Indonesian Political, Business & Finance News

Archive: 23 September 2003

44 articles found

Fire kills one on Jl. Jaksa

Fire kills one on Jl. Jaksa JAKARTA: A fire swept through at least 11 houses on Jl. Jaksa, a popular hangout for foreign backpackers, in Kebon Sirih subdistrict, Central Jakarta on Sunday afternoon, killing one resident.Witnesses said the fire broke out at 3:30 p.m.

'Encyclopedia Mahathir' launched

'Encyclopedia Mahathir' launchedMALAYSIA: A 10-volume encyclopedia of Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad's ideas has been launched ahead of his retirement next month, local media reported on Monday.Available in Arabic and English, the encyclopedia is a compilation of the veteran leader's speeches and...

Pharmaceutical industry: Torn between business and conscience

Pharmaceutical industry: Torn between business and conscienceT. Hidayat, Contributor, Jakarta Medicines are bitter, so goes one Indonesian saying. However, the makers of medicines -- the pharmaceutical industry -- is having a sweet time businesswise.

Landslide victims yet to be found, official refuses financial aid

Landslide victims yet to be found, official refuses financial aidTheresia Sufa, The Jakarta Post, Bogor Rescue workers were unable on Monday to recover the bodies of five sand miners who went missing in a landslide in Bogor, West Java, as fears of more landslides halted Monday's rescue operations.

KPU told to limit media campaign

KPU told to limit media campaign JAKARTA: The General Elections Commission has been urged to immediately issue a ruling limiting political party's media campaigns to prevent illegal dominations."We want the mass media to give all election contestants equal chances to campaign by limiting the number...

E. Timor police kill ex-militiamen

E. Timor police kill ex-militiamen ATAMBUA, East Nusa Tenggara: Authorities said on Monday they were increasing security in the border area between East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) and East Timor after the killing of a former pro- Jakarta militiamen, blamed on police from the neighboring country.

Challenges for Indonesian media people

Challenges for Indonesian media peopleArdimas Sasdi, Staff Writer, The Jakarta Post, Berkeley, California The phenomenal development in information technology (IT) over the last two decades, accelerated by the Internet, has changed many aspects of human activity.

'Refugees forced into sex slavery'

'Refugees forced into sex slavery'Apriadi Gunawan, The Jakarta Post, Medan, North Sumatra At least 1,000 female Acehnese refugees, who fled to neighboring North Sumatra because of war in their homeland, have been forced to become sex workers but the police are doing nothing about it, activists say.

Goldman Sachs eyes China Pacific Life

Goldman Sachs eyes China Pacific Life BEIJING: U.S. investment banking giant Goldman Sachs Group is in talks to buy up to a 10 percent stake in China Pacific Life Insurance for an estimated 2.7 billion yuan (US$326 million), state press reported on Monday.Goldman Sachs Asia has appointed a U.S.

Samsung, Sony to form partnership

Samsung, Sony to form partnership SEOUL: South Korean microchip giant Samsung Electronics said on Monday it was in talks with Japan's Sony Corp. on business ties in flat panel operations."We have been in talks with Sony over ways to cooperate in LCD operations," a Samsung spokesman said.

Plan to buy submarines hailed

Plan to buy submarines hailedSari P. Setiogi, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta Analysts welcomed on Monday the Navy's plan to purchase new submarines and warships, as its defense equipment was already over 20 years old and had begun to deteriorate.

Entertainer arrested for marijuana

Entertainer arrested for marijuana JAKARTA: Police arrested well-known entertainer Avi, 30, on Friday afternoon on suspicion of drug possession. Avi, whose real name is Joko WS, was arrested by police at her rental home on Jl. Gerai in Cipete, South Jakarta, at 3:30 p.m.

Alatas unsure of meeting with Suu Kyi

Alatas unsure of meeting with Suu KyiAung Hla Tun, Reuters, Yangon Indonesian special envoy Ali Alatas went into meetings with Myanmar's military government on Monday sounding less certain that he would meet detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi as she recovered from surgery.

