Traditional art From Merdeka The increased broadcast of the traditional arts on private TV stations is most welcome. The community has been looking forward to watching the traditional arts, which has become a national asset. It is a fact that young people tend to be indifferent towards the traditional arts because, according to them, they lack attractiveness.

Sembawang Internet unit SINGAPORE (Reuter): Sembawang Media Pte Ltd, a subsidiary of Sembawang Corp, said yesterday it launched a business unit to sell Internet services to companies. The company, Contact Sembawang Media, will market Internet and "Intranet" (inter-company and intra-company) products to regional corporations, Sembawang Media said in a statement.

Hanoi, RP against China's claim HANOI (Agencies): Vietnam turned up the volume yesterday over its claim to sovereignty of two disputed island chains in the South China Sea. Official media quoted a foreign ministry statement that said China's claims to the Paracel and Spratly islands -- seen as potentially oil-rich -- were a blatant violation of international laws.

Setting toll road rates The disclosure that the government plans to raise Jakarta's toll road fees again in June, after only eight months, gives rise to questions about the mechanisms by which the rates are set. This is even more so given that the increase has been proposed by PT Citra Marga Nusaphala Persada, which builds and operates part of the city's toll roads, rather than from Jasa Marga, the state- owned company which operates the other portions.

WB calls for more transparency JAKARTA (JP): The World Bank is urging Indonesia to tighten its fiscal and monetary policies and introduce more transparency and competition in all sectors to minimize the risks of overheating and a fall in investor confidence. In its latest annual report on Indonesia's economy, the World Bank stressed that maintaining investor confidence is even more crucial now than ever to cope with the estimated increase in the current account deficit.

Late Paper Due to problems at the printers, many of our Jakarta readers received The Jakarta Post late. We apologize for the inconvenience. -- Publisher

Man arrested for drug possession JAKARTA (JP): West Jakarta police arrested a man for possession of a variety of banned drugs in a street operation early yesterday morning. The police also seized two pocketknives from the suspect, identified as Wahyudin, 52, who was driving a Feroza jeep, when he was stopped in the Tambora area at around 2 a.m., City Police spokesman Lt. Col. Iman Haryatna said.

BWA's fashion show sets a new trend By Thalia Kamarga JAKARTA (JP): A group of Jakartans have discovered a new, unique way of presenting a fashion show.

More 300,000 made literate JAKARTA (JP): The Jakarta Military Command, in cooperation with the office of the Ministry of Education and Culture, has made 300,393 people living in Jakarta, Tangerang and Bekasi literate since last year. Lt. Col. Didi Supandi, chief of the information office of the military command, said yesterday that the figures were recorded during the anti-illiteracy drive launched in the 1995/96 fiscal year.