By Andrew Higgins, Jakarta Amid cries of "God is Great," the former chief of staff of the Indonesian army joined hard-line Muslim activists in a Jakarta ballroom last week to denounce the United States -- and praise China as a model of how to stand up to Washington. "We should do what China has done; America must follow our rules," declared retired Gen. Tyasno Sudarto. Veiled women and bearded men, seated separately to avoid mingling of the sexes, shouted praise for Allah and jabbed their fists in the air. Another speaker hailed China for defying Washington's "neo-liberal" economic creed. The boisterous event, organized by an Islamic organization called Hizb ut-Tahrir, brought together two groups of Indonesians that don't usually mix -- fervent champions of an Islamic state and zealous secular nationalists. What united them was a shared fury at Washington and the hope that Beijing can put America in its place. now read on at the Washington Post

Think Tank Watch: No controversies and please no talk of human rights abuses.

Barack Obama's planned upcoming visit to Indonesia has spurred new police raids that have left one top militant dead and  Islamist lying low.

But there are concerns that the security services may overreach, at a time when the US is preparing to end the 12-year-old ban on training an elite unit of the Indonesian military some of whose members have taken part in beatings, kidnappings and other violations of human rights. 

 Four members of the Indonesian Komando Pasukan Khusus, or Kopassus, including its commanding general, Maj. Gen. Lodewijk Paulus, were in Washington last week to discuss the proposal.

Police are monitoring Islamist networks and patting themselves on the back for grabbing Southeast Asia's most-wanted terrorist, Noordin M Top, after suicide bombings at two luxury Jakarta hotels last July shattered a four-year lull in attacks. 

The Malaysian-born Noordin was shot dead during a police raid last September, but there are still fears of  new attacks.

"Noordin Top is not the only militant cell within the [Islamist] network. He's just one general, but there are some other generals," said Brig. Gen. Tito Karnavian, who was appointed head of the antiterror unit late last year.

"The most important and powerful leader in the world is coming to Indonesia, so the authorities have to tame any possible attack by jihadists," Noor Huda Ismail, an Indonesian analyst of extremism, told AFP.

Obama along with First Lady Michelle and daughters Malia and Sasha are expected to visit Indonesia, where he spent four years as a child, from March 20 to 22 before heading on to Australia.

Hotli Simanjuntak ,  The Jakarta Post ,  Banda Aceh   

Roundup: Female members of Wilayatul Hisbah sharia police jump out of a patrol car in a raid in Banda Aceh. Sharia police are under fire following a rape committed by three sharia policemen on a female student recently.

Hundreds of citizens from all over Banda Aceh thronged to Ule Lheue Beach to relax and enjoy the weekend atmosphere under the light of the full moon that evening.

Parents and children were sitting and savoring roast corn sold on the sidewalks leading to the port. 

The port area of Ule Lheue is a favorite place for Banda Aceh residents to relish the beauty of the beach, which is not far from the city hub and also offers a gorgeous display of urban lights reflecting off the water.