Jakarta – Rock-throwing students damaged at least four churches and four Catholic schools in Ujunagpandang, the capital of Indonesia's South Sulawesi province, witnesses said Friday.

Eduardo Lachica – An Indonesian opposition leader called on the US to help his country conduct free and fair elections, and Washington may be only too happy to oblige.

Demonstrations held on March 11 in a number of cities were not to commemorate the anniversary of the Supersemar, the document which enabled General Suharto to carry out a coup against Sukarno. Instead it became a momentum for simultaneous mass actions.

Jakarta – Lawyers for ex-Indonesian president Suharto on Thursday filed legal papers with the attorney general's office to demand that an inquiry into the former leader be stopped as hundreds of pro-Suharto protestors demonstrated outside.

Ambon – Fires from burned homes smouldered and occasional warning shots rang out Thursday in the empty and tightly-guarded streets of Ambon, a day after renewed Moslem-Christian street battles.

"There is still some burning of homes in the eastern part of the city at the Tantui village, but it is unclear how many homes have been damaged," a reporter said.

Ambon – Indonesian police Thursday handed over control of this riot-torn city to the army, after a day of pitched battles between Moslems and Christians that left up to 10 dead and scores wounded.

Ambon – Religious violence worsened on riot-torn Ambon Island after outnumbered troops opened fire on Muslim and Christian mobs fighting each other with spears, knives and gasoline bombs. Religious officials said 12 people were killed.

Jakarta – A former general and minister in the Suharto administration was elected chairman of Indonesia's newly-established election commission Thursday and sworn in hours later by President B.J. Habibie.

Jakarta – The Indonesian government is uncertain whether this year's landmark national election will be able to go ahead in East Timor or the troubled city of Ambon, a senior official said Thursday.

Jakarta – Student protesters, demanding the resignation of President B.J. Habibie, threw rocks at riot police who blocked them from marching on to Parliament Thursday.

The march through central Jakarta was the latest in a series of anti-government demonstrations by students unhappy about the pace of political reform in the world's fourth-most populous nation.

Christine T. Tjandraningsih, Jakarta – Indonesia will see modest economic growth next fiscal year, starting April 1, but its recovery prospects will be overshadowed by the grim global outlook and continuing political uncertainty at home, the World Bank said Wednesday.

Indonesian Attorney-General Andi Ghalib admitted yesterday that the leaked tape of a phone conversation between himself and President BJ Habibie is genuine, retracting his earlier assertion that the conversation never took place.

Jakarta – Indonesian students pressing for the trial of former President Suharto say it is the only way to restore public faith in the government of Dr B.J. Habibie, The Jakarta Post has reported.

Nurul Hidayati, Jakarta – The Minister of Justice, Muladi SH regrets [jailed People's Democratic Party, PRD, chairperson] Budiman Sujatmiko's action in rejecting clemency from the Indonesian President. Muladi was surprised by the attitude and has asked Budiman not to say too much.

Chris Latham – Last year featured the largest protest movement in the history of Indonesia. These protests, which mobilised millions of people, ended the dictator Suharto's 32- year reign. They were primarily built by students.

Following is the text of an International Women's Day message to Australian activists from Indonesia's only woman political prisoner, DITA SARI. Sari, a leader of the People's Democratic Party, is serving a five-year sentence in Tangerang Women's Prison in Jakarta for daring to struggle for workers' rights in her country.

Jakarta – The World Bank's exposure to Indonesia is approaching its limit of 13.5 bln usd for a single large borrower, reducing the scope for additional lending in the next few years, the bank said in an interim assistance strategy document.

Jakarta – Thousands of Indonesian students greeted President Suharto's re-appointment as president with jhoisy but peaceful demonstrations across the country.

Tight security was in force at many of the campuses, but troops and riot police did not intervene as the authorities maintained their tolerance of demonstrations within university grounds.

150 students on work experience from Syiahkuala University, Banda Aceh, who have been placed in North Aceh protested against Mobil Oil Indonesia on Monday 8/3.

The students protested with banners and by making speeches demanding that Mobil Oil take full responsibility for the environment, work force, community development. The protest took place between 10.00 and 15.00.

Susan Sim, Jakarta – Two churches and a Christian school were destroyed partially in the West Java city of Bandung on Sunday by mobs angry over the illegal use of several shophouses for Christian services.

Jakarta – The chairperson of the People's Democratic Party (PRD), Budiman Sudjatmiko has said that they [the PRD] have never recommended to anyone to present [a request] for clemency by the President. "We have never felt we have done wrong or carried out political crimes during the period of the New Order regime", wrote Budiman and Petrus H.

Jakarta – A military prosecutor on Tuesday asked for jail sentences of between 15 to 26 months for eleven soldiers on trial for abducting pro-democracy activists in the last months of the Suharto regime.

Don Greenlees, Jakarta – Every weekend across Indonesia, convoys of buses, crammed with supposedly enthusiastic supporters of the 48 political parties approved to contest the June 7 elections, pull up at sports stadiums and parks.

Jay Solomon, Jakarta – Indonesian presidential candidate Amien Rais said he couldn't rule out a possible coalition between his National Mandate Party, or PAN, and the ruling Golkar party following June 7 parliamentary elections.

Jakarta – Renewed Moslem-Christian clashes in the riot-torn Indonesian city of Ambon reportedly claimed five more lives Monday as an attack was reported on Christian places of worship and a school on Java island.

Jakarta – Indonesian police arrested more than 200 protestors in separate demonstrations marking International Women's Day on Monday, witnesses said,

In the first sweep policemen and policewomen rounded up 59 women protesting against violence against women and other human rights abuses outside the local office of the United Nations, witnesses said.

