Congressman Joseph Crowley
Floor Statement/FY 2007 Foreign Operations Appropriations
June 8, 2006

[Excerpt pertaining to Indonesia] ...I was also troubled to see the language related to Indonesia. While I support the renewed relationship with Indonesia, I remain concerned about the level and pace of engagement with the Indonesian military. The provision of any lethal assistance to the Indonesian military is a mistake.

I believe that State and DOD should implement specific mechanisms and benchmarks to measure progress in human rights, justice, and military reform. Any distribution of lethal exports should depend on these benchmarks being met.

While events in Aceh are hopeful, the actual pace of military reform is not. The failure to implement civilian control over the military budget is a fundamental stumbling block...

-- Karen Orenstein National Coordinator East Timor and Indonesia Action Network (ETAN) 202-544-6911 (t/f), www.etan.org

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