James Balowski

  • B.J. Habibie: profile of a potential president

    Responding to hints by President Suharto that B.J. Habibie was his preferred choice for vice-president, the January 22 Sydney Morning Herald ran a background piece on Habibie titled "As 'Dr Strangelove' rises, the rupiah falls

  • Bomb explodes in Jakarta

    On January 18, a bomb exploded in an apartment in the central Jakarta slum district of Tanah Tinggi. Indonesian police say they found documents belonging to the banned People's Democratic Party (PRD), and a top military official

  • Appeal launched for Dita Sari

    Appeal launched for Dita SariAccording to People's Democratic Party (PRD) sources, Dita Indah Sari, chair of the PRD-affiliated Centre for Labour Struggle, was released from hospital on November 28. Dita had been in intensive

  • Dita Sari hospitalised with typhoid

    Dita Sari hospitalised with typhoidOn November 18, the Javanese daily Surya reported that the chair of the Centre for Labour Struggles (PPBI), Dita Indah Sari, had been admitted to the Syaiful Anwar hospital in Malang,

  • Indonesian government bans the PRD

    Indonesian government bans the PRDOn September 29, Indonesia's Ministry of Home Affairs announced that the People's Democratic Party (PRD) and all its affiliated mass organisations had been banned. This includes Student

  • Suharto fiddles while Indonesia burns

    On September 16, President Suharto publicly apologised to Indonesia's neighbours for the fires which have blanketed large parts of Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines in choking smog. But those who hoped that this was

  • Indonesian students and workers arrested

    Indonesian students and workers arrestedOn September 23, at least nine students and workers were arrested during a protest outside the Indonesian national parliament building against new, repressive labour laws.

  • Riots in Sulawesi

    At least six people have been killed, scores wounded and hundreds arrested during three days of rioting in the Indonesian provincial capital of South Sulawesi, Ujung Padang. The riots were sparked by the killing of a

  • Indonesian troops rampage through campus

    Indonesian troops rampage through campusScores of university students, workers and lectures were injured when Mobile Brigade troops went on a violent rampage through the campus of Syiah Kuala University, according to a

  • Fires ravage Indonesian forests

    Over the last few weeks, fires have again swept through Kalimantan and other parts of Indonesia, destroying thousands of hectares of rainforest and blanketing Singapore and Malaysia in a dense cloud of smoke and ash. Despite

  • Suharto moves to silence critic

    Suharto moves to silence criticOn August 5, the private secretary of one of Indonesia's best known statespersons was brought to trial for "insulting" President Suharto. Thirty-four-year-old Buyung Rachmat Buchori is being

  • Crackdown continues in East Timor

    While attention has been focused on South African President Nelson Mandela's recent meeting with jailed Fretilin leader Xanana Gusmao, and Mandela's offer to "contribute" to UN-sponsored negotiations between Portugal and