24 parties vow to maintain peace

24 parties vow to maintain peace

JAKARTA: All 24 political parties eligible to join the general
election have signed a nine-point agreement to maintain peace
before, during and after the April 5 polls.

The agreement was signed on Friday at the General Elections
Commission (KPU) building.

The accord allows parties to conduct activities in all areas
in the country, obliges parties to respect press freedom and
avoid bribing voters, election commissions, the supervisory
committee and monitors.

Indonesia is to hold the legislative election on April 5 and
presidential election on July 5.

The second phase of the presidential election would be held on
Sept. 20 if no single candidate receives 51 percent of the vote.
--JP

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Rare animals trade out of control
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Rare animal trade out of control

DENPASAR, Bali: Inter-island trading in rare animals in
Indonesia is getting out of hand, therefore law-enforcement
agencies need to step up efforts to fight the illegal trade,
local conservationist I Wayan Wiradnyana said here on Saturday.

Wayan said hundreds of rare animals such as orangutans,
gibbons, sloths, eagles and cockatoos were sent every week from
the island of Sumatra to Java.

Based on a study conducted by Wayan and his team in Medan,
Bengkulu, Lampung, Kalimantan, Jakarta, Surabaya, Bali and Papua,
the rare animals were transported by inter-city buses.

Despite the Natural Resources Conservation Agency's efforts to
stop the inter-island trade in rare animals by keeping a close
watch on people and cargo passing through bus terminals and
seaports, the illegal trade continued, Wayan said.

He said that not only Jakarta but also Semarang and Surabaya
on Java island were known as entry points for the transport of
rare animals from Sumatra, Kalimantan and Papua. --Antara

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Islands proposed as heritage sites

JAKARTA: The Kakaban and Derawan Islands in Berau district,
East Kalimantan, are being proposed as a world heritage site due
to their uniqueness, Kehati Foundation chairwoman Erna Witoelar
said.

"We are trying to win the status for the islands together with
the government and the local people. Pak Rokhmin Dahuri
(fisheries and marine resources minister) has agreed to the
initiative," she said on Friday.

Meanwhile, Emil Salim, co-founder of the foundation, said the
Kakaban and Derawan islands were unique in their marine
biodiversity and formed by the earth's tectonic forces.

Erna said, beside the islands, Tensenilo forest in Riau would
also be proposed as a world heritage site for its myriad of
animal and plant species.

Of the six world heritage sites located in Indonesia, three
are nature reserves, namely Ujung Kulon in Banten, West Java,
Komodo Island in East Nusa Tenggara and the Lorentz Mountain
Range in Papua.

The other three are cultural heritage sites, including the
Borobudur Temple in the Central Java regency of Magelang.

A researcher with the development and environmental program of
UNESCO, Jan H. Steven, said each country was allowed to propose a
location to the UN body to be recognized as a world heritage
site.

The proposal must come from people living near the site, he
added. -- Antara

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PPD to fight for free education
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PPD to fight for free education

JAKARTA: The newly established Regional United Party (PPD)
vowed on Saturday to fight for free education for all, improved
health care and better regional welfare.

During the party's meeting in the East Java town of Pasuruan
on Saturday, chairman Oesman Sapta said the PPD was seeking the
people's support in the upcoming elections in order to help them
deal with their daily problems.

"PPD members will provide concrete solutions to the people's
problems, wherever they are," Oesman told hundreds of party
members.

The PPD is among 24 political parties that have been declared
eligible to contest the general election on April 5.

During the meeting, Oesman introduced the party's legislative
candidates for East Java.

Oesman was also scheduled to pay a visit to the grave of
founding president Sukarno in Blitar, also in East Java.--Antara

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AG returns dossier on May riots
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Dossier on May riots returned

BENGKULU, Bengkulu: The Attorney General's Office has returned
the dossier on the May 1998 riots in Jakarta to the National
Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) for additional
information.

Attorney General M.A. Rachman said on Saturday prosecutors
required more information regarding the commission's findings on
the riots, which preceded the fall of long-time ruler Soeharto.

"The dossier from Komnas HAM needs revision, that is why we
returned it to them," Rachman said in Bengkulu after opening a
seminar on corruption.

Komnas HAM chairman Abdul Hakim Garuda Nusantara said earlier
the commission had concluded that gross human rights violations
took place during the three days of rioting in Jakarta in May
1998, which followed the shooting deaths of four Trisakti
University students.

The commission's inquiry team, led by Salahudin Wahid, had
submitted the dossier to the Attorney General's Office, which is
authorized to launch a formal investigation of the riots.
--Antara