Military under fire for power abuses, unchecked violence<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Lt. Gen. Agum Gumelar, under fire over the
\nmilitary's perceived inability to halt recent outbreaks violence,
\nor remain out of the fray, admitted on Wednesday that the
\ncountry's myriad social problems were growing harder to handle.<\/p>\n
\"Even the most sophisticated military in the world would find
\nit difficult to address the unrest in our country,\" Agum said.<\/p>\n
Agum, who heads the National Resilience Institute (Lemhannas),
\na military think-tank, was speaking at a seminar on the role of
\nthe military during the transition to democracy organized by the
\nCentre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS).<\/p>\n
Earlier, legal expert M. Fajrul Falaakh presented the results
\nof research undertaken by the centre which revealed that
\ncivilians believe the military is unwilling to carry out reforms.<\/p>\n
Falaakh said the military may not have publicly objected to
\nthe campaign for it to cut back its role in politics, but argued
\nthat did not mean it was not opposed to any such move.<\/p>\n
He suggested that ongoing violence in the country could be
\ntaken as a sign that the military was actively resisting any
\nattempts to sideline it in national affairs.<\/p>\n
\"Some believe hard liners (within the military) are letting
\nthe violent social fragmentation continue intentionally,\" he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
Agum said the view was understandable given that many people
\nbelieve the military is still a \"tool of the political elite\" as
\nit was in the past.<\/p>\n
\"I agree internal reform must be carried out quickly... I'll
\nrecommend it to those who own the military,\" he joked.<\/p>\n
Agum said members who were \"playing bizarre games\" would be
\ntreated harshly, adding that it was possible such elements
\nexisted within the military.<\/p>\n
\"Out of hundreds of thousands (of members of the Armed
\nForces), some five, 10 or one hundred may have drunk too much
\nbeer and become dizzy and kidnapped somebody,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Eleven members of the Army's Special Force (Kopassus) were
\nrecently found guilty of abducting political activists during the
\nlast months of former president Soeharto's final term in office.
\nThey argued they did so to safeguard the national interests.<\/p>\n
During the seminar, Legislator Aisyah Aminy questioned the
\nmilitary's sluggish response to recent outbreaks of unrest. She
\nsaid the tardiness may have been part of a strategy to perpetuate
\nthe military's roles in politics, a claim rejected by Agum.<\/p>\n
Falaakh warned the military's image would be further tarnished
\nif it hindered the introduction of civilian politics and failed
\nto maintain security throughout the election period.<\/p>\n
In response, Agum reiterated the military's pledge to remain
\nneutral in the election.<\/p>\n
\"The military will be neutral, not 'neutral' as it was in the
\npast,\" he said, in reference to complaints that the military was
\nofficially neutral under Soeharto, despite blatant signs to the
\ncontrary.<\/p>\n
The seminar was moderated by senior CSIS researcher J.
\nKristiadi.<\/p>\n
Syamsurizal Panggabean of Gadjah Mada University in Yogyakarta
\ndrew attention to the fact that lower ranks in the military
\ncontinued to abuse their authority, despite the internal reform
\ninitiatives continually trumpeted by the military's top brass.<\/p>\n
He cited practices such as blackmailing illegal gambling den
\noperators, forcing villagers to have \"certificates of good
\nconduct,\" and \"militarizing the bureaucracy.\"<\/p>\n
\"So, we cannot just say let bygones be bygones and let's start
\nanew... No, it's not a bygone issue yet,\" he said.<\/p>\n
\"The way the military is organized is against the ideals of
\nits founding fathers (who wanted the military to serve the
\npeople),\" he said.<\/p>\n
The absence of external threats to the nation, he said, had
\nled to the military abusing its power and inflicting suffering on
\nthe people.<\/p>\n
\"The problem is based on the military's misperception of what
\nconstitutes a nation...leading it to regard every challenge that
\narises from within society as an aggressive act,\" he said.<\/p>\n
The military treats local people's demands for a fairer share
\nof income generated from local resources and protests against
\nrights violations as insurgency, he said, citing recent violence
\nin Aceh.<\/p>\n
He also said a law protecting lower ranking members of the
\nmilitary from being punished for taking orders from their
\nsuperiors was needed to help speed reform in the Armed
\nForces. (aan)<\/p>",
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