Analyst: Hunting Begal Criminals Is Not the TNI's Core Function — If Done Wrong, It Could Be Prosecution Under Civil Law?

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com - Military analyst Mufti Makarim emphasised that the involvement of the Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI) in pursuing criminals such as begal is not part of the TNI’s core duties and functions (tupoksi).

“Not in line with (tupoksinya),” Mufti told Kompas.com on Saturday, 23 May 2026.

He said law enforcement is the remit of the law enforcement agencies, namely the police.

In addition, the TNI Act does not govern soldiers to pursue criminals such as begal.

Therefore, Mufti argues, the TNI should not enter into domains outside its authority, even if it is believed to have the ability to do so.

Mufti noted that involvement of the TNI in non-war operations (OMSP) also has specific conditions and procedures.

One of them is that there must be a request from civil authorities due to the incapacity of the competent authorities.

“So, whatever the reason, gakkum (law enforcement) is not the TNI’s domain, except where the escalation lies outside police capacity, for example begal in the sea in the EEZ which can only be handled by the TNI-AL. If it concerns Jabodetabek or other provinces, that is absolutely the domain of Polri,” he said.

Separately, military analyst Aris Santoso stressed that deploying TNI soldiers should be used to face threats to state sovereignty, especially those arising from external powers.

According to him, the phenomenon of soldiers tackling crime such as begal can lead to multiple interpretations among the public.

“Salah satunya ada ikhtiar militer akan masuk ke segala sektor, termasuk yang menjadi domain kepolisian. Pada titik ini perlu ada ketegasan dari pimpinan masing-masing seperti Panglima TNI dan Kapolri,” ujar dia.

Aris menambahkan, memang ada tugas OMSP yang melibatkan TNI, seperti penanganan aksi terorisme.

Namun, terorisme dinilai memiliki eskalasi ancaman yang jauh berbeda dibanding kriminalitas biasa seperti begal.