Moment of pure Hollywood in Saddam's hometown Luke Harding, Guardian News Service, Tikrit, Iraq It is not difficult to find a statue of Saddam Hussein in Tikrit, the town of a thousand Saddams. There is the equine statue of Saddam - sword in hand - in Tikrit's main square. Then there are numerous other Saddams - in linen suits, military uniforms, and wearing Arab headdresses. Outside Tikrit's football stadium there is even a mural of a paternal Saddam,with his arm round his elder son Uday.

TV Program: Sunday, April 20, 2003 .TB.30" .90" TVRI 6:00 a.m. News: Berita Pagi 7:00 English New Service 9:00 Children's Program: Media Kids 11:00 Variety Show: Maskum Show 12:00 p.m.News: Berita Siang 12:30 Traditional Comedy: Mustika Campur Sari 3:00 English For Fun 4:00 Sports 5:00 Entertainment 6:00 News: Berita Petang 7:00 Comedy: Paviliun 21 7:30 Music: Dansa Yo Dansa 9:00 News: Berita Malam TPI 6:00 a.m.

Important but financially impossible for most Leo Wahyudi S, Contributor, Jakarta Despite the controversy over the weakness of education for the very young, some parents still consider it vital. Nini, mother of four-year old Veraldi, said her only son deserved the best education she could offer him. Having recently moved from Singapore, she enrolled her son in preschool early this year.

Blazer DOHC: SUV that will pamper your family Nitza Arbi and Zatni Arbi, Contributors, Jakarta Americans, or those who have spent some time in the U.S., will immediately recognize "Blazer" as the name of an American SUV. Interestingly, when this car first entered the Indonesian market, it was introduced as an Opel Blazer, while Opel is more widely known as a European car.

Megawati looks for Romanian guns as U.S. embargo takes toll Agencies, Jakarta President Megawati Soekarnoputri is looking into possible cooperation in the weapons industry with Romania to accommodate Indonesia's need for weapons after an almost four-year military embargo imposed by the United States. In the second day of her visit on Saturday to the Eastern European country, Megawati had the chance to see the weaponry industries and a demonstration from the Romanian military.

INDONESIA: Amid escalating tension in strife-torn Aceh, an army soldier was stabbed to death on Saturday, allegedly by members of the separatist Free Aceh Movement (GAM), at Glumpang Payong cattle market in Jeumpa district, Bireuen regency, some 210 kilometers east of Banda Aceh, the capital of Aceh. The dead soldier, identified as First Private Sukri, was a member of the Sriwijaya Military Command's 144th Infantry Battalion.

Helping kids to be creative through Si Komo Sudibyo M. Wiradji, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta Though there is a growing interest among upper-class parents to send their children to preschools with a Western curriculum, there are still a few schools offering specifically Indonesian curriculum that continue to receive a good response from the public. Among these are the preschools under the umbrella of the Mutiara Foundation and the Mentari Foundation.

Fear grips Aceh as war looms Nani Farida, The Jakarta Post, Banda Aceh The country's westernmost province of Aceh is awash not only with natural resources, but also with horrifying stories of children being orphaned, women raped and fathers and husbands assassinated during the military operation to quell the separatist movement in the province from 1989 to 1998.

Escaped RI SARS patient in HK Agencies, Hong Kong A runaway SARS patient who fled Indonesia where he was being kept in isolation was tracked down in Hong Kong Saturday, while a second patient with fewer SARS symptoms escaped a hospital quarantine in Bali. The 47-year-old Briton, believed to be Indonesia's sole case of probable Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), went missing after checking out of a Jakarta hospital Wednesday.

Iraq: U.S. uses ur-symbol of civilization Oliver Burkeman, Guardian News Service, Washington When the Bush administration said last week that a crucial meeting of Iraqi politicians would take place "outside Nasiriyah", there was little hint of how powerfully symbolic the chosen location would be.

Reading, vital key to winning debating contest M. Taufiqurrahman, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta There probably are not many youngsters in Indonesia who spend their youth digesting Salman Rushdie's The Midnight Children, Isabelle Allende's The House of the Spirits or Gabriel Marcia Marquez's One Hundred Years of Solitude. But this was what it took to become the Indonesian school debating contest champions.

