Bogor – Thirteen village chiefs in Jasinga district of Bogor regency have admitted to selling 88.42 tons of rice designated for poor families.

Evi Mariani, Jakarta – Press Council vice chairman R.H. Siregar says loopholes in press law No. 40/1999 hamper freedom of the press in Indonesia by treating journalists as criminals.

Jakarta – Indonesian troops and police have arrested about 60 people to quell attempts to mark a separatist anniversary on Friday in the eastern Maluku islands.

The detainees had either sewn or flown flags of the outlawed Republic of South Maluku which were to be hoisted on Friday, said Ambon island district military commander, Lieutenant Colonel Yudi Zanibar.

Kurniawan Hari, Jakarta – The opportunity for Indonesians to vote for candidates of their choice in the 2004 presidential election is under threat, as the two largest factions in the House of Representatives have sought to limit the number of parties participating in the election.

Jakarta – Eros Djarot announced on Friday a new name for his Bung Karno Nationalist Party (PNBK) during the party's two-day leadership meeting here.

The party has been renamed the Banteng Kemerdekaan Nationalist Party, allowing the party to maintain its original acronym.

Tertiani ZB Simanjuntak, Jakarta – The police are losing their authority and many people do not respect them – as was evident in the escape of Islam Defenders Front (FPI) chairman Habib Rizieq Shihab, as well as in the attack on Tempo magazine's office and its journalists, a lawyer said.

Samarinda, E Kalimantan – Some 400 workers of the Indonesian forestry company, PT Wana Rimba Kencana, staged a rally in front of the East Kalimantan governor's office here Friday to reject the Industry and Trade Ministry's unilateral decision to freeze the company's permit to export plywood.

Jakarta – Minister of Finance Boediono expressed optimism on Thursday that the economy will grow by 4 percent this year, despite a downturn in the global economy.

"We are continuing to project it at 4 percent. We are optimistic about it because our exports remain strong," Boediono said as quoted by Antara here on Thursday.

Jakarta – Some 2,000 workers of PT EDS Manufacturing Indonesia, a cable producer on Jl. Raya Serang, Balaraja district, staged a rally at the regency manpower agency office here on Thursday to demand that the company's contract system for workers be scrapped.

Jakarta – Indonesia's increasing economic stability is not translating into higher growth, the World Bank said on Thursday.

The bank, in its East Asian outlook as quoted by AFP, forecast gross domestic product growth of 3.3 percent this year, lower than the government's projection, and 4.0 percent in 2004.

Jakarta – A small pipe bomb exploded near the main United Nations building in Indonesia's capital yesterday, just a day after the trial of the leader of a radical Islamic group opened here.

Bill Guerin, Jakarta – Indonesian State Minister for State Enterprises Laksamana Sukardi plans a spinoff of two renegade state enterprises, PT Semen Padang and PT Semen Tonasa, from their publicly listed parent company PT Semen Gresik.

Devi Asmarani, Jakarta – With less than a year left before Indonesia conducts unprecedented direct elections, the slow, messy preparations are already sparking concerns of possible irregularities when the polls are held.

Ambon – Police have found five flags of the separatist Republic of South Maluku (RMS) hoisted in different areas here.

"Two flags were found hoisted on a 7-meter bamboo pole," local police chief Adjunct Senior Commissioner Teguh Budi Prasodjo told Antara here on Thursday.

Police warned Indonesians to be on guard against future terror attacks despite a major roundup of Jemaah Islamiyah suspects and the seizure of arms and explosives.

"Threats of new attacks always exist. We have to remain vigilant," said national police spokesman Zainuri Lubis Thursday.

Slobodan Lekic, Jakarta – Frustrated by Washington's long running embargo over arms sales because of human rights concerns, Indonesia plans to buy dozens of high-performance fighter bombers from Russia over the next several years.

Gary LaMoshi, Denpasar – One of the world's great mysteries, right up there with how Jiang Zemin's hair stayed black for all those years, is that amazing strength of the Indonesian rupiah on foreign-currency markets, defying the gravity of Indonesia's economic situation.

Moscow – Indonesia's armed forces commander, General Endriartono Sutarto, has disclosed that the Indonesian air force wants to have 48 Russian-made Sukhoi fighter planes to enable it to secure the country and maintain its sovereignty.

Arya Abhiseka, Jakarta – The General Elections Commission (KPU) admitted on Tuesday that many flaws were evident in the voter registration process as revealed by a resistance to the program in some regions.

Jakarta – Prodemocracy activists, analysts and mass media are certainly not the only ones longing for the emergence of a strong, fair and wise national leader to bring the nation out of its prolonged crisis, uphold justice and build peace.

Indonesian police said they have arrested 18 more suspected members of the Jemaah Islamiyah terror network and seized guns and explosives.

As the Muslim cleric accused of leading JI went on trial for treason, national police chief General Da'i Bachtiar said the seizures indicated that suspects were planning fresh terrorist attacks before next year's general elections.

Matthew Moore, Jakarta – He was the first person to be accused of planning the Bali bombings, but when Indonesia's most notorious preacher, Abu Bakar Bashir, goes on trial in a Jakarta court today it will not be for his role in that crime.

Cleric Abu Bakar Bashir who heads the conservative Indonesian Mujahidin Council, has faced court in Jakarta charged with attempting to overthrow the Indonesian state. Mr Bashir is accused of setting up the outlawed Jemaah Islamiyah group 10 years ago, as part of a plan to replace the Government with an Islamic state.

Jakarta – An Indonesian court yesterday sentenced a half-brother of former president Suharto to four years' jail for corruption involving US$11.4 million in state funds.

