BIN, FBI hold talks in Bali

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

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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

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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

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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

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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