Levi's Type 1 for the young Novan Iman Santosa, The Jakarta Post , Lido, West Java The public may have the impression that all Levi's jeans have a basic and classical design, easily recognized with their well- known icons of double stitching, leather patches, rivets and red tab. Despite all the commotion in the fashion world, Levi Strauss & Co. has kept all ingredients in the recipe. But now the company is feeling it may be just the right time to change by introducing the Type 1 series.

Preparing children to enter the real world Debbie A. Lubis, Contributor, Jakarta "Twinkle-twinkle little star how I wonder what you are. Up above the world so high, like a diamond in the sky...", sang four children as they came out of the elevator at Tutor Time Pondok Indah. The children were about to enter the "village" room where they would learn socio-dramatic play.

RMS supporters warned of subversion Azis Tunny The Jakarta Post Ambon, Maluku Maluku authorities renewed their warning against the South Maluku Republic (RMS) separatist movement, saying strong measures would be taken against those supporting for RMS and its affiliate, the Maluku Sovereignty Forum (FKM), in observance of the separatist movement's 54th anniversary on April 24.

Aceh administration must be audited From Rakyat Merdeka The central government has channeled trillions of rupiah to Aceh, but the province has hardly enjoyed the fruits of development. What is wrong with this situation?

SARS and people's irrationality From Koran Tempo The mass media has been reporting on the fast spread of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) in some countries in the world, including Indonesia. The media also reported that there are some people here infected with the virus, while another report revealed that a woman migrant worker suspected of having caught the disease had refused to be treated.

China objects This is in response to the letter Taiwan and global health published in The Jakarta Post on March 29, 2003. The article made use of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) as a pretext to criticize the Chinese government, and to advocate Taiwan's entry into the World Health Organization (WHO), whose membership is strictly confined to sovereign states. I wish to present our views and clarification on this matter. The Chinese government attaches great importance to SARS.

Chinese music troupe strives to survive Hera Diani, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta Beneath the escalator, amid the cosmetics counters that sprawl on the ground floor of Sogo Department Store, Plaza Senayan, Central Jakarta, a group of six elders were playing traditional Chinese instruments. Dressed in blue cheong sam, they performed instrumental Chinese songs on ta yoan (banjo-like bass), xiao (traditional flute), erhu (a viola-like instrument) and yang kim.

Reason must prevail From Kompas Protests against the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq have flared up across the country, involving nearly all social groups. Regrettably, some protesters who have held their rallies in front of several U.S. companies, have also damaged U.S.-based franchise restaurants selling fast foods. In addition, some university students threw rotten eggs and paint at the American Express Building on Jl. Rasuna Said, Jakarta, on March 26, 2003.

Modern dance group tours during troubling times Zoel Mohamad, Contributor, Jakarta They originally planned to perform their in September 2001, but the performance was postponed due to the Sept. 11 tragedy in New York and Washington. Condors, the contemporary Japanese dance company, based in trendy Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo, psyched themselves into performing in the Southeast Asian cities of Jakarta, Denpasar and Singapore as well as in Australia in the midst of U.S.-led war in Iraq.

The grass always seems greener across the fence... So the war is over, the media tells us. At least we can breathe a sigh of relief that it lasted only about three weeks, and not the months -- or even years -- that some armchair pessimists were predicting. At this point it may be as well to reflect on how things are panning out in Iraq from our perspective over here, in Indonesia. That ubiquitous beast, corruption, appears to be rearing its ugly head again.

GAM is untrustworthy From Koran Tempo The Cessation of Hostilities Agreement between the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) and the Indonesian government, inked in Geneva, Switzerland, some time ago, has allowed free rein to GAM's activities. Since the signing of the agreement GAM has openly committed some 300 acts of violence in Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam (NAD). Why have we let it happen? Four months have elapsed and nothing of significance has been achieved.

Where to go in Jakarta:Sunday, April 20, 2003 Exhibitions * Painting by Shi Hu, National Museum, Jl. Medan Merdeka Barat No. 12, Central Jakarta (Tel. 3812346, 3868172), 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., until April 27. * Painting, Milestones Of Modesty, by I Made Djirna, at Graha Paramita Building, Jl. Denpasar Raya Blok D 2 Kav.8, Kuningan, South Jakarta,(Tel. 5265161, Ext: 852), 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., until April 24.