[b]JABAT - I'M NOT SURE WHAT THE LAST PARAGRAPH OF THE FIRST STORY

JABAT - I'M NOT SURE WHAT THE LAST PARAGRAPH OF THE FIRST STORY
MEANS - TIM

Police foil fuel hoarding in regencies

JAKARTA: Police in Indragiri Hulu, Riau, have arrested SN, 48,
and confiscated more than 4,200 liters of solar fuel that was
allegedly being hoarded in a bunker near his house in Rengat.

Adj. Sr. Comr. S. Pandiangan, spokesman for the Riau
Provincial Police, said in Pekanbaru on Thursday the arrest had
been made after the police launched an anti-hoarding operation in
the regency.

"The police have received several reports from locals on the
alleged hoarding of basic commodities, related to the
government's plan to raise fuel prices this month," he said.

Pandiangan said the suspect had admitted to buying the solar
from Padang, West Sumatra and planned to sell it to industries in
the regency at a price of Rp 2,339 per liter.

The normal price of solar in the regency is Rp 1,300 per
liter.

In Majalengka, West Java, police confiscated 90 tons of
kerosene allegedly being hoarded in several bunkers in the
regency on Wednesday.

Dodo, 50, a local kerosene distributor, was still being
investigated by police.

Local police also arrested Janer Manalu, who was found guilty
of hoarding six tons of kerosene in his bunker in Susukan,
Cirebon on Wednesday.

Cirebon City Police Chief Sr. Comr. Sardjono said the police
would continue to crack down on fuel hoarding by kerosene
distributors to halt the kerosene crisis that has plagued the two
regencies over the last two weeks.

State-owned oil company Pertamina has pledged 50 percent of
hoarded fuel they seized as incentives to help cope with the
kerosene crisis. --Antara

Batam urged to tax foreign tourists

BATAM, Riau: The Batam immigration office called on the
mayoralty administration to impose a tax on foreign tourists
leaving the island to maximize its income from the tourism
sector.

"Batam should implement a policy similar to that imposed by
the Singapore authorities on foreign tourists and visitors
leaving the island country. In Singapore, foreign tourists and
shoppers who want to leave that country are charged S$2 (Rp
11,000)," Mardjono, chief of the local immigration office, said
here on Thursday.

He said that by introducing such a policy the Batam
administration's income from the tourist sector would rise.

"Batam will be able to develop tourist resorts if it imposes a
tax on foreign tourists leaving the island," he said. --Antara

Two killed in landslide in Klaten

SEMARANG: Two women were killed in a landslide at a sand
quarry in Bumirejo Village, Kemalang, Klaten, Central Java on
Wednesday.

The two, who were identified as Mrs. Darini, 28, and Mrs.
Suyati, 31, were found dead after a steeply sloping riverbank
where they were quarrying sand slid down and buried them.

Three male miners managed to escape the landslide.

Last week, Mrs Parjian, 50, was also killed in a similar
incident in the village.

A total of ten people have been killed in landslides at the
quarry since last November but their deaths have not yet prompted
local authorities to implement measures aimed at preventing such
incidents in the future. --Antara

Grenade found near regent residence

YOGYAKARTA: The local police in Gunungkidul are still
investigating the discovery of a grenade in a trash dump near the
Gunungkidul regent's official residence in Wonosari on Tuesday.

Second Insp. Beja W.T.P., chief of the Gunungkidul Police
Precinct's detective unit, said the police were still questioning
several witnesses, including a scavenger who found the grenade.

"We cannot discuss any motives relating to the discovery while
the police investigation is still under way," he said here on
Thursday.

He said the grenade, which was still active when it was found,
had been sent to the Yogyakarta Police Headquarters for further
investigation. --Antara

Thai fishermen active in Sumatran waters

MEDAN, North Sumatra: The local office of the Indonesian
Fishermen's Community called on local security authorities to
take stern measures against Thai fishermen who have been fishing
illegally in waters off Aceh, Nias and Central Tapanuli.

Mansyur, an executive of the local office of the Indonesian
Fishermen's Community, said that besides lacking the necessary
documentation, the Thai fishermen had also been using trawling
nets.

"Many Thai fishing vessels are equipped with explosives and
firearms to scare off local fishermen," he said.

He said the presence of Thai fishermen had caused unrest among
local fishermen and affected their income.

Meanwhile, the Aceh military arrested 18 Thai fishermen last
week for fishing illegally in Acehnese waters. Besides trawls, a
number of firearms, ammunition and a set of radios were also
confiscated from the fishermen. --Antara

Arso transmigrants face food crisis

JAYAPURA, Irian Jaya: Hundreds of transmigrants in Arso in the
Jayapura regency are facing a food crisis because of the
inundation of their farmland following the onset of the rainy
season.

Armin, chief of the local resettlement and infrastructure
office, said his office had distributed rice supplies to
resettlement areas affected by the flooding that hit the regency
recently but added it was not enough to meet the increasing
demands of the commodity.

He called on the central government to work closely with the
provincial administration to resolve the food crisis before the
situation became worse.

Thus far, the resettlement program in the regency has been
under the supervision of the central government and the project
is scheduled to be handed over to the provincial administration
by the end of this year. --Antara