Seattle – Daniel Lev, a leading Indonesia scholar and longtime University of Washington professor, died Saturday following a battle with lung cancer. He was 72.

Lev spent years working with lawyers, scholars and dissidents to improve the Indonesian legal system. His efforts won him many friends in Indonesia, and in the past few months a steady stream of visitors traveled from there to say final goodbyes.

Earlier this year, Lev turned over most of his notes, documents and books to the Center for Study of Law and Policy, a non-governmental organization in Jakarta, which comprises 25 to 30 young lawyers who research reform issues.

Lev worked closely with scholars, journalists, reformers and the military to further the cause of human rights in Indonesia, Judith Henchy, who heads the UW libraries' Southeast Asia section, said when his document donation was announced.

Lev also embraced the language and culture of Indonesia. Many of his research materials are in the native language.

Lev began his teaching career at the University of California, Berkeley, and he went to the University of Washington in the 1970s. He retired in 1999, after years as a political science professor and researcher. He also established the school's political science honors program.