U.S. law bars U.S. military aid and training for Indonesia

East Timor Action Network/US

Friends,

U.S. Public Law 106-429 was signed into legal effect by President Clinton on 6 November 2000, after being passed by both Houses of Congress (each of which was Republican-controlled at the time). It remains in effect until September 30, 2001. Several of the conditions it sets forth have not yet been met, although a few have been.
 

Here is the relevant text:

INDONESIA
SEC. 579. (a) Funds appropriated by this Act under the headings “International Military Education and Training” and “Foreign Military Financing Program” may be made available for Indonesia if the President determines and submits a report to the appropriate congressional committees that the Government of Indonesia and the Indonesian Armed Forces are:

(1) taking effective measures to bring to justice members of the armed forces and militia groups against whom there is credible evidence of human rights violations;

(2) taking effective measures to bring to justice members of the armed forces against whom there is credible evidence of aiding or abetting militia groups;

(3) allowing displaced persons and refugees to return home to East Timor, including providing safe passage for refugees returning from West Timor;

(4) not impeding the activities of the United Nations Transitional Authority in East Timor;

(5) demonstrating a commitment to preventing incursions into East Timor by members of militia groups in West Timor; and

(6) demonstrating a commitment to accountability by cooperating with investigations and prosecutions of members of the Indonesian Armed Forces and militia groups responsible for human rights violations in Indonesia and East Timor.

Mar 14 U.S. law bars U.S. military aid and training for Indonesia  Info
"If President Bush, Secretary Powell, Assistant Secretary Wolfowitz, the Indonesian government or anyone else would like to resume U.S. military relations with the Indonesian government, they must either meet the conditions in the law or change the law by an act of Congress." Charles Scheiner, National Coordinator, East Timor Action Network/US

Feb 26 IHRN: Indonesia Human Rights Network Urges Continued Ban on U.S. Aid to Indonesian Military  Release
"Before there can be any resumption of military ties between Washington and Jakarta, the Indonesian armed forces must undergo significant reform.  The U.S. government should accept nothing short of civilian control of the military as well as human rights trials conducted under international standards of justice as preconditions for any re-engagement with the Indonesian military," Agatha Schmaedick, Indonesia Human Rights Network co-chair

Jan 27 ETAN/IHRN: Rights groups urge continued suspension of military ties with Indonesia  Release
"Shipping hardware to the Indonesian military will severely set back efforts to achieve democracy and respect for human rights in Indonesia ... Anyone familiar with the ongoing conflicts in West Papua, Aceh and Maluku/the Moluccas knows that the TNI is at best impeding resolution; more often it is an exceedingly brutal central cause of the problem." Lynn Fredriksson, acting coordinator for Indonesia Human Rights Network.

Jan 24 Reut: Top E.Timorese wants U.S. to help Indonesian army  News
"One of East Timor's most prominent leaders, who denounced abuses by Indonesian troops in his homeland for decades, made a turnabout on Wednesday and urged the United States to resume military aid to Jakarta. It was a bizarre change of tack for Nobel peace prize laureate Jose Ramos-Horta who was at the vanguard of the fight against the often brutal 23-year rule of East Timor by Indonesia." Joanne Collins

Jan 11 FPIF: U.S. - East Timor Foreign Policy in Focus Brief  Release
"The U.S. has declined to provide full support for an international human rights tribunal that would examine the abuses and killings (in East Timor) ... [but the Pentagon] has persisted in advocating military assistance to Indonesia, even when this has meant exploiting loopholes in legislation enacted to end military aid," Lynn Fredriksson, Foreign Policy in Focus