Govt urged to fight human trafficking BATAM, Riau: An official from the United States, John R. Miller, has urged the Indonesian government to help fight human trafficking. Miller said there were about 800,000 cases of human trafficking worldwide per year -- 12,000 of which entered the U.S. He said the U.S. government considered the practice a form of modern slavery, which is why it has made human trafficking a priority crime that must be eradicated. Under U.S.

Megawati and NU seek 'mutual understanding' Indra Harsaputra and I.D. Nugroho The Jakarta Post Malang, East Java Chairwoman of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) Megawati Soekarnoputri met on Saturday with the chairman of the largest Muslim organization, the Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), and dozens of religious leaders, or kyai, in a visit she claimed was a mere reunion among friends.

Party leaders drum up support Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta As the campaign period draws near, party leaders and presidential candidates are busy visiting the provinces apparently to drum-up support for the approaching general elections. The visits come despite new guidelines clarifying what are prohibited forms of early campaigning. On Saturday, Golkar Party Chairman Akbar Tandjung made his first political safari since the Supreme Court aquitted him from corruption charges.

JP/3/BOX Outline of PNI Marhaenisme's platform: During 32 years of the New Order's rule all methods were undertaken to conduct de-Sukarnoisasi (a dismantling of all things related to Sukarno), which led to fertile soil for the growth of neo-capitalism. Our nation lost its dignity and has been easily dictated to by foreign countries. Our earlier self reliant nation became dependent and indebted to foreign nations.

Haj pilgrim dies on flight home BANDA ACEH, Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam: Hafsah binti Hasyim, a 72-year-old haj pilgrim, died of a heart attack on her flight home on Saturday. A spokesman for the haj organizer, Aiyub Ahmad, said the woman's body would be transported to her home in Lam Peudeu Tunong, Pidie regency, Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam. Of the total of some 200,000 Indonesian pilgrims this year, 15 from Aceh died.

Japan will propose a new currency swap framework with its Asian neighbor countries to avert a financial meltdown in the region, a daily said on Saturday. Japan plans to make the proposal in May, when finance ministers of the Association of the Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) as well as China and South Korea meet, the Asahi Shimbun said.

Why national elections will not be democratic in Aceh Otto Syamsuddin Ishak, Civil Society Alliance for Democracy (Yappika), Jakarta Pro-democracy activists are convinced that as a political system, democracy also serves as a mechanism capable of transforming a violent clash (war) into a peaceful conflict. This, however, is only true if people are allowed to live by democratic values, including pluralism, tolerance, transparency and negotiation.

Prevention of bird flu cheap: Breeder Suherdjoko, The Jakarta Post, Kendal, Central Java While hundreds of poultry farms in Indonesian have been badly affected by the bird flu virus, a farm owned by one Agus Wiryono in Boja district, Kendal regency, near Semarang, has avoided the same fate. Millions of chickens in Indonesia have been culled because of bird flu and other viruses, but not a single chicken on Agus' farm has been affected by bird flu. "The secret is very simple.

* Headlines: Regions objects to autonomy law amendment 2 * National: House to deliberate bill on presidency 4 * Archipelago: Jakarta urged to step in Kampar affair 5 * Opinion: Why elections in Aceh won't be democratic 6 * City: Busway project has failed, experts say 8 * Sports: Eagle on 18th puts Daly in front 9 * World: Kerry scores easy wins in Nevada and DC 11 * Business: NY court rules in favor of Asia Pulp and Paper 13 * Features: New Pavilion for digital geeks 17

Tommy to testify against Sidiq JAKARTA: Convicted felon Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra is scheduled to testify as a witness in the trial of Islamic boarding school leader Abdullah Sidiq Muin at the Central Jakarta District Court on Monday after previously skipping the trial on seven occasions.

JP/ / Indonesia police arrest key suspect in Sulawesi cafe blast Another detained suspect, Jasmin, has told police that the attack was part of an Islamic holy war against vice. Police said Jasmin had admitted that he and Achmad had assembled the bomb and placed it under a table in the cafe, AFP reported. Four other suspects still on the wanted list. Indonesia has been hit by a series of bombings over the past two years, notably the Bali blasts in October 2002 which killed 202 people.

Regions criticize govt for autonomy amendment Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta Chairman of Regency Administrations' Association (Apkasi) Syaukani criticized on Saturday the government's decision to annul the supervisory function of regional governments over their respective budgets, saying the move would only hamper the administration of regions.

checked EJK The world's fastest growing technology The Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) telecommunications system has become the fastest growing technology worldwide, thanks to its increasing number of users.

CDMA operators start to compete GSM carriers Rudijanto Contributor Jakarta When state-owned telecommunications company PT Telkom Tbk (Telkom) launched its first fixed wireless telephone service based on Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) technology, the TelkomFlexi, in Surabaya, Balikpapan and Denpasar in 2002, many people believed the new service would pose a deadly threat for Global Service for Mobile Communications (GSM) cellular operators.

Duping the thieves From Warta Kota With bank customers still facing robbery everyday, I would like to suggest the following measures to reduce the risks. While hiring police guards, you should also prepare two bags of the same shape and color before going to the bank. The first is empty and reserved for the money to be collected and the second is filled with banknote-like paper sheets.

