News items on indahnesia.com

2007

No tsunami after strong quake near Sulawesi
A strong earthquake rocked northern Sulawesi on Thursday, sending residents fleeing from their swaying homes and other buildings according to authorities and witnesses. There were no direct reports of damage or victims. The earthquake, with a preliminary magnitude of 7.0 on the Richter scale, triggered a tsunami warning but this was quickly lifted after it ... ( read on )

2006

Indonesia to ban ethanol export
The Indonesian government plans to ban ethanol export due to growing domestic demand in line with the expansion of biofuel industry, a senior official said Tuesday. Industry Minister Fahmi Idris said he has submitted proposal to close ethanol export to the trade minister and the forestry minister. "Production is very limited while demand is on the ... ( read on )

2006

Indonesia navy arrests tsunami aid pirates in Aceh
The Indonesian navy has arrested three former separatist rebels for pirating ships carrying aid for tsunami survivors in the country's far-west Aceh province, a senior commanding officer said on Wednesday. The three men, from two different groups, were caught in the north Aceh city of Lhokseumawe on July 18, two days after their latest operation, ... ( read on )

2005

Indonesia finds bird flu signs near home of victims
Authorities have found signs of bird flu in chicken droppings near the home of three Indonesians who died from the virus this month, but have not yet linked the discovery to the victims, an official said on Tuesday. Experts from the Health Ministry have been puzzled by the deaths of a man and his two ... ( read on )

2005

Govt to allow Pertamina, PLN to raise fuel, power prices
In an attempt to rein in the ballooning fuel subsidy, the government will allow state oil and gas company PT Pertamina and state power firm PT PLN to charge market prices for fuel and power intended for specific uses. The move is expected to help the government cut projected fuel consumption from 59.69 million kiloliters ... ( read on )

2004

Govt says will proceed with Bashir case
Indonesia said on Monday it would continue with plans to prosecute Abu Bakar Bashir, suspected spiritual leader of the al Qaeda-linked Jemaah Islamiah network, despite a court ruling curbing anti-terrorism laws. Bashir, 65, is in detention waiting for prosecutors to bring formal charges against him. He was detained on April 30 after spending 18 months ... ( read on )

2004

Susilo tops first round of Indonesia vote
Former general Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono topped the first round of Indonesia's first direct presidential election and will face incumbent Megawati Soekarnoputri in a September run-off, the election commission (KPU) said on Monday. Susilo, who rose from rank outsider to hot favorite after resigning from Megawati's cabinet during a heated row earlier this year, had the ... ( read on )

2004

Explosion near Indonesia election commission
A small blast has been heard outside Indonesia's election commission building as officials prepared to announce the results of the presidential elections. Dozens of students were demonstrating outside the Indonesian election commission (KPU) building in central Jakarta on Monday when the blast was heard, said witnesses. A KPU staff member said the blast was located near ... ( read on )

2003

Gangland style murders add to security risks
Those and other mafia-style hits have raised fears that assassins for hire are spreading in Indonesia, adding to the sense of lawlessness that has hurt efforts to promote foreign investment and strengthen the rule of law in the world's fourth most populous country. Police say the July 12 killing of Budiarto Angsono, president of the ... ( read on )

2003

Explosives stash found in Gorontalo
Indonesian police said today they found 18 homemade bombs and 10 kilograms of ammonium nitrate, the same explosive material used in last year's Bali bombings. It was the third such discovery in two weeks on Indonesia's Sulawesi island. The chemical, which is also used as fertiliser, was seized yesterday from a rented house in the ... ( read on )

2002

Tommy Suharto guilty of murder
An Indonesian court has found the younger son of former President Suharto guilty of murder and weapons possession. Tommy Suharto was convicted of masterminding the assassination of a judge who ordered him jailed for corruption. The five-judge panel sitting in Jakarta also convicted him for illegal possession of weapons. Tommy Suharto was jailed for 15 ... ( read on )

Other events on this day

2001

Former president Abdurrahman Wahid vacates Merdeka Palace and leaves for the U.S. for a medical checkup. Before thousands of supporters, he earlier vowed to continue his struggle for democracy.

2001

Hamzah Haz, chairman of the United Development Party (PPP), is elected as the country's ninth vice president.