Jakarta – The Indonesian armed forces on Sunday sent a team of 19 high-ranking military officers to riot-torn Ambon in a bid to halt ongoing Moslem-Christian violence which has left more than 160 people dead.

Derwin Pereira, Jakarta – In the movie Forrest Gump, a simpleton character wanders blithely into scenes that are later regarded as historic. A variation of that happened here recently.

Jakarta – An estimated 200,000 people packed a Jakarta sports stadium Sunday in a mass show of support for Golkar, the party which kept president Suharto in power for 32 years, witnesses said.

Jakarta – The Indonesian Legal Aid and Human Rights Association (PBHI) and the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) condemned Friday security personnel's brutal treatment of student demonstrators and journalists.

PBHI said in a statement that it would sue the Jakarta military commander and the city police chief for the security personnel's alleged brutality.

Jakarta – Attorney General Lt. Gen. A.M. Ghalib on Friday again expressed his doubts about the authenticity of the recently leaked bugged conversation he allegedly had with President B.J. Habibie. At the same time he blasted the press for exaggerating the issue.

Jakarta – The Attorney General, Muladi, has said that he will recommend clemency for jailed People's Democratic Party (PRD) activists, including the chairperson of the PRD, Budiman Sudjatmiko, who is presently interned at Cipinang Prison and Dita Indah Sari, who is in the Tangerang Women's Prison.

On March 4, the Minister of Home Affairs and "traditional enemy" of People's Democratic Party (PRD), General Syarwan Hamid, signed a statement saying that the government had approved the PRD's registration to participate in the June 7 election after considering the recommendations of a report from the Team of Eleven.

Jakarta – At least two people have been killed and several injured in a fresh outbreak of violence on the strife-torn Indonesian island of Ambon, witnesses said on Saturday.

One man was gunned down when the occupants of a car opened fire on residents manning a civilian roadblock at Silo church about 2.00am on Saturday.

Sander Thoenes, Jakarta – Madeleine Albright, US secretary of state, is expected today to offer a resumption of US military aid to Indonesia if the armed forces halt human rights abuses in East Timor and other parts of the archipelago, diplomats said.

Jakarta – Indonesia's military had the mandate to take power during the turbulent days of Suharto's downfall last May, but didn't, armed forces chief general Wiranto was quoted Friday as saying.

Jonathan Wright, Jakarta – Indonesian President B.J. Habibie has accepted the need for international monitors for the June 7 parliamentary election, Secretary of State Madeleine Albright said Friday.

33 students from several universities are still being held at police headquarters in Jakarta after taking part in a demonstration outside the ABA-ABI (Indonesian and foreign languages colleges) campus in East Jakarta.

A journalist from Pos Kota, Totok Irianto, 36, was injured when he was struck by a hard object. He is still under treatment in hospital.

Jakarta – Indonesia has threatened to deport foreign nationals here to monitor the run-up to the country's June 7 elections if they do not have proper visas or are not registered with Jakarta's United Nations office, reports said Friday.

Jonathan Wright, Jakarta – Indonesia told the United States on Thursday it was arming and training local militias but had no interest in inciting conflict in East Timor between supporters and opponents of independence.

Jakarta – The Commission on Elections (P3KPU), popularly known as the Team of Eleven, announced on Thursday that it is recommending 48 political parties to contest in the June 7 general election.

Jenny Grant, Jakarta – Muslim students demonstrated in Jakarta yesterday demanding a holy war against Christians in Ambon. About 2,000 students massed in a central square shouting "jihad" and accusing the military and Christians of ethnic cleansing in Ambon.

Louise Williams – In a city littered with the bodies of the dead and mutilated, where the markets have been burnt to the ground, where soldiers hire out their protection services for cash, and where Christians and Muslims live barricaded behind gangs of wild, armed young men, Donny Lufki no longer believes in the law.

Sander Thoenes, Jakarta – The leaders of the Justice Party put their money where their mouth is. The soft-drink cooler at party headquarters in Jakarta is unlocked, relying instead on a Koranic verse to admonish members to pay for what they take: "If you pay the exact amount you already did justice," a sign reads. "Do justice, since justice is closer to piety."

Jakarta – Troops and police fought pitched battles in the streets of Jakarta Thursday, after the security forces tried to block a march by some 2,000 students calling for Indonesian President B.J. Habibie to step down.

Jakarta – Two people were killed and a house torched in fresh violence between two ethnic groups in the Indonesian province of West Kalimantan, police said Tuesday.

"Two people were killed yesterday [Monday] in Pemangkat subdistrict 30 kilometers north of Sambas at three in the morning," Sergeant Major Pranoto of Singkawang district police in Sambas told AFP.

Ambon – The riot-torn Indonesian city of Ambon was gripped by tension Tuesday, with troops posted at key trouble spots amid rumours Moslems were gearing up for a protest and the discovery of the bodies of a man and a woman stabbed to death.

Jakarta – The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) is to focus its assistance on three poll monitoring networks considered among the most prepared in their programs.

UNDP advisor Erna Witoelar identified them on Monday as the Independent Election Monitoring Committee (KIPP), the University Network for Free and Fair Elections (Unfrel) and the Rectors Forum.

Jakarta – The independent Team of Eleven revealed on Monday only around 60 of the 104 political parties it was examining were expected to pass screening to contest the June 7 general election.

Jakarta – Indonesia will send 1,000 more troops to Ambon and neighbouring islands in Maluku province where more than 150 people have died in Moslem-Christian violence since mid-January, reports said Monday.

"They will reach here in a short time," Colonel Karel Ralahalu, chief of the Pattimura military command overseeing Ambon, was quoted as saying by the Jakarta Post.