Ba'asyir sentence demand stands JAKARTA: Prosecutors reiterated their demand on Monday that the Central Jakarta District Court sentence Muslim cleric Abu Bakar Ba'asyir to 15 years in jail. Chief prosecutor Hasan Madani told the court evidence was solid to prove the defendant's guilt in subversion and violating immigration law, such that he deserved to remain in jail for 15 years.

Wiranto insists on presidential bid YOGYAKARTA: One of Golkar's presidential aspirants, former military chief Wiranto, dismissed on Monday a possibility of running for the vice presidency if his bid for the presidency failed. The retired army general, who was fired from his Cabinet post by then president Abdurrachman Wahid in the wake of the East Timor investigations, said he was not seeking a Cabinet post.

Asian currencies mixed late Dow Jones, Singapore The Philippine peso kicked off the week by rewriting its record closing low for a fourth straight session on a day of generally mixed performance from Asian currencies. On Monday's holiday in the U.K. damped trading in foreign exchange markets, and traders said regional currencies just drifted with no real direction. "It's a mixed bag. There's no fresh news on the dollar (versus) majors (major global rivals).

SE Asian police chiefs to meet PHILIPPINES: Southeast Asian police chiefs will meet in Manila next month to discuss antiterrorism cooperation, officials said on Monday. Association of Southeast Asian Nations police officials will discuss how to strengthen the region's war on terrorism and cross-border crime during the Sept. 8 through Sept. 11 meeting, Philippine police chief Hermogenes Ebdane said.

Following clashes, govt told not to divide Papua The Jakarta Post, Jakarta Following fatal clashes between opponents and supporters of the establishment of Central Irian Jaya province, the government has come under pressure for its decision to partition the country's easternmost province, Papua. "The government must take law No.

* Headlines:Religious leaders back surveillance on militants 2 * National:Sukhoi probe to continue: House 4 * Archipelago:Lampung council rejects revote to replace Alzier 5 * Opinion:Terrorizing aid agencies a nasty trend 7 * City:Authorities ignore plight of terrorized senior citizens 8 * Sports:Clarke shrugs off lurking Tiger to win NEC title 9 * World:Truce violations, massacre news strain Liberia peace deal 11 * Business:WTO officials submit latest draft before Cancun 16 *...

Religious leaders back surveillance on militants M. Taufiqurrahman, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta Religious leaders have thrown their support behind plans to impose the tight surveillance of a number of districts in West Java -- believed to be home to militants advocating sharia (Islamic law) -- as part of preemptive measures against future terrorist attacks.

Ramayana expects sales to grow to Rp 3.5t Indonesian retailer PT Ramayana Lestari Sentosa expects sales this year to grow above Rp 3.5 trillion (US$415 million), compared with Rp 3.26 trillion the previous year, due to an increase in consumer spending over the next four months. Ramayana's corporate secretary, Dwijanto, also said the rupiah's recent strength against the U.S. dollar and falling interest rates should help improve consumer confidence.

Good forest management Asia Pulp & Paper (APP), one of Indonesia's largest pulp and paper producers, signed a cooperation agreement with the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) last week that could become a model for good forest management for wood-based manufacturing companies in the country. Under the agreement, APP will set aside almost 50 percent, or 58,500 hectares, of its forest concessions in Riau province as conservation areas.

Green NGO to hold int'l workshop JAKARTA: Non-governmental organization Mitra Emisi Bersih (MEB), which campaigns for reduced use of motorized vehicles in order to reduce exhaust emissions in the city, will stage an international workshop and environment exhibition at Jakarta Convention Center, Senayan, Central Jakarta, from Oct. 7 through Oct. 9. The committee will invite experts, mostly from Asian countries, including India, to become speakers at the three-day workshop.

Authorities ignore plight of terrorized senior citizens Zakki Hakim and Tertiani ZB Simanjuntak, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta As the terror at the Pniel nursing home on Jl. KH Samanhudi Dalam in Central Jakarta ended with the management deciding to abandon the century-old facility to the bullyboys, both the public and the police seem to be unmoved by the fate of the terrified senior citizens.

Thais allowed to fish off N. Sumatra Apriadi Gunawan, The Jakarta Post, Medan, North Sumatra The North Sumatra legislative council has approved a proposal for Thai vessels to fish in waters off the province, despite increasing complaints from local fishermen about their small catches, which they blame on rampant theft by foreign vessels.