2001

Justice M. Syafiuddin Kartasasmita, who sentenced former president Soeharto's son Hutomo Mandala Putra to jail for corruption, is shot dead in Kemayoran, Central Jakarta, while on his way to work at the Supreme Court in his Honda CRV.

2001

People's Consultative Assembly Speaker Amien Rais, during the closing speech of the Special Session, calls on the National Awakening Party (PKB) faction to rejoin the Assembly in order to participate in amending the Constitution.

2000

Ten members of the ASEAN and their counterparts from the three northeast Asian nations (China, Japan and S. Korea), called the ASEAN+3, issue a joint statement commendning the efforts and measures taken by Indonesia to restore peace in Aceh & Irian Jaya.

2000

The coordinator of East Timorese refugees in S. Sulawesi reveals that the living conditions of the 6,500 refugees in the province have deteriorated after the govt halted its financial aid, while at least 15 people have died of starvation since last Sept.

2000

Poso Regent Abdul Muin in Central Sulawesi estimates that the violence in Poso caused at least Rp 200 billion in losses, with 4,000 buildings destroyed. Some 36,000 people fled the violence.

2000

The congress of the National Awakening Party (PKB) in Surabaya, East Java, elects President Abdurrahman Wahid as the party's chief patron.

2000

15 non-governmental organizations in Jakarta, including KNPI, PAHAM,KAMMI, & MWCC forms the Anti-Pornography Society (MTP) in an effort to curb pornography in the media.

2000

E. Timor proindependence and ex-militia fighters meet in Denpasar, Bali, and decide to accelerate the return of tens of thousands of E. Timorese refugees remaining in E. Nusa Tenggara to the former Indonesian province.

2000

The Ministry of Religious Affairs announces new rates for the haj pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia in 2001 which will depend on where in Indonesia a pilgrim boards the plane and the type of accommodation chosen in Saudi Arabia and its distance from Mecca.

2000

President Abdurrahman Wahid approves a joint Indonesian Military/National Police investigative team to question several high-ranking military officers allegedly involved in the 1996 attack on the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) headquarters.

1998

The Crescent Star Party (PBB) is declared in Jakarta to fight for a good system of government. The party is chaired by constitutional law expert Yusril Ihza Mahendra.

1998

Responding to the release of 50 political prisoners announced by the govt, 16 political prisoners in Cipinang Prison, E. Jakarta, including the leader of the outlawed PRD Budiman Sudjatmiko, demand that the govt release all political prisoners.

1996

Dozens of choreographers from 11 countries stage their works at the fourth week-long Indonesian Dance Festival in Jakarta.

1996

Indonesia urges its European partners not to link bilateral issues, such as East Timor, with the overall cooperation between ASEAN and the EU.

1995

Prominent anthropologist Koentjaraningrat is declared the 1995 recipient of the Fukuoka Asian Cultural Grand Prize for his outstanding contribution to the development of anthropology in Indonesia.

1995

Former Dutch ambassador to Indonesia Jan Herman Robert Dudley van Roijen receives in The Hague, the Netherlands, the Jasa Utama Star from the Indonesian government in recognition of his meritorious services during his term in Jakarta from 1992 to 1994.

1994

Two people are killed when a training plane crashes into a restaurant near Borobudur Temple in Magelang, Central Java.

1993

Seven South Korean missionaries are deported by the Cilacap immigration office for misusing their tourist visas for missionaries purposes.

1990

The flights between Moscow and Jakarta are officially resumed with the arrival of Aeroflot airliner Il-62 N at Soekarno-Hatta Airport after an eight-year suspension due to the alleged involvement of an airliner executive in espionage in Jakarta.

1986

Noted Indonesian scholar Dr. Soedjatmoko is elected the rector of the UN University in Japan for a second term.

1975

The Indonesian Ulemas Council (MUI) is established to unite Indonesian Muslims. It is led by noted Muslim scholar Prof. Hamka.

1947

A curfew declared by Aceh's Defense Council yesterday begins.

1926

Sukarno, a national movement activist, opens a civil engineering consultancy agency, named the Engineering Office of Sukarno & Anwari, at Regentsweg No. 22 (now Jl. Dewi Sartika), Bandung, West Java.