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America to begin working with Indonesian Special Forces again, but should we?

America to begin working with Indonesian Special Forces again, but should we?

(U.S. Air National Guard photo by Master Sgt. Matt Hecht)

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Acting Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan was in Indonesia last week and met with officials in an attempt to normalize military-to-military relations between our nations. A particular area of contention is Indonesia’s Special Forces unit called Kopassus, which is accused of human rights abuses.

Due to the Leahy Amendment, U.S. military forces cannot work with individuals, units, or even governments that are suspected to have been involved in human rights abuses. The Foreign Assistance Act not only prevents weapons sales to alleged human rights violators but also prevents the Department of Defense from providing military training. This has recently played out in the Philippines, as NEWSREP reported back in July:

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  • John M

    This is why we have classifications. Make it a classified endeavour that can be deniable, and boom: instant influence with a shot of deniability. Sadly, none of this is easy, and the hardest part is taking a pragmatic stand against your idealistic tendencies.

  • Max H

    It’s a damnable thing to be a superpower…do we allow our people to train human rights abusers, or let our adversaries do it AND we lost influence at the same time?

  • J

    Don’t we give guns to the Saudis though? I mean it doesnt seem like every group we work with has a stellar record.