Row grows over Malaysia nuclear link claim Agencies The Jakarta Post Kuala Lumpur Malaysian opposition parties are stepping up their pressure against Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's leadership by raising several issues over the weekend, including charges by U.S. President George W. Bush that Malaysia was a link in the nuclear weapons black market, and a demand to release jailed former deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim.

Farmers demand insurance for bird flu YOGYAKARTA: Poultry farmers across the country grouped under the Association of Fowl Breeders demanded on Saturday the government pay them between Rp 25 million (US$2,941) and Rp 100 million if they were to become infected with bird flu. The farmers said this insurance scheme would help give them a feeling of safety as they went about their work breeding chickens.

Withdrawing cash? Ask for police for help Evi Mariani, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta Jakarta Police are recommending that bank customers who withdraw a large amount of money avail of a free police escort service in an effort to curb rampant robbery attempts. "It's better for customers to first contact the police for an escort before they withdraw money," said Jakarta Police spokesperson Sr. Comr. Prasetyo over the weekend. "As far as I know, the police never refuse to assist the public.

Police to get Rp 15b for election SAMARINDA, East Kalimantan: The East Kalimantan administration has approved a request by the East Kalimantan Police for Rp 15 billion to help them guard the upcoming election in the province. "The request has been approved and the money will be immediately disbursed," said Syaiful Teteng, secretary to the East Kalimantan administration.

Bombing suspect arrested S. Sulawesi MAKASSAR, South Sulawesi: South Sulawesi Police have arrested another suspect in last month's deadly bombing at the Sampoddo Cafe Indah in town of Palopo. Police identified the suspect as Achmad, who they said played a role in planning the bombing. He was arrested on Saturday in Palu, the capital of South Sulawesi. He was the sixth suspect in the bombing to be arrested.

Public toilets invaluable to locals Multa Fidrus, The Jakarta Post, Tangerang Some 1,500 Cerewed villagers in a slum area of Cikupa district, Tangerang regency, likely never could have imagined that a public bathroom would be so invaluable, not only a place with sanitary toilets, but a source of free cooking gas and inexpensive water. A bit of nifty intermediate technology in the septic tanks can pipe the naturally occurring methane gas directly to neighborhood kitchens.

Outline of PNI Marhaenisme's platform: During 32 years of the New Order's rule all methods were undertaken to conduct de-Sukarnoisasi (a dismantling of all things related to Sukarno), which led to fertile soil for the growth of neo-capitalism. Our nation lost its dignity and has been easily dictated to by foreign countries. Our earlier self reliant nation became dependent and indebted to foreign nations.

1. DENGUE: 2 LINES, 15 COUNTS Dengue fever cases in Jakarta triple 2. AKBAR: 2 LINES, 12 COUNTS Akbar's acquittal spurs call for control of courts 3. MARIAH: 2 LINES, 21 COUNTS Concert costly and brief but Mariah still charms 4. IBRA: 1 LINE, 32 COUNTS IBRA closure to leave huge burdens

Indian cricketers yet to smile NEW DELHI: Indian cricketers are still gripped by security fears despite the government's go-ahead for next month's historic tour of Pakistan, reports said Sunday. Indian cricket chief Jagmohan Dalmiya assured that no player would be forced go on the Test tour, the national team's first to Pakistan since 1989. "They are not going there for war, but to play cricket.

Cafes, malls packed on Valentine's Day MEDAN, North Sumatra: Thousands of young people in the North Sumatra capital of Medan descended on the city's cafes, malls and restaurants on Saturday to celebrate Valentine's Day. Several cafe and restaurant owners said business increased by as much as 300 percent from a normal Saturday night. Many people were turned away from fully booked restaurants and cafes.

Bank Indonesia aims to improve skills of banks' staffs The Jakarat Post, Jakarta Bank Indonesia will require staff members at the country's banks to receive competence certification in their respective fields as part of the effort to improve the banking industry. The head of the financial system stability division at the central bank, Mulyaman Hadad, was quoted by Antara as saying on Saturday the certification requirement would also help push banks' staffs to continue to improve their expertise.

War of information From Media Indonesia Some experts say that information control is a precondition for global domination. Wiretapping is, in fact, a method to gain information by illegal means. It is only legalized by countries in government institutions, such as intelligence agencies or its secret services. In the case of wiretapping the Indonesian Embassy by Australia, such methods incur a breach of ethics in international relations, which can certainly disturb diplomatic ties.

Ramaala wins Mumbai marathon BOMBAY, India: South Africa's Hendrik Ramaala braved heat and humidity to lead an African sweep of the men's event in the Mumbai international marathon on Sunday. The 32-year-old broke away in the last 10 km of the route through the streets of Bombay to win the race comfortably in two hours 15 minutes 47 seconds. Jilus Sugut of Kenya was second in 2:16.36 with Tanzania's Lucian Timobo (2:16:50) a close third.

Festival Rasuna sets longest breakfast table record Urip Hudiono, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta On the second day of the Festival Rasuna 2004, a national record was achieved during breakfast, when participants dined at a 1,114-meter-long chain of tables. The record, the first of its kind, was recognized by the Indonesian Museum of Records (MURI) on Sunday.

Ibra closure to leave huge burdens Dadan Wijaksana, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta With the government preparing to close down the Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency (IBRA) two weeks from now, the country stands to lose about 72 percent of the Rp 660 trillion (about US$7.76 billion) in state funds injected into ailing banks during the late 1990s financial crisis, leaving the people to bear the burden.