ABRI owes success to the people, Nasution says
JAKARTA (JP): The Armed Forces (ABRI) owes its existence and its prominent position in the country today to the people, Gen. (ret.) Abdul Haris Nasution says.
The military often claims credit for its role in ensuring national unity, but this would not have been possible without the people's support, Nasution, the most senior living ABRI officer, said on Tuesday.
Nasution made the speech during a nostalgic return to the Siliwangi Military Command headquarters in Bandung, an elite division of the Army which he founded in the late 1940s.
The 75-year old former general was invited to attend Siliwangi's 48th anniversary for the first time in 16 years in a further signal of reconciliation between the government and one of its most prominent critics.
Nasution was estranged from the government and the military between the early 1970s until last year chiefly because of his criticism of President Soeharto.
"It is in this success story that we see the significance of being united with the people. Without their participation, ABRI would not have been successful," said Nasution, who lead the command in 1946-1948 at the height of the independence struggle.
Nasution rose in ranks in the military and the government, reaching his career peak in the 1960s when he was minister of defense.
Besides its role in the independence struggle, the Siliwangi Command was also pivotal in putting down various rebellions in the 1950s and 1960s.
The meeting was attended by five former Siliwangi chiefs including A.E. Kawilarang, Dadang Suprajogi, Himawan Soetanto, Edi Sudradjat (now minister of defense and security) and Maj. Gen R. Nuriana.
H.R. Dharsono, another former Siliwangi chief, who like Nasution has since fallen out of favor with Soeharto, was not present because he is in Saudi Arabia for the haj pilgrimage. Social Project
Nasution said the Siliwangi command contributed many of the doctrines that are now widely used by ABRI.
It was also this command which first introduced the social work projects for the military which is now popularly referred to as ABRI's Village Improvement Program (AMD).
"The aim of the operation at that time was primarily to thank the people of West Java for helping to save the region from separatist rebellions," Nasution said.
Nasution was also the one who coined Siliwangi's maxim esa hilang dua terbilang (two emerge as one falls) and the maxim 'Siliwangi is West Java people and West Java people are Siliwangi.'
The first slogan, according to Nasution, aims to motivate ABRI members to improve their service and keep the unity with the people so that people can take the benefit of their dedication. (prs)