Marines set ABRI fine example<\/p>\n
By Andrew Trigg and Haryana Susi Achadiena<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Two attitudes were apparent towards the Armed
\nForces (ABRI) on Saturday Nov. 14, the day after Black Friday.<\/p>\n
On the day when grief, and the fear of worse to come, hung
\nheavy in the air the Marines were seen being cheered, applauded
\nand high-fived by masses of students and ordinary people.<\/p>\n
They were willingly cooperating with the Marines in
\nmaintaining public order. In stark contrast, several police
\nofficers were beaten, almost fatally, and Kostrad trucks were
\njeered and pelted with rocks by the very same masses.<\/p>\n
These are the results of ABRI's two extreme approaches. The
\nfirst approach, applied so blatantly by the police, Kostrad and
\nothers on Friday night, is one of crushing the opposition with
\noverwhelming force -- a paradigm of war. It makes frightening
\nviewing. The nation watched in disbelief and revulsion as unarmed
\ndemonstrators were shot with automatic weapons and beaten
\nsavagely with heavy clubs.<\/p>\n
There was intent to harm, desire to injure, if not murder. In
\none televised incident, advancing security forces ferociously
\nattacked benignly seated students. In another, a demonstrator,
\nalready unconscious from being shot, was beaten repeatedly on the
\nhead with nightsticks. A young man, apparently a journalist, was
\nbrutally clubbed when trying to assist a fallen demonstrator.
\nAutomatic weapons were fired at close range. Just a few of
\ncountless excesses that occurred on a night of relentless death
\nand despair.<\/p>\n
That the police (who are supposed to be more \"civilian\" than
\nthe soldiery) were committing some of the most violent and
\ninjurious excesses is a striking indication of how very wrong the
\napproach was.<\/p>\n
Furthermore, the approach failed dismally. Quite apart from
\nits failure to maintain public order, Friday's incident has dealt
\na massive blow to ABRI's credibility in the eyes of the public.<\/p>\n
A banner borne by students on Saturday (\"Students are not the
\nobjects of war practice\") said it all -- a growing segment of the
\npublic no longer trusts that ABRI is on their side or accords it
\nthe respect or cooperation that it once gave so freely.<\/p>\n
Hence Saturday's beatings of policemen and the stoning of
\ntrucks -- violent actions that cannot be condoned, but
\nnevertheless indicate the depth of the public's sense of hurt and
\noutrage at this \"crushing the opposition\" approach.<\/p>\n
Yet if ABRI wishes to regain the trust, respect and
\ncooperation of the people, there is a glimmer of hope. A shining
\nexample of the way forward has been provided by part of ABRI
\nitself -- the Marine Corps. For the approach they have applied
\nsince May, and most strikingly throughout Saturday's potentially
\nexplosive street tension, has been one of professionalism,
\nrestraint and service to the people.<\/p>\n
Their professionalism and restraint were plain to see on
\nSaturday, when the nation teetered on the brink of complete
\nchaos. Again and again, Marines used the minimum force necessary
\nto maintain public order and won many hearts with their non-
\nthreatening, communicative and good-humored approach, even when
\nfacing extremely tense and potentially violent situations.<\/p>\n
Their manner seemed designed specifically to avoid
\nintimidating people. They wore no combat-ready body armor or
\nhelmets, they kept their guns slung on their backs and at times
\nthey even smiled and joked with the crowds. Often they were seen
\nmingling among the people rather than forming confrontational
\nlines across streets.<\/p>\n
And yet with relatively few soldiers they were able to
\nmaintain calm in many parts of the city without a single fatality
\non either side. In some cases their very appearance on the scene
\nof trouble had an instant calming effect, as if their trademark
\npurple berets were endowed with some kind of magic pacifying
\npower.<\/p>\n
Yet the secret of the Marines' success is no magical mystery;
\nit appears to be simply this: In serving the people, they
\nconsistently balance their duty to uphold public order with an
\nappreciation of the public's legitimate aspirations and their
\nbasic human needs to be heard and to be treated with restraint,
\nrespect and fairness.<\/p>\n
The Marines clearly empathized with the students' wish to
\nmarch to parliament, but they had the courage to refuse them
\nentry to the complex even though they were hopelessly
\noutnumbered by the crowd. Still, the crowd complied and
\neventually dispersed peacefully of their own accord. Nor did
\ntheir tolerance of the people's concerns hinder them in stamping
\nout looting and violence in Jakarta's shopping areas on Saturday.
