JP/6/DAVID Drug addicts, criminals, prostitutes, the "hidden force" infected and spreading HIV/AIDS AND HEPATITIS C David Gordon and Joyce Djaelani Gordon Directors Harapan Permata Hati Kita Foundation Ciawi, Bogor Recently there have been several reports about the increasing numbers of individuals that have tested positive for HIV/AIDS. These individuals are from ultra high risk groups that include drug addicts, prostitutes, and criminals, especially those in prisons.

1. Soccer --- 2x22 Ronaldo fires Brazil into final to meet Germany Ronaldo, Brazil feast upon Turkey, win semifinal 1-0 2. Sutiyos -- 1x36 Megawati 'should not betray party's wishes' 3. Fares ---- 3x14 Fare hike another slap in the face for the poor 4. Jaksa ---- 1x28 Throwing in the towel against Tommy? or Prosecutors giving in against Tommy? or Tommy's prosecutors may be giving up -========== 5. Heads 6. Cap 7. Inside 8. Hours

Teachers demand better pay Agus Maryono, The Jakarta Post, Purwokerto, Central Java Some 200 teachers from private schools in Banyumas regency, Central Java, took to the streets on Wednesday to protest their low wages. The teachers demanded that the Banyumas administration start paying them salaries and allowances, as received by teachers at state-owned schools.

Courting China the Oracle way Lela E. Madjiah, The Jakarta Post, Beijing China is the envy of many fellow Asian countries for all the right reasons. Its size is simply staggering and with a population of over 1.2 billion, it is a market no one can ignore. It is small wonder that businesses are either opening or redirecting their investments to China, all clamoring for a slice of the huge market.

Police seize 200 kgs of marijuana MEDAN, North Sumatra: Medan City Police arrested an alleged drug trafficker, identified only as Wanna, 42, and seized 200 kilograms of marijuana from the suspect, a report said. Medan City Police chief of detectives Adj. Comr. Maruli Siahaan said the police managed to arrest Wanna and seize the marijuana on Tuesday following a tipoff from the suspect's son, identified by his initials IRH, a second-year student at the state elementary school SDN 2 on Jl.

Bitter sugar for farmers The government and the House of Representatives have agreed to increase sharply import tariffs on sugar and other main farm commodities, such as rice, soybean and corn, to protect local farmers from unfair competition caused by foreign farm produce believed to have been dumped on the domestic market.

Maluku probe team told to listen to the people Tertiani ZB Simanjuntak, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta A non-governmental group working to find a comprehensive solution to religious conflicts in Ambon urged the government-sanctioned investigative team to listen to people's aspirations if it wanted to succeed. "We all have the same aim, that is to end the Maluku conflict.

Malaria, other ailments hit Irian Jaya MANOKWARI, Papua: Head of the local health ministry office Ria M. Come said here on Wednesday that dozens of Ransiki subdistrict residents in Manokwari regency, Papua had been affected by malaria and respiratory diseases. Ria said to prevent the outbreak from spreading, the office had dispatched paramedics to some 30 badly hit areas.

Bungaran aims to boost sugar output Adianto P. Simamora, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta Minister of Agriculture Bungaran Saragih unveiled on Wednesday plans to boost domestic sugar production in what may seem to be part of his strategy to win support for a proposal to increase import tariffs on the commodity.

JAKARTA: The weighted average interest rate on one-month SBI promissory notes fell slightly at the weekly auction Wednesday, the central bank said. The one-month SBI notes stood at 15.11 percent from 15.14 percent last week, the central bank said. Bank Indonesia also said it accepted Rp 17 trillion (US$1.9 billion) in bids at the auction, or 85.5 percent of total bids.

Megawati 'should not betray the party's wishes' Ahmad Junaidi, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta Dozens of supporters of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) expressed their anger on Wednesday at party chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri's support for the reelection of Jakarta Governor Sutiyoso.

Legislators urged to simulate election The Jakarta Post, Jakarta Activists from non-governmental organizations (NGO) have urged the House of Representatives to start making practical preparations for the general election to test the applicability of the election bill. Adi Abidin, a senior official of The Asia Foundation said the preparations could help avoid any possible errors in the 2004 election.

Slow constitutional reform puts elections at risk Berni K. Moestafa and Hari Kurniawan, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta The government may have to delay the 2004 general election if the slow deliberation of amendments to the 1945 Constitution prevents legislators from passing new election laws on time, legislators warned on Wednesday.

Indonesians, Timorese charged with crimes against humanity Joanna Jolly Associated Press Dili, East Timor Prosecutors on Wednesday charged two Indonesian officers and 14 pro-Jakarta East Timorese militiamen with crimes against humanity for their alleged involvement in the deaths of dozens of people during East Timor's violent break with Indonesia in 1999.

