Teachers' pay From Berita Buana On its 51st anniversary recently, the Indonesian Teachers' Union still focused on teachers' pay. As a teacher, I would like to propose the following for the improvement of teachers' welfare. With their very small pay, teachers often resort to borrowing money from banks. What if the government extends bank loans at low interest rates to teachers? By that system, teachers can increase their purchasing power.

Drag Race in Sentul JAKARTA (JP): The Grand Final of the Get Lucky Drag Race is scheduled to be staged on Dec. 21 at the Sentul Circuit, Bogor, West Java. Dancing troupe GIGI, Harry Roesli and Second Born, will entertain the crowd between races. The event will also feature parades of Harley Davidson motorbikes and antique Vespa motors. The organizers are to limit the number of participants to 250. So far, 180 have registered their names for the competition. (yan)

SIA increases flights JAKARTA (JP): Singapore Airlines is to increase the number of its shuttle flights between Singapore and Jakarta starting Jan 1, bringing total shuttle flights to eight. Passengers from Jakarta will be able to fly to Singapore between 7 a.m. and 9:30 p.m. before making flight connections from there to other parts of the world. The additional service would add more than 60,000 seats a year into Jakarta.

East Timor talks posponed due to the UN reshuffle LISBON (Reuter): Talks between Portugal and Indonesia about East Timor, set for December 21 in New York, have been postponed, a foreign ministry spokeswoman said Tuesday. The delay was proposed by the United Nations (UN), which is seeking to broker an accord over the territory, because of its leadership changes. Ghanaian Kofi Annan will be formally appointed Secretary-General on Tuesday replacing Egypt's Boutros Boutros-Ghali.

$189m for business training for the poor JAKARTA (JP): The government has linked up with private universities across the country to provide training on entrepreneurship to the poor, a senior official said yesterday. A memorandum of understanding was signed between the National Family Planning Board, the Ministry of Education and Culture and private universities in September last year.

Negative media reports affect Timor car sales JAKARTA (JP): Negative media reports and a fear of poor after- sales services have affected sales of the country's controversial national car, according to its distributor. Richard Hendarmo, the operational director of PT Timor Distributor Nasional said yesterday that the company sold only 5,800 Timor cars from the beginning of October to now, far below its initial target of between 3,000 and 4,000 a month.

SE Asian investors buy Australian media company SYDNEY (DPA): Cashed-up Asian investors still see Australia as a bargain basement of corporate goodies with yet another national icon falling this week to a company awash with Little Dragon cash. The company bidding A$554 million (US$443 million) for control of John Fairfax Holdings Ltd, Australia's top publishing house, may be based in New Zealand.

Return to the sea, Soeharto says JAKARTA (JP): President Soeharto said yesterday it was now time for Indonesian people to "return to the sea" because land resources were no longer adequate to meet their needs. In a speech delivered by State Minister of Research and Technology B.J. Habibie at the opening of the convention on Indonesian maritime development in Ujungpandang, South Sulawesi, Soeharto said Indonesia needed to give more attention to its marine resources.

Bank Surya splits stocks JAKARTA (JP): Shareholders of th publicly-listed Bank Surya approved here yesterday a plan to cut the nominal price of the bank's shares to Rp 5,00 from Rp 1,000 (43 U.S. cent). "We aim this stock split to improve our shares' liquidity in the capital market," said the bank's President A.K. Ariawan after attending its shareholders' extraordinary meeting. He said that the stock split doubled the number of the bank's total shares to 200 million.

Tourist police squad set up JAKARTA (JP): National Police Chief Lt. Gen. Dibyo Widodo inaugurated a tourist police unit, called "Polisi Pariwisata" (Police for Tourists), yesterday at the Jakarta Police headquarters. Dibyo said 70 police officers who had been taught English would be placed in city tourist destinations, hotels and airports. "We will also arrange a similar unit in the country's tourist spots, like in Yogyakarta and Bali.

Where to go in Jakarta: Music * Hotel Dai-ichi, Jl. Senen Raya 135, Central Jakarta. - Morgan's 1072 Classic Disco, Asian Force Band, Tuesday and Thursday, 9 p.m. to 12:30 a.m., Saturday: 9:30 p.m. to 1 a.m.; Acid Speed Band, Friday, 9 p.m. to 12:30 a.m.; Platinum Band, Wednesdy, 9 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. * Hotel Aryaduta, Jl. Prapatan 44-48, Central Jakarta: - Ambiente Italian Restaurant: Los Morenitos Vocal Group, Monday, Thursday, Sunday, 7:15 p.m.

Dutch defendant gives birth TANGERANG, West Java (JP): A Dutch woman on trial for trafficking 11,370 Ecstasy pills gave birth to a baby boy at Tangerang General Hospital yesterday. "I'm happy. I named him Johny Junior, after his father. My family has contacted my husband. He will probably come here from Amsterdam at the end of the month," BAR, 25, said. BAR was rushed to hospital Tuesday when her water broke during the court hearing.

Trafficker gets three years jail TANGERANG, West Java (JP): The Tangerang District Court sentenced a man to three years in jail yesterday for smuggling more than 60,000 Ecstasy pills from the Netherlands into Indonesia. Presiding Judge Yustinar found Ridwan Chaniago, 45, guilty of trying to smuggle and peddle the pills, which were not registered with the Ministry of Health. The defendant was also fined Rp 3 million for the offense. The sentence and fine were exactly what the prosecutor demanded.

Marcos regime victims hail U.S. court decision MANILA (UPI): Some 10,000 human rights victims who suffered under the two-decade rule of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos are hailing a United States appellate court's decision to award them nearly US$2 billion in damages. Lawyers for the victims, collectively known as Claimants 1081 Inc., say the decision affirms Marcos' liability under international law.

Banker slams central bank's policy on lending limits JAKARTA (JP): Bank Indonesia's (the central bank) policy requiring commercial banks to observe legal lending limits is unrealistic, Bank Central Asia's president said yesterday. Abdullah Ali said many banks were having trouble spreading credits to more debtors. "The number of credible, banking corporate clients cannot increase in a split second. Therefore, we must find a proper way to solve this problem," Abdullah told a seminar.

Ciputat crossing prone to mishaps TANGERANG, West Java (JP): The Ciputat railway crossing where a family was killed late Sunday is vulnerable to accidents, a village head in the district said. Dadang Syarif, the head of the Pondok Ranji subdistrict, said yesterday a man in his 70s was killed last week at the same spot as Sunday's accident which claimed five lives. "It was last week. Earlier three buffaloes were also hit by train at the crossing," he said.

Aging couples taken to altar KUPANG, East Nusa Tenggara: A total of 511 elderly couples took religious marriage vows in a mass wedding here on Monday, along with 2,128 other couples. State Minister of Population Haryono Suyono attended the ceremony in SoE, south Central Timor regency, and plans to give a recording of the unique event to President Soeharto. Minister Hayono and his wife gave away the brides, while Governor Herman Musakabe acted as a witness to the weddings.