For three weeks, Red and White Cooperative (Kopdes) manager trainee\nLanggeena Salehane was only able to communicate with her family twice\nwhile undergoing military basic training. The 23-year-old said the\nrestriction on mobile phones was strict, with participants required to\nsurrender their devices. \u201cUntil now, our mobile phones have been\ncollected,\u201d Gina said during a break in training activities in Jakarta\non Tuesday, 30 June 2026. The programme\u2019s nomenclature has since been\nchanged from basic military training to national defence and managerial\ntraining.<\/p>\n
Gina explained that at the start of the training, access to\ncommunication devices was extremely limited. All participants were\nprohibited from using personal gadgets for the entire 45-day education\nperiod. During this time, participants could only contact their families\nusing a phone belonging to the instructors at the education unit.\nHowever, as the facility had to be shared, Gina only managed to speak\nwith her family in Pekanbaru, Riau, twice in three weeks. \u201cAs far as I\nknow, there is no limit on how many times you can call. But many people\nwant to use the phone, and I feel sorry for the instructor if we keep\nasking repeatedly,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Gina felt some relief after the committee recently relaxed the rules,\nallowing participants to access their phones for one hour every weekend.\nThis new policy took effect on Sunday, 28 June 2026. \u201cJust starting\nyesterday, we could hold our phones from eight to nine in the evening,\nafter the night roll call,\u201d she said. For Gina, regular communication\nwith her family is crucial to prevent them from worrying, especially as\nshe has been in poor health during the training. The University of Riau\nenvironmental engineering graduate has suffered from scoliosis since\n2025, a condition that often causes shortness of breath when she is\noverly fatigued.<\/p>\n
Despite the challenges, Gina acknowledged that limiting phone access\nhelps participants adapt to the rigorous training schedule. She believes\nthat without mobile phones, trainees can better manage their rest time\nand participate fully in the next day\u2019s activities. \u201cIf we have our\nphones, we might sleep too late and then wake up late. So, by having our\nphones collected, I think we become more disciplined,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Lieutenant Colonel Said Jauhari, Commander of the SPPI Education Unit\nat the Army Health Training Centre, explained that the decision to allow\ngadget access once a week was an evaluation by the committee following\nthe deaths of several prospective cooperative managers. He stated that\nthe policy was an instruction from Defence Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin\nin response to growing concerns from the trainees\u2019 families. \u201cEvery\nweek, we give them their phones for about an hour to communicate with\ntheir families,\u201d Jauhari said in Jakarta on Tuesday. He noted that the\nschedule for phone use is flexible depending on field activities but is\nensured to take place weekly. Jauhari stressed that the restriction on\nphone use is intended to maintain the participants\u2019 focus during the\ntraining period. He highlighted that the predominantly Gen Z demographic\nof the participants makes controlling gadget use particularly important,\nas they tend to lose concentration when holding their phones.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/red-and-white-cooperative-manager-trainees-allowed-phone-access-once-a-week-after-deaths-1782824235", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }