Analyst sees young officers reshaping ABRI's role
Analyst sees young officers reshaping ABRI's role
YOGYAKARTA (JP): The most appropriate role for the Armed
Forces (ABRI) in Indonesia's future sociopolitical arena is one
which elicits people's respect for it, a military analyst says.
Yahya Muhaimin, from Gadjah Mada University, said he believed
the new generation of younger officers with increasing influence
would take the lead to achieve the ideal.
Yahya told The Jakarta Post that ABRI has two kinds of
leaders: those naturally shaped by experience and younger
"trained" officers. Of the latter, there are those who can be
categorized as "conventional professional", preoccupied mostly
with security matters, and those who are "new professionals"
because they are concerned not only with security but also the
social, economic and political situation.
"The future role of the Armed Forces will be determined by the
young officers. Unlike senior military leaders trained by
instinct and experience, the young officers are more
scientifically inclined because of their academic backgrounds.
"The future of ABRI is in the hands of officers such as Maj.
Gen. Prabowo (Subianto), Maj. Gen. Bambang Yudhoyono and Col.
Syamsul Ma'arif," he said, referring to the commander of the Army
special force, the chief of the southern Sumatra regional
military command, and the chief of Bhaskara Jaya military
district in Surabaya respectively.
"The new professional officers are not only top-notch but are
also able to read social and political situations."
He said the new breed of officers were not only consistent in
holding up the culture and tradition of ABRI but also have
vision. Yahya compared them with President Soeharto and Gen.
(ret) A.H. Nasution as former officers from a military tradition
seasoned by experience. "We can't say which group is better, both
are needed.
"What's the proper role for ABRI in the future? One which
makes people respect it, and which enables it to respect the
people," he said.
The Armed Forces' Dwifungsi, or dual function, allows it an
official role in politics. Under the concept military officers
can hold civilian jobs from the lowest level of the bureaucracy
in the villages to the upper echelons of cabinet ministries.
Critics have often said that the Armed Forces should gradually
reduce its sociopolitical role, take a backseat and let civilians
assume more influential, decision-making posts.
Yahya said a role that elicits people's respect and teaches
Armed Forces officers to respect people should come about from "a
unified vision, perception and interpretation of important issues
such as democratization, public participation and national
stability."
The role needs a "unified stance on state matters," said
Yahya, who is also a deputy chairman of the 28-million-strong
Muhammadiyah Moslem organization.
Despite the current criticism of the military's over-
involvement in public life, Yahya is confident the right role for
ABRI to play will be evident in the near future.
"If people are willing to work at it, reciprocal respect
between the Armed Forces and the people would be easy to
establish."
He said that civilian leaders such as State Minister of Public
Housing Akbar Tandjung and Minister of Transmigration Siswono
Yudohusodo, both former student activists, have displayed a
relatively unified stance on many state matters.
"The two seem to have a common vision on many issues. If the
civilian leaders can do it, why not (ABRI leaders and other
civilians)?" he said. "As long as there is willingness to respect
one another and no intention to look down on one another, there
should be no problem (in establishing more unified positions)."
Yahya also discussed the Armed Forces' handling of the recent
unrest in many parts of the country over the last few months. He
said he "sensed" the upheavals were possibly contrived by "groups
who, for their individual and collective interests, were trying
to sabotage the general election" which constitutes the
legitimacy for the New Order administration. (swe)