Jakarta – The US ambassador to Indonesia on Tuesday called on Jakarta to improve its judicial system, saying many foreign investors still questioned the fairness of the courts.

Jakarta – Muhammadiyah lent support on Monday to mounting calls for the government to revoke the new presidential regulation that allows authorities to acquire private land without a deal being reached with its owner.

"Presidential Regulation No. 5/2005 should be revoked," Muhammadiyah leader Din Syamsuddin was quoted as saying in a press statement.

Jakarta – A former State Intelligence Agency (BIN) official was sentenced to four years in prison on Monday for his involvement in printing counterfeit bank notes.

Jakarta – Freedom from any form of exploitation topped children's demands conveyed to President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono during the National Children's Day celebration on Sunday.

Nani Afrida, Banda Aceh – Sharia police said on Sunday they had rounded up at least 36 unmarried women and men for dating in secluded, poorly-lit areas in Bireuen regency, Aceh province, where 15 men convicted of gambling were publicly caned last month.

Chris Brummitt, Jakarta – An international watchdog group claimed Monday that the local unit of an American gold-mining company appeared to have paid an Indonesian general accused of rights abuses almost US$250,000 to protect its mine.

Jakarta – While other teenagers of her age are either strolling around the city's malls or sitting quietly at home, 15-year-old Kartika (not her real name) spends her nights with guests at a cafe in the capital.

Kartika, a newcomer to the commercial sex industry, who comes from Karawang, West Java, more often than not ends up in hotel rooms with clients.

Thousands of residents living in the vicinity of Bojong dump in Bogor and students from Bogor universities gathered on Sunday in a mass prayer to object to the trial operation of the dump slated for next Wednesday.

"We will form human blockade to prevent the dump trucks from entering the location," a resident of Bojong village, Naih, said.

Jakarta – Indonesian Defense Minister Juwono Sudarsono has acknowledged that the budget to maintain major equipment of the weapons system of the Indonesian Military (TNI) was still limited.

However, Sudarsono declined to comment on any connection between the maintenance budget and the the plane crashes in Aceh and Malang, East Java, on Thursday (21/07).

Theresia Sufa, Bogor – A member of the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) said on Friday that looking at the preliminary evidence, last week's attack on the Ahmadiyah complex in Parung, Bogor, was a rights violation.

Jakarta – The Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) urged President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to make public the report of a fact-finding team assigned to help the police in investigating the murder of top rights campaigner Munir.

Jakarta – Dozens of street vendors from Kalideres, West Jakarta, demonstrated in front of the City Council on Jl. Kebon Sirih in Central Jakarta on Thursday to protest their evictions by public order officers earlier in the morning.

Jakarta – Shortly after its petition was rejected by the Constitutional Court, the Indonesian Environmental Forum (Walhi) said on Thursday it planned to file a new one with additional evidence in a determined bid to challenge the water resources law.

Carmel Budiardjo, London – It has been asserted in your columns this week (Local Elections and Papuan Politics, July 11, 2005) that because the majority of West Papuans participated in general elections in 2004, they were therefore participating in an internal referendum.

Haris Azhar, Jakarta – The peace deal between the Indonesian government and the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) deserves a positive response because its main agenda is to restore the lost peace in Aceh, a region that has undergone many phases of violence before it was hit by the killer tsunami.

Tony Hotland, Jakarta – Political analysts are throwing their weight behind calls to create regional political parties in the country, arguing that such parties do not have to be synonymous with separatist movements, as some politicians fear.

The East Timor and Indonesia Action Network (ETAN) today praised the Senate for agreeing today to maintain most restrictions on US military assistance to Indonesia.

Andreas Harsono, Kupang – Devastating though it was, the Asian Tsunami brought the proverbial winds of change to Indonesia by focusing international attention on the festering conflict in Aceh province and creating conditions for a political settlement that may yet instruct other ethnic groups.

Evelyn Rusli, Jakarta – The peace accord between the Indonesian government and Aceh separatists that was agreed upon Sunday will be difficult to implement, given a 30-year relationship between the two sides that has been comprised of violence, mistrust and broken promises, analysts said Monday.

"There will be peace." A bold statement indeed from Minister of Justice and Human Rights Hamid Awaluddin at the conclusion of the Aceh peace negotiations in Helsinki.

Free Aceh Movement (GAM) spokesman Bakhtiar Abdullah also expressed a degree of confidence that the peace process would be successful.

The formula agreed between Indonesian and separatist rebel negotiators to end nearly 30 years of conflict in Aceh maintains the momentum for peace that has been building since December's tsunami devastated the province.

It is a fragile agreement that leaves challenges to be overcome on both sides.

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta – The government condemned on Saturday an attack by members of Indonesian Muslim Solidarity on the Jamaah Ahmadiyah Congregation (JAI) on Friday afternoon.

Endy M. Bayuni, Jakarta – Whatever transpires in the peace talks between the government and the separatist Aceh Free Movement (GAM) in Helsinki this weekend, Indonesia has to review its stance on whether or not to allow political parties in the regions. The exclusion of such parties from our electoral system undermines our claim to political pluralism.

Jakarta – Pollycarpus Budihari Priyanto, who has already been declared a suspect in the murder of top rights campaigner Munir, was expected to tell the court who the main actor was in the crime, his lawyer said.

Rusman, Samarinda – Nearly forty years after his arrest, Ismary Musran, 74, remains confounded by how his family's once tranquil life in Balikpapan, East Kalimantan, was forever altered by bloody incidents that transpired 1,243 kilometers away on the night of Sept. 30, 1965.

