PALEMBANG GEARS UP TO HOST THIRD ISLAMIC SOLIDARITY GAMES by Fardah

     Jakarta, July 31, 2013 (Antara) - The controversy over the host city of  the Third Islamic Solidarity Games (ISG) is finally over following the signing of  a new presidential decree on the implementation of the ISG 2013.

         "Thank God, the Presidential Decree No. 23/2013 (the amendment of the presidential decree no. 15/2012) on the ISG 2013 was signed by the President. It's confirmed that the Third ISG will be held in Palembang (South Sumatra Province) from September 22 to October 1," Youth Affairs and Sports Minister Roy Suryo said in Jakarta on July 29.

         The new decree effective per July 29 is the legal basis for moving the ISG host city from initially Pekanbaru, Riau Province, to Palembang.

INDONESIAN GOVERNMENT PLEDGES TO FIX OVERCROWDED PRISONS by Fardah

 Jakarta, July 30, 2013 (Antara) - Two jailbreaks that happened in Sumatra in July alone have exposed how poor and vulnerable the condition of Indonesia's overcrowded prisons.

        The incidents prompted the government to allocate funds to build new prisons and review its policies on treatment approaches for drug addiction.

INDONESIANS URGED TO PROTECT CHILDREN AND FULFILL THEIR RIGHTS by Fardah

     Jakarta, July 24, 2013 (Antara) - On the occasion of the National Children's Day on July 23, the Indonesian people were urged to protect children and fulfill their basic rights as child abuse and child sexual assault are still rampant in this country.

        According to the National Commission for Child protection's data,  around 535 cases of sexual abuses of children were recorded from January to July 2013.

         Child sexual abuses constituted 52 percent of all child abuse cases reported in Indonesia, the Commission's Chairman Arist Merdeka Sirait said in Jakarta on July 23.

OPERATION "TRAP SWEEP" AIMS AT HELPING SAVE SUMATRAN TIGERS by Fardah

Jakarta, July  21, 2013 (Antara)  - Indonesian people usually spend more on food and clothing during  Islamic fasting month of Ramadan and Idul Fitri festivities than in the other months, prompting some people  to make more money by any means, including by poaching Sumatran tigers.          "Poaching activities of animals such as deers and even Sumatra tigers in Sumatra tend to increase during the fasting month," Moehd Subchan, the coordinator of The Sumatra Tiger Preservation  Program (PHS) for Jambi Province, said in Jambi, last June 2013.

HEALTHY YOUNG PEOPLE CRUCIAL FOR INDONESIA'S FUTURE by Fardah

     Jakarta, July 17, 2013 (Antara) - Joining the World Population Day that focused on "Adolescent Pregnancy", the Indonesian government organized  a seminar on "The Empowerment of Girls to Prevent Teenage Pregnancy" in Yogyakarta, on July 11.

         Indonesia has a huge number of young people and they could be a very important asset for the nation if they are guided properly, Chairman of the National Population and Family Planning Agency (BKKBN) Fasli Jalal stated.

TRANS SUMATRA ROAD PROJECT TO BE ACCELERATED TO IMPROVE CONNECTIVITY by Fardah

   Jakarta, July 16, 2013 (Antara) - Sumatra is one of Indonesia's significant economic gates given the fact that its location is very strategic and the island is rich in natural resources.

        The island which spans more than 1700 km and is about 473,606 sq. km, is the second largest in Indonesia after Kalimantan and the sixth largest island in the world after Greenland, New Guinea, Kalimantan, Madagascar and Baffin Island (Canada).

INDONESIA PRAYS FOR PEACEFUL, DEMOCRATIC EGYPT by Fardah

    Jakarta, July 12, 2013 (Antara) - Given its close relationships with  Egypt and the fact that thousands of Indonesians are in Egypt, Indonesia has prayed for peaceful and democratic political transition in the Arab world's most populous nation.

        "We pray so that political upheavals in Egypt could end immediately and political transition in that country could run peacefully, democratically based on the will of the Egyptians," President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said when hosting a fast-breaking dinner in Islam's holy month of Ramadan (Fasting) at the State Palace in Jakarta on July 11, 2013.

HAZE TASK FORCE SUCCESSFULLY EXTINGUISHES SUMATRA FOREST FIRES by Fardah

     Jakarta, July 10, 2013 (Antara) - After launching all-out measures against forest, plantation and peatland fires in Sumatra, the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB)'s Haze Emergency Response Task Force has finally revoked the emergency response status of the worst-hit Riau Province.

     "Since July 6, the emergency status has been revoked, and now Riau is the transitional period for recovery," Agus Wibowo, a spokesman of BNPB's Haze Emergency Response Task Force, said in Pekanbaru, Riau on July 9, 2013.