Questioning TNI\/police involvement in business<\/p>\n
Imanuddin Razak, Staff Writer, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta,
\niman@thejakartapost.com<\/p>\n
The March 8 protest at the office of Tempo newsmagazine, which
\ninvolved violence against its editors and journalists, stunned
\nthe public, particularly the media.<\/p>\n
The incident was also of interest because of some of the
\ncomments of those leading the protest, suggesting they were
\n\"untouchable\" given their close ties with those in positions of
\npower.<\/p>\n
The protesters were supporters of businessman Tomy Winata.
\nThey were upset by a report in the magazine which quoted an
\nanonymous source about Tomy's alleged plan to renovate the Tanah
\nAbang market, which was destroyed in a fire last month. The
\nalleged plan was proposed before the fire, according to the
\nreport, which also included a denial by Tomy.<\/p>\n
An uproar followed the violence at the Tempo office and there
\nwere also questions about whether the magazine had violated the
\ncode of journalism with its report.<\/p>\n
The leaders of the protest, in front of police officers and
\njournalists, claimed that they had, in effect, regularly paid the
\npolice and financially helped Sutiyoso secure the Jakarta
\ngovernorship for a second term. People have related these remarks
\nwith Tomy's known associations with Army officers.<\/p>\n
In a recent statement, mining company PT Freeport Indonesia,
\nwhich operates in the restive Papua province, admitted to having
\npaid security fees to the military and police since 1996, again
\nconfirming the \"mutual relationships\" between the security
\napparatus and businesspeople or companies.<\/p>\n
The U.S.-based company also said the Indonesian government had
\nlooked to the company to provide logistical and infrastructure
\nsupport and supplemental funding for security operations in
\nPapua, because of the government's limited resources and the
\nremote location and lack of development in the easternmost
\nprovince.<\/p>\n
To the surprise of many, besides confirming Freeport's
\nstatement, Indonesian Military (TNI) spokesman Maj. Gen. Sjafrie
\nSjamsoeddin acknowledged that the military had received security
\nfees from U.S.-based oil company ExxonMobil, which operates in
\nthe strife-torn province of Aceh.<\/p>\n
But Sjafrie did not explain whether the money had gone to the
\nTNI as an institution or to individual officers, and whether the
\nuse of the money had been accounted for.<\/p>\n
Involvement in business to raise money to finance its
\noperations and its troops is not new to the Indonesian Military.<\/p>\n
Perhaps the practice started during the early years of
\nIndonesia's independence.<\/p>\n
Admiral (ret) Sudomo, a Navy chief of staff and deputy
\ncommander of the Operational Command for the Restoration of
\nSecurity and Order (Kopkamtib) during the presidency of Soeharto,
\ntalked about the smuggling of rubber into Malaysia and Thailand
\nby the military in the late 1940s.<\/p>\n
Sudomo, then an officer on the cargo ship that carried the
\nrubber to the Southeast Asian countries, said the money was used
\nto procure munitions for the military.<\/p>\n
At the time, the military had to find its own financing to
\nprocure munitions because the government of the fledgling nation,
\nwhich proclaimed independence in 1945, could not provide the
\nfunding.<\/p>\n
The munitions were important for the military to fight the
\nDutch colonialists, who were reluctant to allow Indonesia become
\na free state. The military's active involvement in businesses, in
\nvarious forms, has continued until the present day.<\/p>\n
Official confirmation of this is provided by the Army
\nHeadquarters. The Army says in a 2002 paper on the Restructuring
\nof the (Army-owned) Kartika Eka Paksi Foundation and its Business
\nUnits, that with the limited government budget Army leaders have
\nestablished an institution to help provide for the needs of the
\nArmy and its troops.<\/p>\n
A study by Indria Samego, a researcher with the Indonesian
\nInstitute of Sciences, showed that the practice of establishing
\nbusiness units was also done by the other two military forces --
\nthe Navy and the Air Force -- as well as the National Police.<\/p>\n
The question is whether the military's and\/or the police's
\ninvolvement in business is lawful, and whether this involvement
\nwill divert them from their main duty of defending and securing
\nthe nation.<\/p>\n
Apart from the uncertain legality of the practice, Indria said
\nthis involvement in business caused internal frictions in the
\nmilitary and police, which in turn disrupted their ability to
\ntend to their duties. The practice can also lead to collusion
\namong soldiers and private companies or individuals, he added.<\/p>\n
But no one has come up with realistic and applicable solutions
\nto help the military become a professional institution, which was
\nthe dream of the founding fathers.<\/p>\n
Legislators have insisted that all of the military's
\nexpenditures and revenue be reported to the House of
\nRepresentatives.<\/p>\n
Yet officers would probably prefer to maintain the current
\nsystem, as it requires no accountability or audits. It is thus
\ndifficult to find out whether the money has gone to the military
\nas an institution or into the pockets of officers.<\/p>\n
Private companies and individuals involved in business with
\nthe military also benefit from the current system because they do
\nnot have to worry about any legal sanctions given the absence of
\ndocumented evidence.<\/p>\n
Perhaps the country should consider a proposition by
\nSingaporean leader Lee Kuan Yew, who suggested that \"illegal
\nbusinesses\", in this case security protection services, be made
\n\"legal\" by regulating them, citing that such practices are part
\nof the \"Asian culture\".<\/p>\n
But again any laws or regulations must clearly outline the
\nrules of the game, including penalties for any violations, and
\ndisciplined enforcement of these laws or regulations would be a
\nmust.<\/p>",
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