Prosecutors want Samadikun to appear in court Tertiani ZB Simanjuntak, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta Prosecutors demanded on Monday that the panel of judges in the Central Jakarta District Court dismiss the petition for a judicial review filed by banker Samadikun Hartono, who has thus far managed to escape jail following his conviction in a graft case worth Rp 1.7 trillion (US$202.4 million).

Ilyassak takes two-shot lead at PGPI golf event The Jakarta Post, Jakarta Playing nearly flawless golf on the first day of this PGPI minitour event at the Halim Golf Course II in East Jakarta, Aceh- born Ilyassak took a two-shot lead after carding a four-under-par 68 (33 35) on Monday. This is the third event in this year's minitour, organized by the Association of Professional Golfers of Indonesia (PGPI). It has a total cash prize of Rp 50 million (US$5,400).

Gunungkidul, and the curse of drought ---------------------------------------------------------------- While experts predict that the annual monsoon will not arrive until at least November, the 700,000-plus residents of Gunungkidul regency have been severely affected by this year's drought. The Jakarta Post reporter Sri Wahyuni and contributor Syaiful Amin report from Yogyakarta.

No more logging in Java, govt says Moch. N. Kurniawan and Suherdjoko The Jakarta Post Semarang/Jakarta Due to a threat to the water supply of 128 million people living on Java, the government declared on Monday a ban on logging and decided to review farming policies on this densely populated island.

IBRA achieves highest recovery rate The Jakarta Post Jakarta The Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency (IBRA) achieved the highest recovery rate of 152 percent in the third property assets sale program compared to the previous programs, an observer said this weekend. "I think the PPAP-3 (the third property sale program) is the most successful program," Panangian Simanungkalit, property consultant, told newswire Antara.

Hundreds protest PLN lines Yuli Tri Suwarni, The Jakarta Post, Bandung More than 700 families staged a rally again on Monday in Bandung, West Java, to demand that they be compensated or relocated from their current residential areas beneath dangerous high-voltage transmission lines. The protesters were from six subdistricts of Rancaekek, Solokan Jeruk, Ciparay, Arjasari, Cicalengka and Banjaran. They marched to the West Java legislative council to convey their grievances.

Texmaco, up for sale, misses interest payment Bloomberg, Jakarta Texmaco Group, Indonesia's biggest textile maker, missed a payment on US$3.4 billion of debt due to a state agency that's trying to sell its stake in the group, a spokesman for the Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency (IBRA) said. Texmaco, which last year agreed to reorganize its Rp 29 trillion ($3.4 billion) debt to the agency, missed a Rp 139 billion interest payment due on Aug.

Authority for intelligence Many people question why our intelligence agencies have found it so difficult to find all the local terrorist groups. Intelligence actually puts more emphasis on its support of information, while further action depends on the government's decision to respond to the information through its relevant security arm. So far, intelligence units have provided considerable information through their findings of Jamaah Islamiyah in Semarang.

Malaysia urges Indonesia to cooperate on palm oil to boost prices Agence France-Presse, Kuala Lumpur Malaysia called on Monday for Indonesian cooperation over palm oil production and marketing to help reduce stocks and keep prices at an "acceptable level". "We should cooperate and not undercut each other to compete for existing markets," Primary Industries Minister Lim Keng Yaik told delegates to the International Palm Oil Congress 2003.

Dozens rally to support Beratha DENPASAR, Bali: Dozens of people staged a peaceful protest here on Monday in support of the Bali legislative council's decision to reaffirm the reelection of Bali Governor Dewa Made Beratha despite allegations of bribery in the election. Dressed in traditional Balinese costumes, the protesters from the Forum Rakyat Tresna Bali (FRTB) demanded that Beratha be sworn in as scheduled on Aug. 28. He won the Aug.

Vanuatu recognizes independent Aceh From Media Indonesia On our Independence Day, Aug. 17, this year we were caught by surprise when reading a report that the government of Vanuatu -- a small nation in the South Pacific -- had formally recognized the Free Aceh state, with the legitimate rulers being what we know as the Free Aceh Movement (GAM). Diplomatic relations have therefore been established between the Republic of Vanuatu and the State of Aceh.

1. APP -- 3 cols, 3 lines, 48pts MB, 23 counts WWF urges global firms to stop buying illegal plywood from Indonesia 2. Iraq -- 4 cols, 2 lines, 36pts MB, 35 counts Building Iraq peace costs more lives than winning the war 3. Aceh -- 5 cols, 1 line, 36pts MB, 45 counts RI urges KL to reject Acehnese asylum seekers 4. KL -- 3 cols, 2 lines, 36pts MB, 26 counts Greater vigilance against terror financing called for