East Timor gets new military chief<\/p>\n
DILI, East Timor (JP): The Armed Forces installed on Saturday
\nCol. Mahidin Simbolon, a rapidly rising Army star, as chief of
\nthe local military command to replace Col. Kiki Syahnakrie.<\/p>\n
Simbolon, a 1974 graduate of the National Military Academy in
\nMagelang, Central Java, has so far spent virtually all his
\nmilitary years in the Army's elite Special Force (Kopassus).<\/p>\n
He is no stranger to East Timor, having served in the former
\nPortuguese territory several times. In 1992 he headed the
\nmilitary unit that arrested Jose Alexandre "Xanana" Gusmao at his
\nhideout in Dili, an achievement that later earned him a special
\npromotion in rank, ahead of the normal schedule.<\/p>\n
Before coming here, Simbolon was Assistant for Intelligence to
\nthe Special Forces's chief in Jakarta.<\/p>\n
In a military ceremony on Saturday, Maj. Gen. Adang Ruchiatna,
\nchief of the Udayana Military Command which oversees East Timor,
\nas well as the Bali and East and West Nusa Tenggara provinces,
\ninstalled Simbolon.<\/p>\n
The transfer of duty raised some eyebrows because Syahnakrie
\nhas served in the East Timor command for only eight months, while
\nsuch a post is traditionally held for two years.<\/p>\n
It also comes at a time when the Army is still investigating
\nthe controversial killing of six East Timorese villagers by the
\nmilitary in the Liquisa regency last January. The Army has
\ndetermined that there was a violation of procedures in the way
\nthe local military command handled the affair and that some of
\nthe officers would be court martialled for this.<\/p>\n
Adang was quick to deny that the removal of Syahnakrie was in
\nany way connected with the Liquisa incident.<\/p>\n
"Syahnakrie is getting a promotion in his new job at Army
\nheadquarters. He will, in fact, fill a position currently held by
\nsomeone of the brigadier general rank," he said.<\/p>\n
Syahnakrie will be moving to Jakarta to serve as Operational
\nStaff in the Army's General Staff.<\/p>\n
Adang also denied speculation that Simbolon, with his Special
\nForces background, had been picked for the job because the
\nmilitary is changing its strategy in East Timor. Syahnakrie comes
\nfrom the Army's Strategic Reserves Command.<\/p>\n
"I think Simbolon deserves the post because his rise to the
\nrank of colonel was extraordinarily rapid. He deserves it. We
\nalways value those with achievements."<\/p>\n
Regarding Simbolon's task, he underlined that the East Timor
\nmilitary chief will take orders from him and not from the Special
\nForces.<\/p>\n
Adang also denied press speculations that the deputy chief of
\nthe East Timor command, Col. Gleny Kairupan, would soon be
\nreplaced because Kairupan comes from the military academy class
\nof 1972, and is, therefore, two years Simbolon's senior.<\/p>\n
Col. Simbolon, on a separate occasion, stressed that the
\npresence of the military in East Timor is solely "to help our
\nbrothers" in developing the province.<\/p>\n
Many of the soldiers come to serve here, leaving behind their
\nfamilies, with only one intention: to help the East Timorese
\npeople, Simbolon told The Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
"It is impossible that the Armed Forces would violate the
\nhumanitarian values Indonesian people believe in. Armed Forces
\nmembers come here fully understanding humanitarian values, that
\nincludes respecting the integrity and honor, as well as the
\ncultures of the East Timor people."<\/p>\n
The main objective of the military command in East Timor, "is
\nto ensure a more peaceful and orderly situation, so that
\neverybody can work in peace. We hope all East Timor people will
\nsupport this objective," he added. (yac\/emb)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/east-timor-gets-new-military-chief-1447893297",
"image": ""
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