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.