In recent weeks, US officials have suggested that the Department of Defense may be seeking to resume US military training for members of Kopassus, and particularly in the area of counter-terrorism.  This raises a number of serious questions about the US's commitment to withholding military assistance to foreign military forces that have committed serious violations of human rights. These questions stem from unique aspects of the Kopassus counter-terrorism component known as Unit 81, the entity whose members the Department of Defense presumably seeks to train.

Malaysia and Indonesia should complete a pact on the status of migrant domestic workers that would include basic labor protections, Human Rights Watch said today in advance of International Women’s Day on March 8. Proposed revisions to a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the two countries does not yet include guarantees for a minimum wage, freedom to leave the workplace on a weekly day of rest, or accessible complaint mechanisms.

We write as you prepare to depart for Jakarta to launch the US-Indonesia Comprehensive Partnership. We urge you to seize this opportunity to reaffirm that human rights and the rule of law are essential pillars of US engagement in Indonesia.

In his book "Dreams From My Father," Barack Obama explains that Lolo Soetoro, his stepfather, asked him if he would rather be strong or weak. Lolo remarked, "Better to be strong." As Obama prepares to visit Indonesia in March, he should view the Papuan question from the point of view of the "weak man," and if he acts on Papua, maybe then in Indonesia there will be a recognition that a strong man is one who assists the weak.

The Indonesian government should adopt stronger legal protections for domestic workers in 2010 to address longstanding patterns of labor exploitation and abuse. Indonesian domestic workers both at home and abroad are often denied the protection of regular labor laws and endure excessively long working hours with no days off, unpaid wages, and physical or sexual abuse.

The Indonesian police should follow the recommendation of a special National Human Rights Commission team and reopen their investigation into the 2004 murder of Munir bin Thalib, a leading human rights lawyer.

Human Rights Watch writes to Secretary of Defense Dr. Robert M. Gates concerning US military assistance to Indonesia. The planned visit of President Barack Obama to Indonesia in March, in the wake of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's reelection, brings with it the opportunity to reassess the military relationship between the two nations.

Australia has a good track record of principled diplomacy and implementing targeted sanctions against abusive military governments in Burma and Fiji. Yet it's relatively easy for Australia to speak out about countries where it has few economic interests. It takes more courage and principle to turn up the heat on countries where it has significant economic and strategic interests.