Nethy Dharma Somba, Jayapura – The name of West Irian Jaya will be changed to West Papua to match the preferences of local people, the provincial government announced Tuesday.

Jakarta – A former separatist rebel elected governor of the Indonesian province of Aceh on Thursday said he would not push for independence for the province while in power.

M.

Jakarta – Decentralization has been blamed for the downfall of the national family planning program during the reform era.

With two former members of the separatist Free Aceh Movement (GAM) apparently set to claim victory in last week's landmark gubernatorial election in Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam, some parti

Ridwan Max Sijabat, Jakarta – Four years on, the special autonomy that costs more than Rp 5 trillion (about US$555 million) annually, has brought about little progress in Indonesia's ea

Jayapura – President Soesilo Bambang Yudhoyono has agreed to evaluate Law No.21/2001 on Papua Special Autonomy in view of the latest developments in the easternmost Indonesian region.

Ridwan Max Sijabat, Jakarta – Papua's "special autonomy" status has not brought significant progress to the people because it has failed to address their fundamental needs, a survey sug

Jakarta – Indonesia's parliament has passed a bill to extend political autonomy for Aceh, but human-rights activists and former Achenese rebels say the law does not satisfy a 2005 peace

Jane Perlez, Jakarta – The Indonesian Parliament passed a law today that under the terms of a peace accord with former separatists in Aceh is intended to give the province greater auton

Ridwan Max Sijabat, Jakarta – The House of Representatives is scheduled to endorse the long-awaited and much-debated Aceh governance bill on July 11, with the main focus then on holding

M.

M.

M.

Radzie, Banda Aceh – Hundreds of students and social activists in the provincial capital of Banda Aceh took to the streets again on June 1 to demand the immediate ratification of the Dr

Multa Fidrus and Theresia Sufa, Tangerang – Three Tangerang men were arrested Monday for planning to set up an independent state in West Java.

Tony Hotland, Jakarta – The government plans to issue a new regulation to ensure the trillions of rupiah entering Papua under special autonomy is being spent properly, the President say

Halim Mubary & Armia AM, Bireuen – Thousands of Bireuen residents from the 17 sub-districts that make up the regency, inundated the grounds of the Bireuen Grand Mosque on Thursday M

M.

The Aceh Monitoring Mission (AMM) will have its term extended until August pending completion of deliberation on a bill on Aceh government which will provide the legal basis for the fir

Banda Aceh – Students from the Aceh Democratic Network (Jaringan Demokrasi Aceh, JDA) opened a coordination post at the Banda Aceh City Park on Tuesday May 9 to guard the Draft Law on A

Aguswandi, Banda Aceh – Just when you think you have things figured out, they turn topsy-turvy on you.

Banda Aceh – Acehnese students have again demonstrated – this time in greater numbers – in the thousands.

Jakarta – Delays in passing a bill clearing the way for elections in Indonesia's Aceh province may play into the hands of former separatist rebels, boosting their strength when the ball

Nur Raihan, Banda Aceh – Thousands of students from universities across the Acehnese provincial capital of Banda Aceh held a demonstration at the Baiturrahman Great Mosque on Sunday Apr

Louise Dodson and Mark Forbes, Jakarta – Australia is ready to offer economic aid to help Indonesia smooth the introduction of Papuan autonomy, as the two countries try to restore relat

Radzie, Banda Aceh – Hundreds of activists from the Acehnese Democratic Network (JDA), students and local people held a parade though the streets of Banda Aceh on Friday April 21.

Hugh White – Australia's debate over Papua in the past fortnight has fallen into the ruts worn in our national consciousness by East Timor.

Armia AM, Lhokseumawe – As a result of delays in the ratification of the Acehnese version of the Draft Law on Aceh Government (RUU-PA), thousands of university and high-school students

Misdarul Ihsan, Banda Aceh – On Monday April 3, Acehnese student organisations from the Aceh Peace Alliance (AAD) once again held a demonstration in support of the Draft Law on Aceh Gov

Indonesia has missed a deadline to pass a law granting autonomy to Aceh under a peace pact with separatists but both sides say the delay would not derail the process.

Bhimanto Suwastoyo, Jakarta – Indonesia will miss a deadline Friday to pass a crucial law granting autonomy to Aceh but the province's peace process should remain on track if the two si

Wahyu Dhyatmika, Jakarta – Although the recess at the House of Representatives (DPR) starts next week, the Special Committee for the Aceh Government Draft Bill will still continue its d

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta – Acehnese appealed once again for an end to lingering suspicion about their allegiance to the country as the House committee deliberating the bill on t

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta – A scientist dismissed on Monday nationalist fears that the bill on Aceh governance would lead to the province's succession from Indonesia.

Riyadi Suparno – The high-ranking officials gathered around a table at a ministry office in Jakarta literally divided Aceh's forests into a number of concessions, to be offered to the i

Sri Muninggar Saraswati and Ridwan Max Sijabat, Jakarta – Aceh leaders are optimistic that Jakarta will accommodate their people's political aspirations in the new bill on Aceh governan

Tn.

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta – The Aceh legislative council is displeased with an article on the bill on governance in Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam that would give Jakarta broader power

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta – The new bill on Aceh governance is in line with the Constitution and the Helsinki peace pact signed last August with rebel leaders, the government sai

Jakarta – Despite opposition from Papuan community groups, the Constitutional Court has reaffirmed the status of West Irian Jaya as a province, saying it only lacks a legal operational

Nethy Dharma Somba, Jayapura – Influential Papuan church groups and community organizations are supporting the Papuan Legislative Council's opposition to the creation of West Irian Jaya

Jakarta – The government has no intention of partitioning Aceh because it would violate the Helsinki peace agreement signed by Indonesia and the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) last year, Info

Nethy Dharma Somba, Jayapura – The Papuan Legislative Council announced Friday it would oppose the partitioning of Papua to create West Irian Jaya province.

Muninggar Sri Saraswati and Ati Nurbaiti, Jakarta – Ahead of next week's legislative deliberation on the Aceh governance bill, the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle reiterated its

Yophiandi Kurniawan, Jakarta – The general chairperson of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), Megawati Sukarnoputri, is pessimistic that the implementation of the memor

Salim Osman, Jakarta – Even before parliament starts its deliberation today, the Aceh Government Bill has already been slammed by critics for not sticking to the spirit of the Helsinki

Jakarta – The government has promised to heed Acehnese leaders' demand for a greater say in a future law that will be used to guide how Aceh will be governed.

Jakarta, Antara – Former Army chief of staff, retired General Tyasno Sudarto, says that the Draft Law on a Government for Aceh or RUU-PA will endanger the Unitary State of the Republic