\nAs the Marines have proven, empathizing with the public does not
\nmean compromising standards of security and order.<\/p>\n
The very real result of their approach is a level of respect
\nand cooperation from the public that some parts of ABRI may
\ncurrently only dream about. And it was this goodwill on the part
\nof the public that was so crucial in averting disaster on
\nSaturday.<\/p>\n
In Senen, student leaders worked hand in hand with Marines to
\ncalm down angry masses intent on looting. In another incident,
\nstudents sat with Marines on military trucks to prevent them from
\nbeing pelted with rocks (tellingly, the trucks and the troops in
\nthem belonged to other military forces).<\/p>\n
In Salemba, students helped Marines pacify an angry mob bent
\non attacking a police station. And at Atma Jaya University, a
\npotential repetition of Friday's madness was diffused quickly
\nwhen Marines arrived on the scene. In short, on Saturday the
\nMarines proved that for soldiers to be both firm and sensitive at
\nthe same time is not only possible, but it is also the best way
\nto uphold public order with the fewest possible personnel.<\/p>\n
The professional approach demonstrated by different Marines
\nin different locations throughout the day was so uniform that it
\ncan not be simply the initiative of troops on the ground. It is
\nmore likely the result of more professional and public service-
\noriented paradigms subscribed to by the Marines' leaders, which,
\nthrough aligned orders, indoctrination, procedures and training,
\ntranslate into the more humane approach in the field.<\/p>\n
Certainly, such a paradigm was apparent in a recent speech by
\nMaj. Gen. Suharto, the Marine Corps commander, at their simple
\nanniversary celebration on Sunday morning. The general instructed
\nhis men to \"give the people a sense of safety... I expect that we
\nwill be able to control ourselves the best we can\" to the
\napplause of the local people and students who were allowed to
\nattend.<\/p>\n
Serve the people and show restraint. How many people across
\nthe country would like to make the same request of the entire
\narmed forces? How quickly would the soldiers that make up other
\nmilitary forces in Indonesia change their ways if their leaders
\nset the same example?<\/p>\n
Last Friday and Saturday events seemed to have crystallized
\nIndonesian public opinion and the message they are sending to
\nABRI's leaders appears to be simply this:<\/p>\n
\"You reap what you sow. We are reasonable and tolerant people.
\nWe are not extreme by nature and we do not like to create
\ntrouble. If you treat us with respect, we will be like you and we
\nwill happily cooperate with you in upholding public order. Your
\njob will be easy. But if you continue to treat us with violence
\nand contempt, we will not respect you and we will not cooperate
\nwith you. We may even resist you. National stability will remain
\njust a dream.<\/p>\n
\"As for the future, the paradigm of crushing the opposition is
\ndead -- it just won't work any more. Follow the example set by
\nthe Marines last Saturday. Instruct, train, and coach your
\nsoldiers to serve us and protect us with restraint.<\/p>\n
\"If you want to be loved, make yourself lovable. If you want
\nto be respected, be worthy of respect. Please make the right
\nchoice, the good choice. It is the only way to create lasting
\nsecurity and peace in this country. And that's what you want too,
\nisn't it?\"<\/p>\n
The writers work for Business Dynamics, a training consultancy
\nin Jakarta.<\/p>\n
Window: Yet if ABRI wishes to regain the trust, respect and
\ncooperation of the people, there is a glimmer of hope. A shining
\nexample of the way forward has been provided by part of ABRI
\nitself -- the Marine Corps.<\/p>",
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