Analysts blame clash on TNI's grip on security affairs
Analysts blame clash on TNI's grip on security affairs
Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Analysts blamed the deadly gunfight between police and soldiers
in Binjai, North Sumatra, on the reluctance of the Indonesian
Military (TNI) to focus on the national defense and relinquish
its involvement in internal security matters to the police.
They said the military's long-standing grip on internal
security affairs had made the soldiers hesitant to withdraw from
the power.
"TNI joins in security operations more often than taking care
of defense matters. This mistake, of course, creates conflicts,"
said Hendardi of the Indonesian Legal Aid and Human Rights
Association (PBHI) here on Tuesday.
Nur Atar Achmad of the Police Watchdog concurred. He urged the
military commander to convince the soldiers to carry out defense
matters.
Both Hendardi and Atar were commenting on the gunfight between
police and soldiers in the North Sumatra town of Binjai, which
had claimed eight lives.
Similar incidents have taken place in cities throughout the
country. The latest was on Aug. 12 when 30 members of the
National Police Mobile Brigade (Brimob) attacked a military
complex in Bogor, West Java.
One police officer was killed in the incident and three others
were seriously injured.
Another incident occurred in September last year in Madiun,
East Java, between police officers and Army soldiers who killed
two civilians.
For years, the police were part of the TNI and were
subordinate to the military. The police separated from the TNI
after the enactment of Law No. 2/2002 on Indonesian Police
affairs.
Under the law, the police are headed by a police commander who
is directly accountable to the President.
The separation has boosted the police's confidence, but it has
become a threat to the military's dominance, observers said.
Although, the police are legally mandated to handle security
affairs, observers say military commanders' failure to share has
prompted soldiers to keep their role in security affairs intact.
In the Binjai gunfight, which lasted from Sunday evening
through Monday morning, various weapons -- including M16s and
AK47s -- were used to gun each other down.
Reports have said that the gunfight was provoked by a rivalry
between police officers and soldiers involved in the illegal drug
trade. Both the police and military are allegedly involved in
trafficking drugs to increase their incomes.
"The conflict is an accumulation of problems from the past. I
believe it will resurface in the future if no stern actions are
taken," Hendardi said.
He added that there should be strict regulations on the use of
arms and munitions among police and military personnel. He urged
the government to make stricter regulations to deal with weapons.
Hendardi acknowledged that deadly clashes between police and
military personnel could be ignited by different factors, but the
root of the problem was the same.
He said there was rising hostility among police and military
personnel following the police's separation from the TNI.
Achmad agreed with Hendardi, saying that the military's envy
had boiled over with speculation that police personnel could earn
more cash due to their close interaction with society.
He added that the condition had worsened with the police
personnel flaunting their wealth to military soldiers, a move
which could enrage the soldiers.