ABRI to restructure its information center
ABRI to restructure its information center
JAKARTA (JP): The Armed Forces (ABRI) information center will
soon be restructured and integrated with a similar center from
the Ministry of Defense and Security.
Outgoing Armed Forces spokesman Brig. Gen. A. Wahab Mokodongan
told reporters that the move would increase the chief
spokesperson's responsibilities.
"Therefore, the new post, namely the Armed Forces/Ministry of
Defense and Security spokesperson, will be held by a two-star
general (rather than a one-star general)," he said at a ceremony
which saw Brig. Gen. Syamsul Ma'arif take over the post.
"The Armed Forces commander's decree, stipulating the new
military rank for the chief spokesperson, was signed by ABRI
Commander Gen. Wiranto on June 8," Wahab added.
He could not say when the process would be completed.
"The validation process is now going on," he said.
A unified body for both the Armed Forces' information
department and the defense ministry's public relations department
had been sought since Gen. Wiranto was appointed last month by
President B.J. Habibie to head up both the Armed Forces and the
defense ministry.
Censorship
Newly appointed Armed Forces spokesman Syamsul claimed that he
would not censor the media since he regarded the practice as
obsolete in the reform era.
"It's extremely outdated to apply a censorship approach
against the mass media.
"I think it is more important to strike a common perception
between both the mass media and the Armed Forces Headquarters,"
he said.
He nevertheless called on the media to be veracious in its
reports and appropriate in its selection of news items.
He also asked journalists to avoid using difficult and
contradictory words in their articles, adding that stories should
be presented in a proper setting so as not to confuse people.
"Journalists should consider whether their stories will
positively impact the reform movement or cause contradictions,"
he said.
Syamsul, a 1973 graduate of the National Military Academy,
spent most of his military career in various territorial
positions and military operations.
He headed the Surabaya Military Command in East Java in 1993
and was then appointed chief of staff of the East Java Brawijaya
Regional Military Command in August 1995 prior to his current
assignment.
The outgoing spokesman, Wahab, is a 1971 graduate of the
National Military Academy and will soon assume an academic post
at the National Resilience Institute (Lemhannas), the military's
think tank, as a lecturer on ideology and political affairs.
(imn)