TNI's credibility<\/p>\n
The response by the Indonesian Military (TNI) to the
\ndisclosure that the giant American mining company PT Freeport
\nIndonesia has been giving millions of U.S. dollars in protection
\nmoney was typical and expected. TNI Chief Gen. Endriartono
\nSutarto dismissed the report as irrelevant; he did not deny it,
\nbut said the amount did not reach $5.6 million in 2002 as the
\nreport suggested. He did not venture to give an exact figure, but
\nsaid that it was payment for soldiers' meals.<\/p>\n
Yet, the report -- confirmed and clarified by Freeport's
\noffice in Jakarta at the weekend -- raises serious questions
\nabout the credibility and integrity of our armed forces.<\/p>\n
TNI's dismissive attitude suggests that accepting payment in
\nreturn for providing protection was a normal practice. Yet,
\nbecause this practice is condoned at the top, there is a strong
\nfeeling that it is carried out throughout the TNI's hierarchy.<\/p>\n
Should the nation accept this as a normal practice and leave
\nthe matter to rest? We don't think so. The report has serious
\nimplications that could hurt the credibility of the TNI, and of
\nthe National Police for that matter, which also use this
\npractice. At a time when its public image is still at a low ebb,
\nthe last thing that TNI or the National Police would want to do
\nis to dismiss the report.<\/p>\n
They need to address the question and come clean.<\/p>\n
We know that our TNI has serious budgetary problems. The state
\nallocation barely covers 30 percent of its operational costs. TNI
\nmust come up with the rest of the money by itself.<\/p>\n
Some of the money has come from business conglomerates managed
\nby TNI foundations. Some have come from protection money that it
\ngets from corporations that it helps to protect.<\/p>\n
Here lies the real problem. Because this practice is condoned,
\nyou are just one step away from turning this affair into a
\nracket. This makes TNI not all that different from the preman
\n(thugs) who run most of the protection rackets in the country.
\nWorse still, it raises the question about where TNI loyalty lies:
\nWith the people and the state, or with the financiers?<\/p>\n
Freeport's mining operation in the heartland of Papua province
\nis huge, and because of unending controversy surrounding its
\noperations, it requires heavy protection. There is also the
\nproblem of pro-independence armed Papua rebels to deal with.<\/p>\n
The Freeport office in Jakarta explains that the money went to
\nfinance the costs of infrastructure, catered food and dining
\nhalls, housing, fuel, travel, vehicle repairs, allowances to
\ncover incidental and administrative costs, and community
\nassistance programs conducted by the military and police.<\/p>\n
While Freeport is not the only one making protection payments,
\nthis is by no means the only security system available in
\nsafeguarding major business operations. Other mining companies
\nhave devised a community-based security system, one that relies
\nmore on the participation of the local community to safeguard the
\ninstallations, and less on the police or the military.<\/p>\n
The danger of accepting the practice of money-for-protection
\nis clear. It compromises the integrity of the TNI soldiers and
\nreduces their effectiveness as organs of the state, as guardians
\nof the nation. For $5.6 million a year, soldiers deployed around
\nFreeport may as well call themselves the Freeport Army. If we
\nstretch the argument further, it should come as no surprise at
\nall if some TNI officers are already on the payroll of wealthy
\nbusiness people.<\/p>\n
While the ultimate goal is to eliminate this practice
\ncompletely and turn our TNI into a truly professional force fully
\nfunded by the government, we know that this is impossible in the
\nnear future given the present budgetary constraints.<\/p>\n
But we can at least start by compelling the TNI to be both
\nfinancially transparent and accountable.<\/p>\n
Some of the payments the TNI takes may be defensible. The
\nextra protection TNI provides to safeguard the nation's vital
\nindustrial installations is probably merited. To suggest that the
\npayments be stopped overnight would be a folly, although they
\nmust be phased out over time. But other sources of funding may be
\nillegitimate, and they are nothing more than a protection racket,
\na form of blackmail, or a form of bribery and corruption.<\/p>\n
It is these kind of illegal payments that greater financial
\ntransparency and accountability will weed out. Now, the question
\ngoes back to the TNI and its generals: Do they have what it takes
\nto restore the credibility and integrity of their institution?<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/tnis-credibility-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}