Activists criticize government over water

Activists criticize government over waterMuninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta Observers criticized over the weekend the water resources bill, which calls for the privatization of the water sector to some extent, saying that the decision would threaten the public's right to clean,...

ASEAN urged to open up, unite to be attractive

ASEAN urged to open up, unite to be attractiveAgence France-Presse, Putrajaya, Malaysia Southeast Asian nations must speed up efforts to integrate their economies and liberalise their markets to stay attractive to foreign investors, a business group said on Monday.

Establishing strong brands for over-the-counter drugs

Establishing strong brands for over-the-counter drugsAgus W. Soehadi, Contributor, Jakarta In Indonesia, the pharmaceutical business is one of the most competitive industries. More than 200 companies fight for a share of the Rp 17 trillion (US$2 billion) market.

Thousands concerned about floods

Thousands concerned about floodsBambang Nurbianto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta The onset of the rainy season has caused thousands of people living along the city's rivers to worry about the safety of their homes and the possibility of floods on a similar scale to those of 2002.

'Mega's UN speech mere fluff without enforcement, action'

'Mega's UN speech mere fluff without enforcement, action'Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta President Megawati Soekarnoputri's speech before the United Nations General Assembly could help Indonesia gain greater international support in its war against terrorism, experts say.

'I'm fed up with the annual floods'

'I'm fed up with the annual floods'Rain has started to fall once again in the city. Those people suffering from water shortages have welcomed the apparent arrival of the rainy season with joy -- a joy tempered, however, by concern about the possibility of flooding.

'Sukhoigate' and its effects

'Sukhoigate' and its effectsImanuddin Razak, Staff Writer, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta While the House of Representatives' investigating committee had yet to complete its inquiry into the controversial purchase of four Russian Sukhoi jet fighters, the Indonesian Military (TNI) Headquarters announced...

Senayan vendors to be relocated

Senayan vendors to be relocatedZakki Hakim, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta "We've been hearing for some time that the east parking lot is to be converted into something they're calling an urban forest, but it has never happened," said Nazirman, a vendor who has been selling sportswear for two years at...

Ethnic communities demand customary rights

Ethnic communities demand customary rightsLuh Putu Trisna Wahyuni, The Jakarta Post, Mataram, West Nusa Tenggara Delegates from some 450 traditional communities across the archipelago concluded their second congress in Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara, with a call for the government to restore their...

RI Lacks services for poor: World Bank

RI Lacks services for poor: World BankFitri Wulandari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta Services for the poor in Indonesia are still insufficient and the government has yet to allocate money to make services more available for the poor, the World Bank says.

'Torture footage' at school causes outcry

'Torture footage' at school causes outcryA'an Suryana and Yuli Tri Suwarni, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta In the wake of the public outcry over the death of student Wahyu Hidayat, the Ministry of Home Affairs announced on Monday it had taken over the management of the Public Administration Institute...

It is indeed difficult to manage the country

It is indeed difficult to manage the country Indonesian President Megawati Soekarnoputri has several times complained about how heavy her duty is as head of state.She has already expressed dissatisfaction over government bureaucracy and the performance of cabinet ministers.

ASEAN to sign historic concord in Bali

ASEAN to sign historic concord in BaliMoch. N. Kurniawan and Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta Members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) have agreed to adopt the draft of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC), paving the way for the signing of the Bali Concord II.

Cemeti Art House: A place for artists with ideas

Cemeti Art House: A place for artists with ideasSri Wahyuni, The Jakarta Post, Yogyakarta Contemporary artists Nindityo Adipurnomo and wife Mella Jaarsma never thought the Cemeti Art House, which they established in 1988 as a non-profit institution, would endure for more than a decade, or become...

Secularism is to blame

Secularism is to blameFrom Media Indonesia Indonesians are unfortunate. For several years they have been suffering from a protracted economic crisis characterized by price hikes in almost every aspect of life, ranging from education and daily necessities, to electricity and fuel.

Key ingredients: Scientific, safe and honest

Key ingredients: Scientific, safe and honestIrwan Hidayat, Contributor, Jakarta "Back to nature". This credo is gaining more popularity in recent years. This and the abundant information on health currently available have triggered an increased preference for herbal medicines.

44,000 babies malnourished in C. Java

44,000 babies malnourished in C. Java SEMARANG: As many as 44,633 babies in Central Java province are suffering from malnutrition this year, local health office head Khrisnajaya has said.Of that number, at least 4,378 babies were very poorly nourished, he added.

RI vows to protect agro-products

RI vows to protect agro-productsEvi Mariani and Johannes Simbolon, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta The government has vowed to continue protecting certain agricultural commodities against liberalization and will align with tens of other poor countries to block any efforts at the World Trade Organization...

Rabies kills Maluku children

Rabies kills Maluku children AMBON, Maluku: The United Nations Children's Fund (Unicef) expressed on Monday grave concern about a rabies epidemic in Maluku province, where 11 people have died from the animal-borne disease since 1999.

18 in race for Tangerang mayor

18 in race for Tangerang mayor TANGERANG: A total of 18 mayoral and 16 deputy mayoral candidates in Tangerang municipality will contest the elections for the 2003-2008 period.The elections will be held before the end of November at the Municipal Council building on Jl. Satria Sudirman, Tangerang.

Traffic congestion in Bintaro

Traffic congestion in BintaroFrom Bisnis Indonesia Under the assumption that the toll road would help ease access from Bumi Serpong Damai (BSD) to Jakarta through Bintaro, as part of the integrated Jakarta Outer Ring Road, the real estate developer opened up the BSD-Bintaro toll road without taking...

Romanian team in town for talks

Romanian team in town for talks JAKARTA: A high-powered delegation from the Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs arrived here on Sunday to hold talks with Indonesia on bilateral matters and international issues of common interest.

Supervising central bank

Supervising central bank The amendments to the 1999 Bank Indonesia Act that were proposed by the government in late 2000 were designed to have been approved by the House of Representatives by January, 2001 at the latest because the proposed changes would affect only several articles that would make...

Strike ends, KPC expects full production next week

Strike ends, KPC expects full production next weekEvi Mariani, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta After going on strike for several weeks, about 2,300 workers of East Kalimantan-based PT Kaltim Prima Coal returned to work on Sunday morning.

Troops intensify raids on GAM hideouts in Sabang

Troops intensify raids on GAM hideouts in SabangThe Jakarta Post, Jakarta More than 150 military and police personnel continued the hunt on Monday for at least 15 separatist rebels in a mountainous area of Sabang regency, Aceh province, where the military earlier launched an air strike on their...

Youths meet to boost nationalism

Youths meet to boost nationalism JAKARTA: Three national meetings of youth organizations will be held in Aceh, Jakarta, and Papua as part of Youths Oath Day on Oct. 28.The meetings were expected to produce a resolution for Indonesian youths to help resolve problems of nationhood and statehood.

RI students deny terror links

RI students deny terror linksThe Jakarta Post, Jakarta Two Indonesian students arrested in Pakistan denied links to any terrorist group on Monday and insisted that they entered the country on scholarships from the Pakistani government.

Traffic jams near vihara

Traffic jams near vihara On Sept. 11, 2003, while in a taxi from Grogol, we took the toll road heading toward the Ancol Barat/Mangga Dua exit.We could see from the toll road that the road before the Ancol Barat exit, which lies in front of the Buddhist Vihara Indonesia, was jammed with the parked...

BPK audits customs office over possible irregularities

BPK audits customs office over possible irregularitiesRendi A. Witular, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta The Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) will conduct an investigative audit of import duties collected by the Directorate General of Customs and Excise after discovering suspected irregularities during an...

'U.S.' barring RI access to Hambali may hamper case'

'U.S.' barring RI access to Hambali may hamper case'Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta The United States' reluctance to allow Indonesia to question Hambali, the suspected leader of the Jamaah Islamiyah (JI) terror network, could hamper the prosecution's case against him, warns a...

Man swallows dentures after headache

Man swallows dentures after headache BANJARMASIN, South Kalimantan: A man was in critical condition on Monday after unintentionally swallowing his false teeth along with medicine to get rid of an excruciating headache.