Fare hike another slap in the face for the poor Berni K. Moestafa, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta Widespread criticism of the government is growing as transportation fares are set to go up by 40 percent following its earlier fuel price increases. Critics slammed the decision as a slap in the face of the poor, and called into question the government's unilateral approach of raising the fares. "It's bad.

SBI rate down slightly to 15.11 percent The weighted average interest rate on one-month Bank Indonesia SBI promissory notes fell slightly to 15.11 percent at the Wednesday weekly auction, the central bank said. The benchmark interest rate was at 15.14 percent last week. Bank Indonesia said it accepted Rp 17 trillion (US$1.93 billion) in bids at the auction, or 85.5 percent of total bids.

Jakarta has facilities, but a tough place to live Despite its hustle and bustle of businesses, many Jakartans find that the city is tough and unfriendly. Some find that the city provides the facilities they need while others feel the city is too cruel to the poor. Some residents share their feelings for the city with The Jakarta Post. Yusup, 18, is a squatter who lives on the banks of the West Flood Canal in Teluk Gong, Penjaringan district, North Jakarta.

The IMF predicament Yanuar Nugroho, General Secretary, Uni Sosial Demokrat, Jakarta, yanuar-n@unisosdem.org It has been five years since the first intervention of the IMF in Indonesia in October 1997.

Authorities bust child refugee trafficking Yemris Fointuna, The Jakarta Post, Kupang Local security authorities have broken up a network that allegedly trafficked dozens of East Timorese toddlers over the last year. The head of the Wirasakti Militry Command in East Nusa Tenggara, Col. Muswarno Moesanip, said on Wednesday that most of the children were taken from refugee camps in the province and sent to orphanages in Java.

I met Syafiuddin, did not hire hitmen to murder him: Tommy Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra, who is accused of masterminding the murder of Supreme Court Justice M. Syafiuddin Kartasasmita, admitted on Wednesday that he had privately met the judge but denied he had hired hitmen to kill him.

Petronas' profits falls 16% KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's national oil company Petronas said Wednesday its pre-tax profit fell 16.2 percent for the year to March from the previous year to 24.32 billion ringgit (US$6.4 billion). The oil giant said it posted revenues of 67.181 billion ringgit for the period, down 8.4 percent from the year-earlier 73.351 billion. Petronas attributed the falls to the global economic slowdown in 2001, the Sept.

Woman accuses public order officers of sexual harassment I Wayan Juniartha The Jakarta Post Denpasar The Denpasar Police have vowed to thoroughly investigate a formal complaint filed by a 24-year-old woman who claims that she and five other women were sexually harassed by the chief of the city's Public Order Office (Tramtib) and two of his men when the women were detained at the office.

Telkom ordered to pay dividends The Jakarta Post, Jakarta The government said on Wednesday it would require all publicly listed state-owned companies, including telecommunication firm PT Telkom, to pay their annual dividend to the state coffers in accordance with the regulations, and warned of sanctions for those who failed to comply.

AGO hunts for convicted banker JAKARTA: The Attorney General's Office is trying to locate the former director of the now-defunct private Bank Servitia, David Nusa Wijaya, who was sentenced to one year in prison for misusing Rp 25.6 billion in state liquidity support funds. Attorney General Office's spokesman Barman Zahir said on Wednesday the search started when the Jakarta High Court ordered state prosecutors on May 20 to execute a lower court's previous ruling to put David in prison.

Megawati launches month-long national antidrug campaign Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta Alarmed by the rising incidence of drug abuse, President Megawati Soekarnoputri launched on Wednesday a month-long national antidrug campaign, and urged judges to hand down the death sentence to drug traffickers. "To mark the beginning of the national campaign, I would like to invite the public to turn their vehicles' lights on from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

40 students expelled over drugs JAKARTA: Trisakti University has expelled 40 students over the past three years for using drugs, rector Thoby Mutis said on Wednesday. "To take real action to combat drug use, I issued decree No. 342/1999 to dismiss any student, employee and lecturer at the university involved in drugs," he was quoted by Antara as saying.

Report of deadly rice worries Bekasi BEKASI: Residents of Kedung Waringin subdistrict in Bekasi regency are reportedly worried over a report that the area's subsidized rice has been poisoned, a chairman of a non- governmental organization said. "They're very worried over the issue of poisoned rice that has been distributed to them," Bekasi Youngsters Committee (KAMBEK) Chairman Guntur Mulyana told the press here on Wednesday.

Bulukumba: S. Sulawesi's tourist magnet MAKASSAR, South Sulawesi: The regency of Bulukumba in South Sulawesi is to be promoted as one of the region's major tourist magnets with Bira in Bontobahari district as its hub. Bulukumba Regent H.A. Patabai Pabokori said in Makassar on Wednesday that his regency had lots to offer tourists from natural landscapes such as coasts, mountains, lakes and caves to cultural events and historic relics.