Semarang-Solo rail service starts

SEMARANG, Central Java: A new express train service was launched Thursday serving the Semarang-Solo route, the state- owned Indonesian Railway Company (PT KAI) said.

The service, named the Pandanwangi Express, has a capacity of 128 passengers and will ply the route twice daily, leaving Semarang at 8:10 a.m. and 5 p.m. and departing from Solo at 6 a.m. and 1 p.m. The train will not stop at small stations along the route.

It will take two hours to travel the 120 kilometers between the two Central Java cities.

Central Java Governor Mardiyanto, who was present at the service's launching, said the new service would help reduce high traffic volumes on the main roads linking Salatiga, Bawen and Ungaran.

PT KAI regional director Sujudi Sumadilaga said that the new train was part of a comprehensive plan to link up major Central Java cities by rail.

Existing rail services include the Semarang-Tegal route, which is served by the Kaligung train, and the Solo-Yogya route served by the Prambanan Express.

--JP

Theys' supporters hold rally in Jayapura

JAYAPURA, Papua: Thousands of supporters of the slain Papuan independence fighter Theys Hiyo Eluay held a rally at the provincial legislature here on Thursday.

The protesters, led by university students, first marched the 15 kilometers from Abepura to the legislature shouting slogans voicing their rejection of the findings of the government- sponsored National Investigation Commission.

Carrying a mock coffin covered by a black cloth and a cross, the protesters said the commission had failed to fully probe the case.

The march brought traffic between Abepura and Jayapura to a standstill.

--Antara

Police nabbed in marijuana raid

MEDAN, North Sumatra: Four members of the police's elite Mobile Brigade were detained for possessing 160 kilograms of dried marijuana during a raid in Tanah Karo regency, North Sumatra.

North Sumatra Police spokesman Amrin Karim said the four officers were apprehended on Wednesday as the police conducted a regular check on motorists coming from Aceh.

Besides the marijuana, the police also confiscated four pistols and the car being used by the four detained officers.

Separately, police seized 5.5 kilograms of dried marijuana from a house in Belawan and detained six people suspected of dealing in the drug.

-- Antara

Batam taxi drivers threaten to stage strike

BATAM, Riau: Taxi drivers here plan to stage a strike in protest against a new ruling that requires them to use meters.

"We will reject the new ruling requiring taxis to use meters until the government fulfills its promise to act resolutely against illegal taxis," said a taxi driver.

A number of taxi drivers made similar statements on a local radio program broadcast to Riau, Singapore and Malaysia.

Hundreds of illegal taxis operate on the island.

Batam Land Transportation Agency director Yusron Roni has said that his agency would gradually eliminate illegal taxis from the island.

-- Antara

Orangutans suffering from Hepatitis B

PALANGKA RAYA, Central Kalimantan: Scores of orangutans at the Nyaru Menteng Rehabilitation Center, some 30 kilometers from the Central Kalimantan provincial capital, Palangka Raya, have contracted the Hepatitis B virus, a government official said on Thursday.

Central Kalimantan Animal Husbandry Office deputy chief Burhan Abdullah said that the Hepatitis B virus was different from that normally found in human beings, but was contagious and could infect human beings as well.

According to Burhan, this form of Hepatitis B could infect humans through orangutan feces and saliva.

He called on those who keep orangutans as pets to bring them to the Nyaru Menteng Rehabilitation Center to avoid the disease from spreading.

Meanwhile, the director of the regional health office, Tukik B. Toemon, said that although there were not many people suffering from Hepatitis B in Central Kalimantan, the government had nevertheless anticipated the problem by vaccinating children under five years old.

"We are not administering the vaccine to adults due to our limited budget," he said.

The Central Kalimantan Nature Conservation Agency (BKSDA) has been conducting raids to seek out orangutans in captivity since the beginning of this month to save the species from the threat of extinction.

"People who keep these endangered animals can be locked up for 10 years or fined up to Rp 100 million," BKSDA spokesman Nurani said. --Antara