C. Java villages in tense standoff SEMARANG: About 500 residents of Karangsari village in Kendal have fled their homes, saying they fear reprisals from Bandengan residents, who saw three of their neighbors killed and 17 others injured on Sunday in a grenade blast. A group of Bandengan villagers vandalized and torched on Monday night two fishing boats belonging to Karangsari people. The action was provoked by the action of First Sgt.

Locals disregard patent rights BANDUNG: About 90 percent of applicants for the Intellectual Opulent Patent Right (HAKI) in the country are foreigners, HAKI directorate general Zen Umar Purba said recently. "Most of the copyrights have been applied for various products of medical technology, health and pharmacy," Zen said. He urged Indonesians to comply with the protection rights. "Indonesian people are not aware in this area," he said.

WB eyes infrastructure as priority for E. Timor SINGAPORE (AFP): Some US$70 million is expected to be channeled into rebuilding East Timor's infrastructure next year, when pledges from donor countries of the World Bank come through, the bank said Tuesday. The $70 million is part of a $300 million trust fund the World Bank hopes to raise for East Timor at a consultative meeting on Dec. 17 in Tokyo, said Lucy Oh, spokesperson for the bank's Joint Assessment Mission to East Timor.

Officer questioned over Zarina's 'outing' at disco JAKARTA (JP): The head of city police detention center, Maj. Sumartono, was questioned on Saturday over alleged drug- trafficking suspect Zarina Mirasfur's absence from the detention center on Nov. 15 to go to a discotheque, a police source said on Tuesday.

Fishermen jailed for smuggling illegals PERTH, Australia (AFP): Another group of Indonesian fishermen were jailed by an Australian court Tuesday under tough new laws designed to discourage human-trafficking. The captain of a small ferry boat, Usman Kadir, 27, and two crew members, Afit Umbu, 19, and Erasmus Ur, 29, pleaded guilty in the Broome magistrate's court, in the far north of Western Australia state, to bringing three non-citizens into Australia last month.

FDI to Philippines up 42% MANILA (AFP): Net foreign direct investment (FDI) in the Philippines hit US$1.1 billion in the first seven months of 1999, a 42 percent increase from the same period last year, the presidential palace said here Tuesday. Presidential spokesman Fernando Barican said in a statement that foreign direct investment in the first seven months hit $569 million while portfolio investments amounted to $453 million.

ASEAN to review financial warning system MANILA (AFP): Southeast Asian finance ministers are to review the progress of an regional financial warning system at a meeting here this week, a senior Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) official said Tuesday.

Power to women Women activists have long questioned the wisdom of having a state minister of women's affairs in the Cabinet. Many view the office as serving an ornamental role rather than representing a genuine fight to end gender discrimination and promote equality. Successive women who occupied the post in the past rarely departed from symbolic gestures of showing the government's care toward women and to their advancement in this male-dominated society.

Military accused of war crimes JAKARTA (JP): The military killing, raping and torture of civilians in Aceh this past decade amounted to "war crimes" committed on the orders of the top leadership, according to a finding of an independent inquiry. The Independent Inquiry into the Violence in Aceh made public its finding on Tuesday, calling on the government to question all the military top brass involved in crafting the military policy in Aceh since 1989.

Teamwork vital to push tourism growth: Official JAKARTA (JP): The city tourist agency on Tuesday called all related sectors in the industry to join hands together to boost the number of tourists coming to the capital. "We must act. We can start by working together," head of the agency, Tjetjep Suparman, said while attending a welcome greeting campaign for tourists at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport.

Tubagus Angke water project JAKARTA (JP): French water management firm PT Pam Lyonnaise Jaya (Palyja) signed a cooperation agreement with three local contractors on Tuesday to expand the water pipeline on Jl. Tubagus Angke in West Jakarta. The three contractors -- PT Lepen Kencana Utama, PT Promits and PT Marlaneo -- will begin work on the four-kilometer pipeline in January 2001, the company said in a statement.

Fun, fearless female films at JIFFest By Dini Djalal JAKARTA (JP): All you need is love, right? Not according to two thought-provoking films screened at this week's Jakarta Film Festival, The Personal and The Last Malay Woman. The films try to refute tired cliches in answering the age-old quandary: what do men and women want from each other? Unfortunately, one cliche is at times replaced by another.

RI and Kuwait to boost ties JAKARTA (JP): President Abdurrahman Wahid (right) is escorted by Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah after the two held talks on Tuesday in Kuwait City on improving ties between the two countries. During his visit, Abdurrahman held talks with the Kuwaiti Emir and Prime Minister Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Sabah. Abdurrahman expressed optimism about Kuwaiti government and business community interest in investment in Indonesia.

Room for improvement at Shah Jahan JAKARTA (JP): "It's funny but Indian people themselves rarely eat here," said the waiter handing out menus at the Shah Jahan restaurant in the Hotel Sahid Jaya. The ever-droll Winnardi thought this was "probably because they get enough Indian food at home". For Epicurus, however, it was a worrying sign. Earlier we had been greeted at the entrance to the restaurant by a waitress wearing a sari, and seated promptly and politely in a seat by the window.