Probosutejo, who was head of a timber company, failed to repay interest-free loans from a state reforestation fund totalling 100.9 billion rupiah, Judge Mohammad Soleh ruled.

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, Jakarta – Indonesia is seeking one of the 53 seats on the United Nations Human Rights Commission (UNHRC) for 2003-2004, hoping that its own poor human rights track record will not count against it.

Jakarta – Coordinating Minister for Security and Political Affairs Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono reiterated here on Wednesday that there is no place for separatist movements in the country – in Aceh, Papua or Maluku.

Gde Anugrah Arka, Bali – Made Suarsa's minibus is almost empty these days as he winds through the narrow streets of Denpasar, capital of one of the world's best-known travel destinations, Bali.

Sarah Stephen – Ebrihim Sammaki fled Iran after the fall of the Shah, and fell in love with an Indonesian woman, Endong, while he was living in Indonesia. Nine years ago, they married and had two children. Then, two years ago, Ebrihim decided to seek a better life for his family.

M. Taufiqurrahman, Jakarta – An activist from the radical group Islamic Youth Movement (GPI) was on trial on Monday for allegedly insulting President Megawati Soekarnoputri during an antigovernment protest in mid-February.

Jakarta – In a bid to secure its "dignity and honour" the Supreme Court is considering imprisonment without trial for people deemed to be in contempt.

Solo – About 1,000 protesting Islamic students Monday demanded the release of Abu Bakar Ba'asyir – the alleged leader of the al-Qaida-linked group Jama'ah Islamiyah – who is to face trial for treason this week.

Indonesian music sensation Inul Daratista is getting complaints from muslim clerics. She may be one of the country's most popular artists but the clerics say her gyrating dance movements and skimpy costumes are indecent and immoral.

Transcript:

Moscow – Indonesian President Megawati Sukarnoputri and her Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin signed a friendship treaty yesterday, as Jakarta seeks to revive a Soviet-era relationship in the face of growing distance with Washington.

Jakarta – At least 2,000 people marched through the streets of Yogyajarta in central Java on Sunday, calling for a holy war against the United States in one of the largest protests here against the US-led coalition in Iraq in recent weeks.

Jakarta – Police in Maluku province arrested seven suspected separatists on Sunday during a dawn raid on a house in the provincial capital of Ambon, police said.

Jakarta – An Indonesian Muslim militant turned himself in to authorities on Monday after supporters had spirited him out of police custody, a prosecutor said.

Dozens of supporters of a hardline Indonesian Muslim cleric snatched him from prosecutors and spirited him away shortly before he was due to be taken to jail, reports said.

Devi Asmarani, Jakarta – President Megawati Sukarnoputri is eyeing Romanian tanks and other military hardware to beef up Indonesia's military strength, yet few know how she plans to pay for the purchases.

As a confirmed candidate in the 2004 direct presidential election, President Megawati Sukarnoputri and her ruling Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) seem well aware that the choice of a running mate will be as vital as building solid and stable party coalitions.

The Justice Party (PK), a small but vocal Islamic political party officially merged into another Islamic party, the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) in a move that would enable its candidates to take part in the 2004 general elections.

Tony Sitathan, Jakarta – The Indonesian government has officially announced that its privatization exercise for several state-owned enterprises (SOEs) will be delayed until the end of the Iraq crisis. However, several analysts and economists argue that the privatization exercise conducted by the government so far could be delayed even further.

Bill Guerin, Jakarta – Textile and engineering giant Texmaco announced last week that it had defaulted on a US$25 million letter of credit facility from Bank BNI 46.

Graham Gerard Ong – It may pale in comparison to reports about the postwar reconstruction of Iraq, but the recent public announcement of Indonesian President Megawati Sukarnoputri's official visit to Moscow and her meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin next Monday deserves to be taken seriously.

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, Jakarta – Defense analysts have thrown their support behind government moves to look for other arms suppliers in a bid to cut its dependence on the United States, which has imposed a military embargo on the country since 1991.

Jakarta (Antara) – About 200,000 Indonesians are still taking refuge in a number of areas across the country due to social conflicts, a minister said on Friday.

"Actually, the government has prepared to resettle the refugees of certain areas and Rp 750,000 in cash for each refugee family," Minister of Social Affairs Bachtiar Chamsyah was quoted by Antara as saying.

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta – The Supreme Court shifted 64 mid- and low-level division heads from their posts on Thursday, the biggest reshuffling to occur in the country's judicial history, in an effort to boost its poor performance and repair the corrupt judiciary.

Azis Tunny, Ambon – Maluku authorities renewed their warning against the South Maluku Republic (RMS) separatist movement, saying strong measures would be taken against those supporting for RMS and its affiliate, the Maluku Sovereignty Forum (FKM), in observance of the separatist movement's 54th anniversary on April 24.

Jakarta – Indonesian cleric Abu Bakar Bashir, accused of leading the Jemaah Islamiah (JI) terror network, had ordered the assassination of President Megawati Sukarnoputri when she was still vice-president, according to a copy of his indictment obtained yesterday.

M. Taufiqurrahman and Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta – Marked by the presence of hundreds of people alleged to be those taking part in storming the weekly's office, the trial of the Tempo attack began on Wednesday at the Central Jakarta District Court, with prosecutors accusing the defendants of only committing a minor offense.

Moch. N. Kurniawan, Jakarta – Despite strong criticism and opposition from numerous parties, the government and the House of Representatives looked set to go ahead with the controversial education system bill, which would reduce national education to religious matters.