Rusman, Samarinda (East Kalimantan) – Former soldier Oentoeng Soejanto, 65, never imagined that his love for acting would lead him to spend nearly half his life in a village designated for ex-prisoners accused of being members of the outlawed Communist Party of Indonesia (PKI).

Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – Though the government promised to provide free basic education for all school-age children across the country starting this year, most schools are still making new students pay an "entrance fee".

A. Junaidi, Jakarta – A young woman sits and seems to be talking to herself," When I walked into a mall, I looked at the mirror, wow, how beautiful my hair is." It's the closing line of a television advertisement for Dove shampoo.

Damar Harsanto, Jakarta – Living in the capital is not easy with its uncontrolled development, pollution, traffic snarls and, more recently, flooded streets.

Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – The government has promised to provide free basic education starting this year. Yet, in reality, the public still have to pay money to enroll their children in state schools and must pay even more if they want them to get a decent education. This week's cover story takes a look at this issue.

Tiarma Siboro, Jakarta – Rights activists on Friday urged the government of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to speed up the investigation into the murder of the country's top rights campaigner Munir.

Jakarta – The Indonesian government has pledged over US$15 million to aid in the fight against illegal logging which is leaving the country's forests depleted, the forestry ministry said Saturday.

Indra Harsaputra, Surabaya – After attending to a client Agung (not his real name), an employee at the office of an abortion clinic in Dukuh Kupang, Surabaya, begins checking off names on the list of reporters who regularly come to pick up hush money.

Hera Diani, Jakarta – How much violence in this country is committed in the name of religion? Take Muslim scholar Jalaluddin Rahmat, for instance, whose belief leans toward the Syiah Islamic school of thought, like the majority of people in Iran. Jalaluddin wants nothing more than to follow the Syiah teachings, which are perceived as too liberal by conservative Muslims.

After decades of little serious effort to fight gambling, the new National Police chief's bold announcement that he planned to completely eradicate gambling nationwide came as a quite a surprise.

Gen. Sutanto's move on his first day in office should send a strong signal to gambling racketeers and also to the many corrupt police officers who support the enterprise.

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Nusa Kambangan – In theory, the "official residence" of convicted murderer Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra, the son of former president Soeharto, is in the Batu penitentiary on Nusakambangan prison island.

Jakarta – Twenty days after the Fact Finding Team (TPF) investigating the case of the death of human rights activist Munir handed over the conclusions and recommendations of their six months work to President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, there has still been no information on what follow up measures are to be taken by the government.

Zakki P. Hakim, Jakarta – Approvals for fresh domestic and foreign direct investment (FDI) are on the raise, increasing optimism that a pickup in investor confidence has finally started to set in.

Aleksius Jemadu, Bandung – Recently, thousands of farmers took to the streets in front of the presidential palace to protest against the enactment of Presidential Regulation No. 36/2005, which allows the government to acquire land for public development projects.

Jakarta – House of Representatives Speaker Agung Laksono defended on Wednesday plans to jack up state budget allocations next year for financing overseas travel for lawmakers, despite the current weak financial state of the government and mounting criticism over the effectiveness of such trips.

Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – Raids on gambling dens have started in the capital, but the public at large complained Wednesday that police were only targeting small-time gamblers.

Ara, 37, a resident of Kota Bambu Utara, West Jakarta, said police raided two small gambling dens in the neighborhood, but turned a blind eye to gambling dens in buildings in their area.

Damien Kingsbury, Melbourne – Representatives of the Government of Indonesia (GoI) and the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) are again meeting in Helsinki for the fifth and probably last round of talks aimed at securing an end to Aceh – almost three decade long conflict.

Rendi A. Witular and Yuli Tri Suwarni, Bandung – The country's cooperatives and small-medium enterprises (SMEs) remain underdeveloped and commitments to assist their financing by the government, banks and corporate business has not materialized.

Mohamad Mova Al 'Afghani, Jakarta – The recent caning of people convicted for gambling offences in Aceh has sparked controversy about the extent of the implementation of sharia law there. There have also been questions raised concerning the applicability of such laws to non-Acehnesse, non-Aceh residents and non-Muslims living in Aceh.

Vaudine England, Hong Kong – The recent acquittal of 12 soldiers in a politically sensitive court case in Indonesia is seen to indicate the failure of the nation's human rights tribunals and the continued impunity of the armed forces, analysts and rights activists said Tuesday.

Jakarta – A recent investigation conducted by the Indonesian Corruption Watch (ICW) revealed that parents are still being burdened by various school fees for their children attending elementary school.

Head of ICW's public service monitoring division Ade Irawan said on Monday that his organization had undertaken surveys and interviews at 50 city elementary schools.

Tony Hotland, Jakarta – As lawmakers gear up to deliberate the long-awaited law on the protection of witnesses and victims of violence, experts have said that it must be comprehensively discussed and detailed in order to push forward judicial reform.

Wahyoe Boediwardhana, Denpasar – A senior legislator revealed on Monday that 80 percent of the penitentiaries in the country, including those in Bali, were currently way over capacity.

"Most are between 40 percent and 300 percent over capacity. In one prison, with a capacity of 300 people, it is filled with 800 inmates," said Akil Mochtar during his working visit to Bali.

Contributor to The Jakarta Post Riedo Panaligan is a recipient of the 2005 Journalism Fellowship Program of the Bangkok-based Southeast Asian Press Alliance. From Banda Aceh he has filed a special report on illegal logging in Aceh province, plus related issues. His report is covers this page and the facing page.

Leaders should lead by example. And the thriftiness of a government plays an exemplary role in setting the pace of a nation's consumptive habits.

Ideally we wish to see an efficient, responsive, thrifty government that provides all the services needed – not necessarily demanded – by its citizens.