BIN, FBI hold talks in Bali

INDONESIA: Officials of the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) held a meeting with leaders of Indonesia's National Intelligence Agency (BIN) in Jimbaran, Bali, on Saturday.

But there was no information on the results of the tightly- guarded meeting, as all participants left the room at the Ritz- Carlton Hotel in Jimbaran through a secret exit.

The FBI entourage were led by Director Robert Mueller during the talks with BIN officials who were led by their chief A.M. Hendropriyono.

It was Mueller's second meeting with Indonesian security officials in as many days after he held a closed-door discussion with Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and National Police Chief Gen. Da'i Bachtiar on Friday night also in Bali.

Mueller told a press conference on Friday that the bilateral talks with Soesilo focused on mutual security efforts to fight international terrorism and to deal with transnational crimes.

Susilo welcomed the cooperation offer, but reminded reporters that it should be based on a mutual understanding that each country adheres to a different legal system, laws and domestic issues in coping with terrorist threats. -- JP

;AFP; ANPAc..r.. Saudi-Indonesia-hajj Seven Saudi security men wounded in clash with Indonesian pilgrim JP/SAUDI

RI pilgrims clash with security men: Report

SAUDI ARABIA: Seven members of the Saudi security forces were injured in clashes with rioting Indonesian pilgrims in the Muslim holy city of Medina in western Saudi Arabia Friday, the Saudi daily Al-Watan reported.

The trouble began when pilgrims attacked an Egyptian worker with knives and sharp instruments and held him captive in their compound, accusing him of sexually harassing an female Indonesian pilgrim, the paper said Saturday.

Angry pilgrims wielding sticks and stones attacked security forces, who intervened to protect the Egyptian worker and arrest him.

"Seven members of the security forces were injured and four of their vehicles damaged" when they tried to disperse the protesters, Al-Watan said.

Seven pilgrims were arrested, and security forces managed to seize the Egyptian worker.

The man, who was already wounded, was lashed in public "in a bid to defuse an explosive situation," the newspaper said.

It said the Egyptian man had a Saudi "accomplice" who managed to flee. -- AFP

;AP; ANPA ..r.. Hong Kong-Airplane-Scissors Passenger with scissors tries to rush onto jet in Hong Kong JP/2/HIGH

Scissors-wielding man gets on jet

HONG KONG: A Thai man carrying two pairs of scissors and a nail clipper in his luggage tried to rush onto a China Airlines jet and was arrested, officials said on Saturday.

The 22-year-old passenger, identified by police only as Lithaison, was passing through security at Chek Lap Kok airport late Friday when staff found the sharp objects, police spokeswoman Amy Tam said.

After guards raised an alarm, Lithaison snatched his bag and ran up two floors through the departure gate and attempted to run into the plane, Tam said.

China Airlines, a Taiwan carrier, said Saturday the man was briefly on one of its planes before police took him away.

Police said the man stopped here in transit on a trip from Taipei to Bangkok, but they did not provide the flight numbers.

The man remained in custody on Saturday as an investigation continued. -- AP

;AP; ANPAc..r.. Thailand-DrugsArrest Police arrest alleged marijuana smuggler headed for Malaysia JP/2/HIGH

Thai police nab alleged ganja smuggler

THAILAND: Police arrested on Saturday a Thai man who allegedly smuggled 200 kilograms of marijuana from Laos and planned to sell it in Malaysia.

Vichai Buagnarm, 32, was stopped by police while driving a pick up on a highway in Nakorn Ratchasima province, 230 kilometers northeast of Bangkok.

The marijuana was hidden in the vehicle under a plastic sheet covered by piles of rubber shoes, said police Maj. Gen. Theera Chamnonmor.

Vichai confessed that he bought the drug in Laos for US$6,800 and would have sold it in Malaysia for three times that price. -- AP

;AP; ANPAc ..r.. Japan-Marriage Women marrying and having children later in life, says survey JP/2/HIGh

Japanese women marrying later

JAPAN: In a sign of a changing perception of marriage and childbirth in Japan, a government survey has found the number of pregnant brides has doubled in 2000 from 20 years ago.

According to the survey by the Health and Welfare Ministry, one in four babies born in 2000 was conceived before their parents married.

The figure -- obtained Saturday from the ministry Web site and released on Friday -- has doubled from 12.6 percent in 1980, pushed up mainly by a rise in pregnancies among teen brides.

Almost 82 percent of 15 to 19 year-olds and 58 percent of women between 20 and 24 were pregnant when they married.

The survey also showed that on average women were marrying and having children later in life. In 1980, the typical bride was 25 years old. In 2000, she was 27. The number of women not having children until they were in their 30's quadrupled to 24 percent.

Once a social taboo, shotgun marriages are fast becoming more acceptable in Japan. Many wedding boutiques feature dresses for pregnant brides. Celebrities proudly disclose their pregnancies in their engagement announcements.

The survey did not explain how the trend may affect Japan's birthrate, which is falling. There are fears that as more women choose careers over marriage, the diminished size of future generations of taxpayers may not be able to support the growing ranks of the elderly.

The survey was based on all marriage and birth certificates issued at local government offices. -- AP