Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta – Antigraft campaigners questioned on Wednesday the government's commitment to corruption eradication, which President Megawati Soekarnoputri spoke of i

Nana Rukmana, Cirebon – Drought has hit some subdistricts of Cirebon, West Java, leaving some 3,000 families without clean water.

Zakki P. Hakim and Rendi A.

Kurniawan Hari, Jakarta – A legislator from PKB has proposed that the Indonesian Military (TNI), for which a bill is currently being deliberated by the House, be placed under the contro

John McBeth – Western governments and human rights groups could not hide their anger following a decision by an Indonesian appeals court to overturn the convictions of four security off

Jakarta – President Megawati Soekarnoputri has warned that the country's unity is being threatened by separatist rebellions, as well as illegal sea and forest exploitation by criminals

Jon Lamb – On August 5, the ad hoc human rights court in Indonesia accepted an appeal, and acquitted four generals of any involvement in the killing of at least 1500 East Timorese durin

The Indonesian Defense Forces (TNI) says it has killed 1,159 separatist rebels in Aceh province over the past 10 months as part of an ongoing operation to eliminate the outlawed Free Ac

Vannessa Hearman – On August 11, East Timorese foreign minister Jose Ramos Horta and Australian foreign minister Alexander Downer agreed on a "framework" for a Timor Sea agreement.

Vannessa Hearman – Kirsty Sword-Gusmao, the Melbourne-born wife of East Timorese President Xanana Gusmao and chairperson of the Alola Foundation for women and children of East Timor, ha

Matthew Moore, Jakarta (and agencies) – Indonesia's President Megawati Soekarnoputri has acknowledged criticism of the country's human rights tribunals, which have cleared virtually all

Derwin Pereira, Jakarta – President Megawati Sukarnoputri, bracing herself for a tough election battle next month, yesterday came out in defence of her administration as she spelled out

Derwin Pereira, Jakarta – The presidency is not yet in the bag for incumbent Megawati Sukarnoputri.

Banda Aceh – A series of explosions that left at least seven people injured, including a five-year-old boy, in the country's troubled province of Aceh rumbled Indonesia's anniversary of

Four martial arts gangs, armed with machetes and swords, fought pitched battles in the streets of East Timor over the weekend, leaving a police commander dead and dozens of houses burne

Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – The government has failed to extend the travel bans on 10 suspects and convicts in the misuse of Bank Indonesia liquidity support funds, sparking concerns that t

Indonesian economic growth slowed in the three months to June, raising fresh concerns over country's hefty debts.

Jakarta – Car ownership is not for the faint-hearted in Indonesia – fuel supplies are erratic, the roads are often awful and price tags on cars are almost hilariously high.

Anton Aliabbas, Jakarta – What's the relationship with the commemoration of the Indonesia's 59th anniversary and the state of civil emergency in Aceh? Who knows.

Jakarta – Two humanitarian organizations in Papua have demanded the United Nations to investigate alleged violations of human rights in the prosecution of two Papuans being held by Wame

Gunawan Mashar, Makassar – Students in the South Sulawesi provincial capital of Makassar have again held demonstrations rejecting the draft law on the TNI (armed forces) at the local pa

Semarang – Central Java: A severe drought has affected 14,399 hectares (ha) of paddy fields in Central Java, and more paddies are feared to be affected if rain does not fall soon.

Zakki P.

Jakarta – President Megawati Sukarnoputri, facing a tight re-election race, Monday backed the creation of a truth commission to investigate rights abuses by the military that she said h

Indonesia's presidential election race remains wide open despite a decision by the powerful Golkar party of former dictator Suharto to back incumbent Megawati Sukarnoputri – a move unli

Jakarta – The Golkar party has endorsed President Megawati Sukarnoputri in next month's run-off election, providing a much-needed boost to her struggling campaign.

Denpasar – The East Timorese government has stated its commitment to prevent the establishment of an UN Expert Commission, aimed at investigating human rights violations in East Timor f

Dewi Santoso, Jakarta – Moonlighting teachers and the lack of toilets in many schools are among the reasons for alarming levels of the absence rate of elementary school teachers in Indo

Medan – It would be difficult for Indonesia to reach a 7 percent growth target in the next two years, a senior minister said on Saturday.

Jakarta – It is about to stage the second half of an election that promises to cement its young democracy into place.

Semarang – The appointment of 45 members of the Semarang legislative council was marked on Saturday by a noisy protest at City Hall from dozens of members of the Semarang People's Solid

Indonesian human rights activists have condemned a court decision clearing a top army general of gross human rights violations for his role in a 1984 military massacre.

Matthew Moore, Jakarta – Indonesian prosecutors have again failed in their attempt to convict soldiers accused of gross human rights abuses, with the head of the army's notorious Kopass

M.

Nethy Dharma Somba and Oyos Saroso, Jayapura/Lampung – One person was killed and seven others injured in a tribal clash in Papua over whether Indonesian Independence Day should be comme

Jakarta – The National Human Rights Commission (Komnas HAM) is being urged to immediately investigate the arrest and torture of eight Acehnese Humanitarian Volunteers Association (Perhi

A sensible, if imperfect, compromise appears to have retrieved relations with East Timor.

Jakarta – Washington should mind its own business and refrain from commenting on court rulings that acquitted four Indonesian security officials of atrocities in East Timor, leading min

Urip Hudiono and Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – The Central Jakarta District Court dismissed on Wednesday a lawsuit filed by youth organization Pemuda Panca Marga (PPM) against Tempo magazine.

Cirebon/Padang/Banda Aceh – The swearing in of graft convicts and suspects at the legislatures of Cirebon, Banda Aceh and Padang municipalities has sparked protests among the local peop

M.

Jakarta – Golkar chairman Akbar Tandjung threatened to take disciplinary action against party leaders and members who held meetings with the candidates in the upcoming election runoff w

Abdul Khalik and Suherdjoko, Jakarta/Semarang – Former Banyumas Police chief Sr. Comr.

Ridwan Max Sijabat, Jakarta – The credibility of Washington-based International Foundation for Election Systems (IFES) and other independent pollsters have bee questioned ahead of the S

A spate of acquittals absolving Indonesian military officers of human rights violations is being regarded as evidence of the armed forces continuing influence.

Banda Aceh – The average height of children first entering school in Aceh over the last six years has decreased by eight centimeters.

Piet Soeprijadi, Peter Rimmele and Anne-Lise Klausen, Jakarta – Ross H.

Makassar, South Sulawesi – Some 200 protesters, mostly women accompanied by their children, barred the gates of the municipal council here on Wednesday, to protest their evictions by th

Tiarma Siboro and Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta – Representatives of major parties have jumped on the bandwagon to call for a delay in the deliberation of the military bill, with the

Jakarta – A number of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) protested on Wednesday the arrest of two humanitarian workers by security personnel in Aceh last week, on the suspicion that