US ends ban on ties with Indonesian special forces

Washington said Thursday it was dropping a ban on ties with Indonesia's special forces, imposed over human rights abuses in the 1990s, a move that may eventually allow combat training of the once-notorious unit. The decision, announced during a visit by Defense Secretary Robert Gates to Jakarta, was taken after Indonesia took steps requested by Washington including removal of convicted human rights violators from the organization's ranks. Activists in Indonesia swiftly condemned the move and questioned President Barack Obama's commitment to human rights. Human rights groups have voiced concern that the roughly 5,000-strong special forces unit, known as Kopassus, still harbors rights offenders who committed abuses in East Timor and elsewhere but never convicted. "We regret this development very much. Until now, the perpetrators of past human rights abuses in East Timor, Aceh and Papua are still free. There is still impunity in the Indonesian military, especially in Kopassus," Poengky Indarti, of Jakarta-based human rights group Imparsial, told Reuters. "We are confused about the position of Barack Obama. Is he pro-human rights or not?" she said.