID Nugroho, Surabaya – More than 1,500 workers, who were dismissed by shoe firm PT Kasogi Internasional tbk last July, descended again on the East Java legislative council building in S

Ridwan Max Sijabat, Jakarta – The House of Representatives and the government have made substantial changes to the much-criticized bill on national social security, which was due to be

Max Lane – Former Suharto-era general Bambang Susilo Yudhoyono and former Golkar official Yusuf Kalla have been elected as president and vice-president in the second round of Indonesia'

Kurniawan Hari, Jakarta – With only four days to go before the House of Representatives ends its five-year term at the end of this month, it appears most likely that it will be unable t

Tony Hotland, Jakarta – Reports of misuse and alleged corruption of state funds by the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) last week were perhaps the clearest indication that the die-hard practi

Dean Yates, Bogor – From across Java island they have travelled.

Urip Hudiono, Jakarta – Cyclists cruised their way past joggers and pedestrians strolling leisurely along the quiet Jl. Sudirman and Jl. Thamrin in the fresh morning air.

Dadan Wijaksana, Jakarta – The government expects this year's non-tax revenue to increase by more than 60 percent from the original allocation in the 2004 state budget, due mostly to th

Umar Juoro, Jakarta – The early results of last Monday's presidential election clearly show that Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono will win the presidency convincingly with about 60 percent of t

Jakarta – Political parties that supported Mr Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono in the Sept 20 run-off poll are accusing him of breaching a pre-election agreement.

Ellen Nakashima, Jakarta – Indonesian security forces have used torture and inhumane treatment to force confessions from suspected separatists and their sympathizers in the province of

Jambi – The fires that burned between 1,000 and 2,000 hectares of the Berbak National Park in Jambi in the past month posed a real threat to many bird species in the area.

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, Jakarta – Women activists have criticized the state for intervening in people's personal affairs using religion as a justification, which they say has led to disc

Devi Asmarani, Jakarta – Indonesia's powerful military will bow out of politics for good after losing its reserved seats in the country's top legislative body, armed forces chief Genera

Heather Draper, Denver – Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc.

Ridwan Max Sijabat, Jakarta – The likely president-elect Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono must uphold legal certainty and security, and phase out the high-cost economy to encourage investment a