Why the delay in search for new TNI chief?<\/p>\n
Imanuddin, Staff Writer, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
A reshuffle in the Indonesian Military (TNI) leadership is
\nalways interesting and closely watched by a number of people,
\nespecially those in political circles, as the person selected to
\nserve as the TNI chief will have a significant influence on the
\ncountry's political affairs.<\/p>\n
And unless something sudden and dramatic happens in the
\ncountry, President Megawati Soekarnoputri is expected to announce
\na new TNI chief to replace incumbent Adm. Widodo AS this month,
\nor in April at the latest.<\/p>\n
It's been nearly two months since the People's Consultative
\nAssembly (MPR) wound up in early November and the President is
\nstill yet to announce her choice for the top military post.<\/p>\n
It was House of Representatives (DPR) Speaker Akbar Tandjung
\nwho disclosed in late November that President Megawati was
\nconsidering replacing Widodo soon.<\/p>\n
Akbar's announcement reinforced statements issued by senior
\nleaders of Megawati's party, the Indonesian Democratic Party of
\nStruggle (PDI Perjuangan), who said in early November that the
\nPresident had decided not to extend Widodo's term in office and
\nthat she wanted to appoint a younger officer to replace him.<\/p>\n
Widodo was the choice of Megawati's predecessor, Abdurrahman
\nWahid, who broke with the tradition of giving the military's top
\njob to an Army general.<\/p>\n
Widodo, a 1968 graduate of the Navy Academy, reached
\nretirement age in 1999 but his term has been extended pending the
\nappointment of a new TNI chief.<\/p>\n
The authority of the President to replace and appoint the TNI
\nchief is enshrined in Decree No. VII\/2000 of the People's
\nConsultative Assembly (MPR), which stipulates that the police and
\nTNI chiefs are to be appointed and dismissed by the President
\nafter approval from the House.<\/p>\n
Yet for the sake of unity within the TNI, chiefs of staff of
\nthe Army, the Navy and the Air Force said last November that they
\npreferred to see Widodo retained as the military chief.<\/p>\n
\"As long as the commitment among the three chiefs of staff is
\npositive, why shouldn't we support it? I guess such a commitment
\nis reasonable,\" said Air Force Chief of Staff Marshall Hanafie
\nAsnan, on behalf of the other two chiefs of staff.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Army Chief of Staff Gen. Endriartono Sutarto cited
\nseveral technical criteria that should be considered in selecting
\na new TNI chief, including the need to rejuvenate leadership,
\nmaintain unity and strengthen professionalism.<\/p>\n
\"Today, TNI needs to remain solid,\" he said. \"That's our chief
\npriority.\"<\/p>\n
He said Widodo had succeeded in uniting the three forces
\nduring very difficult times for the TNI.<\/p>\n
But there was no satisfactory explanation from the three
\nchiefs of staff over their \"compromise\" to support Widodo.<\/p>\n
One thing's for certain, that their statement was issued after
\nsenior PDI Perjuangan officials had openly shown their preference
\nfor Lt. Gen. Djamari Chaniago, the incumbent Military General
\nAffairs chief of staff.<\/p>\n
Djamari also reportedly has the strongest support from the
\nHouse, which is in favor of Megawati's decision to appoint \"a
\nyounger chief to lead the military\".<\/p>\n
Unnamed military officers said that the TNI had already put up
\nthe names of four generals to President Megawati as candidates
\nfor the position of the new TNI chief. They are Djamari, Hanafie,
\nincumbent Army Chief of Staff Gen. Endriartono Sutarto and former
\nArmy chief of staff Gen. Tyasno Sudarto.<\/p>\n
Hanafie, a 1969 graduate of the Air Force Academy, reached
\nretirement age in November 2000, but former president Abdurrahman
\nextended his term in office. At the time, Abdurrahman planned to
\nappoint Hanafie as TNI commander, replacing Widodo. But the plan
\nremained a plan, as Abdurrahman was removed from the presidency
\nlast July.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Tyasno, a 1970 graduate and Endriartono, a 1971
\ngraduate, both of the Armed Forces Academy, will reach retirement
\nage next year and in April this year respectively. Djamari, on
\nthe other hand, is due to retire in 2004.<\/p>\n
Although Djamari has the lowest rank of the four candidates,
\nhe appears to have strong support from the Army, making him
\npossibly a more viable candidate than Endriartono and Tyasno.
\nSources in the Army said Djamari would likely be promoted to the
\nArmy chief of staff position in the near future and this would
\npave the way for his ascent to the number one TNI job sometime in
\n2002.<\/p>\n
In an apparent move to block the replacement of the incumbent
\nmilitary chief, TNI spokesman Rear Marshall Graito Usodo said
\nthat, based on a decree issued on June 22, 1999 by the then
\nminister of defense\/armed forces chief Gen. Wiranto, Widodo would
\nretire on Aug. 31, 2004.<\/p>\n
Endriartono confirmed Graito's statement, saying that the
\nreplacement of the TNI chief should not affect the sense of
\nsolidity among the military forces. Similar opposition has also
\nbeen voiced by Hanafie and Navy Chief of Staff Adm. Indroko
\nSastrowiryono.<\/p>\n
But the \"reluctance\" of the three chiefs of staff to have a
\nyounger officer appointed as the TNI chief was countered by
\nMinister of Defense Matori Abdul Djalil, also in late November,
\nwhen he said that the replacement of the military chief was the
\nprerogative of President Megawati.<\/p>\n
\"The President has the authority to decide whether to extend
\nhis (Widodo's) term of office or not,\" he said.
\nIn terms of technical and military qualifications, the four
\ncandidates have met all the requirements.<\/p>\n
Tyasno spent most of his career in the territorial and
\nintelligence fields, while Endriartono, Hanafie and Djamari spent
\nmost of their military days in the territorial, combat and
\neducation fields.<\/p>\n
With all the above constitutional and technical arguments, the
\ndecision will now rest with President Megawati.<\/p>\n
It has become an open secret that anyone appointed by a
\npresident to lead the TNI must have the \"commitment\" to protect
\nand secure the president's political interests.<\/p>\n
Obvious examples in the past show that all ABRI (previous name
\nfor the TNI) chiefs appointed by then president Soeharto were his
\nclose associates or aides.<\/p>\n
Soeharto's choices of ABRI\/TNI chief included Adm. Sudomo, his
\nassociate in the revolutionary era in the 1940s; Gen. M. Yusuf,
\nhis associate in the campaign against communism in the mid 1960s;
\nGen. Leonardus Benyamin \"Benny\" Moerdani, a prominent figure in
\nthe integration of \"West Papua\" into Indonesia in the 1960s, and
\nhis former adjutants Gen. Try Sutrisno and Gen. Wiranto.<\/p>\n
Also still fresh in the Indonesian people's minds is Wiranto's
\noff the cuff speech immediately after Soeharto announced his
\nresignation in May 1998 (to be replaced by B.J. Habibie) that the
\nIndonesian military would protect the safety of Soeharto and his
\nfamily despite his resignation.<\/p>\n
And Megawati, whose father was the country's founding
\npresident, must have learned from her father's downfall,
\nSoeharto's downfall, as well as the downfall of her predecessor
\nAbdurrahman Wahid, that she must be very careful in appointing a
\nTNI chief.<\/p>",
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