Jakarta - One person died from gunshot wounds Saturday after Indonesian police opened fire in an attempt to stop rioting in the country's easternmost province of Papua, media reports said.

MetroTV reported the riot broke out after police officers removed an outlawed Free Papua Movement separatist flag, raised by a group of people at the end of rally in Wamena district town of Papua's Jayawijaya regency to mark an international day of indigenous' rights.

Jakarta - An undersea earthquake registering 6.0 on the Richter scale struck the western coast of the Indonesian island of Sumatra Friday afternoon, but there were no reports of injuries or damage, the Indonesian seismologist agency said.

The quake struck at 1:37 pm (0637 GMT) and was centred in the Indian Ocean, 140 kilometres south-east of Mentawai island, off the western coast of Sumatra, Indonesia's National Meteorology and Geophysics Agency said.

While it occurred only 10 kilometres beneath the seabed, the quake did not trigger a tsunami, the agency said.

A village in Indonesia could be under grip of bird flu. According to officials, 13 people from a village in North Sumatra were admitted in hospital this week after complaints of fever. Bird flu surveillance team from Indonesia's health ministry visited Air Batu village to analyze possible symptoms of bird flu. Blood samples of the patients have been sent for the test of bird flu.

Tokyo - Indonesian nurses and care-givers planning to train and pursue a career in Japan said Friday they hoped to break down barriers of prejudice for more of their compatriots follow.

"As a group of pioneers (in this project), we are hoping to gradually change Japan's mindset so that more of our counterparts can be easily accepted to work here for a long term," Erli Ridwan, 35, said at a press conference at Tokyo's Japan Press Centre Friday.

Ridwan arrived in Japan Thursday, along with 204 other Indonesian nurses and care-givers to start working in Japan's medical sector.

Jakarta - An undersea earthquake measuring 6.6 on the Richter scale shook parts of eastern Indonesia on Thursday morning, but there were no immediate reports of damage or casualties.

The quake struck at about 5:41 am (2241 GMT Wednesday) with its epicentre about 51 kilometres north-east of Sumbawa Island, according to an official report from the Jakarta meteorology and geophysics agency.

Jakarta - Indonesia on Wednesday received six Russian-made Mi-17-V combat helicopters as part of the country's effort to improve its existing armaments.

After a lengthy process, the six fully armed combat helicopters, ordered in 2003, arrived at the Indonesian Navy's airbase in East Java at Suarabaya, the state-run Antara news agency reported.

Rear Marshal Eris Heriyanto, director-general for defence facilities at the Indonesian Defence Ministry, said after signing notes on the helicopters' delivery that the three combat choppers would be used by the army's Aviation Centre.

The helicopter procurement process was marred by a corruption scandal which caused the state to lose around 3.24 million dollars.