Armed Forces<\/p>\n
The May riots have had widespread financial, social and
\npolitical repercussions in this country. Back then, the Armed
\nForces (ABRI) seemed unable to contain or control the situation
\nwhen trouble erupted on the streets of Jakarta. A large number of
\nlooters, rioters and arsonists, not to mention rapists, once
\nagain conveniently escaped the law and got away with their
\ncriminal actions. To the man on the street, it appears
\ninconceivable that any such event could have taken place without
\nABRI detecting it in its early stages. What were the officers in
\ncharge of the various city district commands doing at the time?
\nIs it possible that with so many district commands spread out
\nover the city, all of the commanding officers failed to report
\nthe outbreaks of unrest to the military headquarters and at the
\nsame time take steps to contain the situation? Are there not any
\nstandard procedures for dealing with outbreaks of unrest?<\/p>\n
It is noticeable that ABRI was ready and well prepared for
\nstudent demonstrations before, during and after the Special
\nSession of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR). They were
\nintent on preventing students from reaching the Assembly building
\nwhile the session was in progress and proved themselves to be up
\nto this task, although at a high cost in terms of the number of
\nhuman lives lost.<\/p>\n
In the early afternoon of Nov. 14, looting once again broke
\nout in the city. Looting is against the law, no matter how you
\nlook at it. The looters were without doubt more unlawful and
\ndestructive than the students, yet look at the treatment meted
\nout by the military to these two respective groups. How can the
\nArmed Forces' response to the looting be reconciled with its
\ntreatment of student demonstrators? What happened to ABRI's basic
\nrole to protect the citizens of this country? There were
\neyewitness reports of soldiers turning a blind eye to looters
\nbludgeoning helpless shopkeepers in the Sawah Besar and
\nPecenongan areas only seconds after television cameras stopped
\nfilming them guiding the unfortunate individuals out of their
\nburning shops. Why the charade?<\/p>\n
Continued repressive handling of the reform movement by ABRI
\nwill only serve to mar the process of democratization in
\nIndonesia. I hope that ABRI will come to understand that its role
\nin the political arena here must become more accommodative and
\nthat it should create an environment more conducive to allowing
\nall layers of society, including students, to voice and channel
\ntheir aspirations. Please do not hide just behind the
\nConstitution. The Armed Forces must realize that the changes
\ntaking place now are irreversible and that they need to be part
\nof the driving force so that a suitable political system can be
\nformed to guide the country out of this multi-dimensional crisis.<\/p>\n
ALIMIN<\/p>\n
Jakarta<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/armed-forces-1447899208", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }