ABRI holds leadership meeting

ABRI holds leadership meeting

JAKARTA (JP): The Armed Forces (ABRI) held a top level meeting
on Thursday, bringing together senior Army, Navy, Air Force and
National Police officers from across the country.

Antara reported late on Thursday that the lack of adequate
intelligence information in the run-up to a number of recent
riots was among items on the agenda for the three-hour closed
meeting which began at 2 p.m.

"We discussed the perception that the Armed Forces has been
slow to respond to unrest and restore a sense of order," said
spokesman Maj. Gen. Syamsul Ma'arif. Other items on the agenda
included preparations for the June general election and how to
prevent further unrest.

Lt. Col. Panggih Sundoro told The Jakarta Post that almost all
senior military officials, including those from provincial
legislatures and regency councils, attended the meeting.

Among those present were Army's Deputy Chief of Staff Lt. Gen.
Johnny Lumintang, Navy Chief Admiral Widodo A.S., Air Force Chief
Marshal Hanafie Asnan, National Police chief Gen. Roesmanhadi,
ABRI Chief of Territorial Affairs Lt. Gen. Susilo Bambang
Yudhoyono, ABRI Chief of General Affairs Lt. Gen. Sugiono, the
commanders of 10 regional military garrisons and provincial
police chiefs from around the country.

Panggih said that during the rare meeting, Armed Forces
Commander Gen. Wiranto delivered a speech outlining his views on
the general election, East Timor and security problems facing the
nation in the months ahead.

He said that Wiranto and Roesmanhadi would discuss the meeting
in greater detail with the media on Saturday. (rms)