ABRI introduces new concept of its societal role
JAKARTA (JP): The Armed Forces (ABRI) headquaters unveiled yesterday its new concept in which it pledged to take a backseat in the country's political affairs and work to support a civilian leadership.
Armed Forces Commander Gen. Wiranto elaborated on the new concept at a media conference held at ABRI's Cilangkap headquarters in East Jakarta yesterday. He said the military would now play more of a supporting, albeit influential, role on the political stage.
"ABRI does not have to always be at the forefront. ABRI can act as a partner who does not necessarily have to hold a key position but can still play an influential role," he told reporters.
He said the Armed Forces would be ready to share its political role with non-military partners.
"It doesn't have to be an ABRI official, anybody can lead the nation. ABRI will support whoever leads the country," he said.
Wiranto's statement comes amidst revelations which have severely damaged the Armed Force's image.
Investigations have revealed that the Army's Special Force (Kopassus) was responsible for the abduction of political activists. Wiranto recently issued a public apology for the alleged misconduct of troops in Aceh and ordered the withdrawal of combat troops from the province.
But Wiranto defended the Armed Force's past record and strong presence in the political arena as something which could not be separated from the compelling circumstances of the New Order government.
"ABRI's past political activities cannot be separated from the New Order government," he said.
Speaking about ABRI's relationship with the government, Wiranto dismissed allegations that the Armed Forces was largely responsible for propping up the past regime.
"ABRI will support any government which is constitutionally valid," he said.
He said the Armed Forces had learned from the past and was now committed to conducting internal reforms and adopting a new modus operandi which is applicable to the new atmosphere in the country.
"ABRI considers that it is important to shift from a dogmatic and security-oriented approach to an analytical and systematic one," he said.
"ABRI reforms will also include an evaluation of state security operations and defense systems, including a study of the function and role of the National Police," he added.
However he insisted that the Armed Forces still had a role to play in ensuring the safety of the nation and the smooth progress of it's development program.
"ABRI will safeguard and sustain the national development program and lead the people of Indonesia toward achieving their national goals," he said.
Wiranto said the Armed Forces was committed to correcting the mistakes it has made.
"The Armed Forces Headquarters is determined to review its code of ethics and leadership scheme after realizing that some of its officers were involved in wrongdoings. We want to ensure that there will be no more procedural violations in the future," he explained.
Wiranto dismissed speculation that past mistakes and wrongdoings and the country's present woes, including the prolonged economic crisis, were caused by the military's dual function.
"It's not fair for people to say that everything ABRI did in the past has brought no benefit to the nation at all.
"It's also illogical to condemn ABRI's past performance when looking through the lens of the country's new paradigm," he added.
He also dismissed allegations that combat troops were stationed in the provinces of East Timor, Irian Jaya and Aceh under ABRI's own initiative.
"Our missions in East Timor, Irian Jaya and Aceh are part of our state duties to protect the people from threats posed by local armed separatist movements," he said.
"The decisions to declare the three provinces military operation zones were not taken by ABRI alone. They were all political decisions taken by the government." (imn)