Jakarta, Indonesia News

The Gillard Government's tough approach to asylum seekers is doing nothing to slow the number of boats arriving and may be encouraging more women and children to board rickety vessels for Australia, Labor and Opposition MPs have warned.

Smog levels in Singapore hit a record high on Wednesday as smoke from raging forest fires in neighbouring Indonesia triggered a major health alarm and sent residents of the densely populated city-state scrambling for face masks.

Minister of Environment and Water Resources Vivian Balakrishnan said the haze is set to persist over the next few days, and whether a stop-work order will be issued will depend on the severity of the haze conditions.

The announcement came after a day in which Ms Gillard faced questions from the Opposition about how she would stop boat arrivals, after she pledged to stem the flow of boats when she toppled Kevin Rudd.

A BRAVE volunteer lets giant pythons slither over her bare skin, as she takes part in the latest spa craze - SNAKE massage.

Indonesia plans to use weather changing technology to try to unleash torrents of rain and extinguish raging fires on Sumatra island that have cloaked neighbouring Singapore in thick haze, an official said Wednesday.

Executives from Asia News Network met in Singapore last week to unveil new media initiatives for leading regional advertising agencies.

Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim said there was no need for Prime Minister Najib Razak to try to meet him in "secrecy" as reported by a news portal aligned to the Najib camp.

In the wake of recent graft scandals at the University of Indonesia , academics and students are hoping the newly elected rector will have the integrity to manage the campus budget transparently.

Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono claimed on Tuesday that he had done a good job in cochairing the United Nations-sanctioned High Level Panel of Eminent Persons on the Post 2015 Development Agenda and that its final report had been well received.

Indonesia started a fund to finance the exploration of geothermal energy resources as the nation seeks to reduce its dependence on fossil fuels for electricity.

This preview highlights the main points of the Indonesia chapter from " Pathways to Freedom: Political and Economic Lessons from Democratic Transitions ," a publication of the Civil Society, Markets, and Democracy Initiative.

Alas, bad news from Indonesia, which otherwise has managed its counter-radicalization program well in recent years.

By Ahmad Fuad Yahya JAKARTA, June 18 -- Nightlife in Jakarta during the month Ramadan will run at a slower pace as 898 night entertainment outlets or about half of the 1,799 entertainment spots in the Indonesian capital have been ordered to close.

Indonesia defied popular anger on Tuesday by pressing ahead with its first fuel price hike since 2008, a day after police fought running battles with thousands outside parliament.

The situation in Tembagapura mile 74, a Freeport Indonesia mining area, is reported to be quiet again after incidents of property damage perpetrated by a mob at 7:30 p.m. local time on Sunday.

Smog from forest fires in Indonesia stayed at unhealthy levels in Singapore today as the two neighbors blamed each other for the seasonal problem.

The Melanesian Spearhead Group will send a mission to Jakarta and Jayapura later this year, to discuss the issue of West Papua with the Government of Indonesia.

In Brazil, it's over an increase in bus fares, as well as general frustration over inequality, and the money being spent on next year's World Cup.

I AM not really a concert-goer; in fact, I hardly ever go out at night. But last weekend, I attended a concert in Kuala Lumpur promoting Jakarta in part because I'd been involved in the arrangements to bring it about.