Indonesia & Bali Tourism New

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Two-way trade between Indonesia and Poland is expected to double to US$1 billion this year as a result of Indonesian trade and tourism expo 2008 to be held in Warsaw next month, Polish Ambassador to Indonesia Tomasz Lukaszuk said.

“I think businessmen from the two countries will benefit from the expo to be held in May 2008 and that the value of trade between the two countries this year will double from last year,” he told the Forum of Ambassadors Talking to Indonesian Editors and Business Executives here Wednesday. (more…)

KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - Borneo’s mysterious pygmy elephants may be the descendants of Javan elephants accidentally saved from extinction by a local sultan several centuries ago, the conservation group WWF said on Thursday.

Pygmy elephants, so called because they are smaller and less aggressive than mainland Asian elephants, number perhaps 1,000 today and live in lowland forests in Borneo that are shrinking under the threat from timber, rubber and palm oil plantations. (more…)

Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia: The Borneo pygmy elephant may not be native to Borneo after all. Instead, the population could be the last survivors of the Javan elephant race – accidentally saved from extinction by the Sultan of Sulu centuries ago, a new publication suggests.

The origins of the pygmy elephants, found in a range extending from the north-east of the island into the Heart of Borneo, have long been shrouded in mystery. Their looks and behaviour differ from other Asian elephants and scientists have questioned why they never dispersed to other parts of the island. (more…)