For A Long Time The US Has Refused To Enter Prabowo, What Is The Root Of The Problem?

Minister of Defense Prabowo Subianto (Irfan Meidianto / VOI)

JAKARTA - The United States (US) has officially lifted the entry ban for the Minister of Defense of the Republic of Indonesia Prabowo Subianto. This is a controversy. Prabowo, in the eyes of international human rights (HAM) activists, is the perpetrator of major human rights violations. And the change in the US 'previously harsh attitude towards Prabowo is seen as a major human rights disaster.

At the Pentagon, Prabowo will meet US Defense Secretary Mark Esper. An unnamed official described the Pentagon's openness to Prabowo today, saying, "Minister Prabowo is the minister of defense appointed by the president who has twice been elected in Indonesia, which is the third largest democracy in the world."

"He is our partner, of a very important partnership, and it is important for us to engage with him and treat him as a partner," the official added.

Apart from the Pentagon, Prabowo will also attend another meeting in Washington DC on Thursday, October 15. This is believed to be related to Indonesia's plan to buy fighter jets which also attracted Moscow's interest.

Prabowo's rejection trail

Prabowo is a former Commander-General of the Special Forces Command (Kopassus). His alleged involvement in military crimes in various parts of Indonesia, including the East Timor military operation and the kidnapping of a number of activists 98 made him ridiculed among human rights supporters.

Prabowo, in 2012, also told Reuters that he was rejected when he applied for a US visa because of allegations that he had sparked riots that killed hundreds of people after Suharto's overthrow in 1998.

However, since being appointed minister of defense by the Joko Widodo (Jokowi) regime last year, Prabowo's position has begun to change, at least in the eyes of the US government today. Trump is a key figure in the Donald Trump administration's efforts to deepen defense ties with Indonesia, the world's largest Muslim-majority country.

Amnesty International and other rights supporters condemned the US State Department's decision to grant Prabowo a visa. In fact, the US has long refused Prabowo to enter, even when Prabowo's son graduated from Boston University in 2000.

Amnesty International's US National Director of Advocacy and Government Relations Joanne Lin said, "The State Department's recent decision to lift Prabowo Subianto's ban is the total opposite of a longstanding US foreign policy."

Lin also called Prabowo's visit to the US a "major disaster for human rights in Indonesia." Complementing Lin, Senator Patrick Leahy, condemned the Trump administration's decision. Leahy is the author of a law prohibiting US military assistance to foreign military units that commit human rights violations without punishment.

In Leahy's eyes, Prabowo was a human rights violator. And Prabowo has clearly not been punished. Hence, Leahy said Prabowo "did not meet the requirements to enter this country (US)."

"By granting visas to Defense Minister Prabowo, the President and Foreign Minister have shown once again that for them law and order are empty slogans that ignore the importance of justice," Leahy told Reuters , quoted Thursday, October 15.

Prabowo enlisted in the military at the age of 19. Six years later he joined Kopassus, the special forces of the Army. Prabowo led the Rose Team which was accused of kidnapping student activists involved in the movement to overthrow Soeharto. 13 activists since then are still missing.

Prabowo has consistently denied involvement in any alleged human rights violations, including in Jakarta, East Timor and West Papua. Despite all these allegations, Prabowo is a very influential politician. He has repeatedly run for president.

Regarding US interests, analysts read that the US will again warn Indonesia about a massive arms purchase from Moscow. The warning is often voiced by the US to partners around the world because buying Russian fighter jets could trigger US sanctions under the Against America Through US Sanctions Act (CAATSA).

"We are increasing the risk of CAATSA in all our conversations with the Ministry of Defense," said the US official, who was anonymous.

Indonesia's Defense Ministry declined to comment on Prabowo's visit to the US. However, an Indonesian government official said that through the visit Indonesia wanted to open a "road map" to obtain F35 fighter jets.

"But honestly we don't expect much," said the Indonesian official, who also spoke on condition of anonymity.