Armed Forces' dual role depends on public acceptance
Armed Forces' dual role depends on public acceptance
JAKARTA (JP): The Armed Forces' dual function, which allows it
to play both a security and sociopolitical role, would lose its
validity if people no longer accepted it, Deputy House Speaker
Lt. Gen. Syarwan Hamid, said yesterday.
Syarwan, also former Armed Forces (ABRI) chief of
sociopolitical affairs, told a discussion here that Indonesia
maintained the concept because of the benefits it had yielded.
"The strongest legitimacy of the military's dual function
stems from the Armed Forces devotion to national interests. If
people think the Armed Forces cannot carry out its services, the
dual role will no longer be relevant," Syarwan said.
The discussion, which focused on various criticism on the ABRI
dual functions, was organized by the association of journalists
posted at the House of Representatives. Also speaking in the
discussion was military expert Salim Said.
Syarwan said the referencing of Indonesian history and
philosophy were no longer enough to answer the much-debated
military presence in nondefense affairs.
The Armed Forces began to venture out of its traditional
territory after then president Sukarno declared martial law in
the mid-1950s. Many military officers started to fill managerial
seats in state offices and companies, due to their organizational
expertise.
Gen. (ret) Abdul Haris Nasution was the first to introduce the
concept of the military's dual function which differentiated the
Indonesian military from those either in western or socialist
countries.
Military experts said the Armed Forces' intensifying
involvement in politics then served to check the growing force of
the now outlawed Indonesian Communist Party (PKI).
Syarwan said the abortive coup attempt blamed on the PKI in
1965 justified the Armed Forces' sociopolitical role. He said the
state policy guidelines, drawn up every five years since 1973,
gave formal legitimacy to the military's dual function.
"The Armed Forces' sociopolitical role, therefore, is not a
sort of experiment. It is part of the country's 50-year history,"
Syarwan said.
The Armed Forces, whose members do not vote, have been granted
seats in the House of Representatives, the number of which has
varied from time to time. The present House has 75 seats for the
Armed Forces.
Both Syarwan and Salim agreed that the dual role was not
necessarily aimed at giving civilian posts to military officers,
despite the fact that the military dominates the top posts in the
bureaucracy at all administrative levels.
"Military officers with civilian posts are only a small part
of the idea of the dual function. The number of military officers
who assume civilian jobs will decrease in accordance with rising
public demands, but their participation in nondefense matters
will remain," Salim said.
Syarwan said that the concept of the dual function was so
dynamic that its application was open for revision, should people
wish to pursue one.
"We will preserve the principles, but the application will
follow public expectations," Syarwan said. (amd)
JAKARTA (JP): The Armed Forces' dual function, which allows it
to play both a security and sociopolitical role, would lose its
validity if people no longer accepted it, Deputy House Speaker
Lt. Gen. Syarwan Hamid, said yesterday.
Syarwan, also former Armed Forces (ABRI) chief of
sociopolitical affairs, told a discussion here that Indonesia
maintained the concept because of the benefits it had yielded.
"The strongest legitimacy of the military's dual function
stems from the Armed Forces devotion to national interests. If
people think the Armed Forces cannot carry out its services, the
dual role will no longer be relevant," Syarwan said.
The discussion, which focused on various criticism on the ABRI
dual functions, was organized by the association of journalists
posted at the House of Representatives. Also speaking in the
discussion was military expert Salim Said.
Syarwan said the referencing of Indonesian history and
philosophy were no longer enough to answer the much-debated
military presence in nondefense affairs.
The Armed Forces began to venture out of its traditional
territory after then president Sukarno declared martial law in
the mid-1950s. Many military officers started to fill managerial
seats in state offices and companies, due to their organizational
expertise.
Gen. (ret) Abdul Haris Nasution was the first to introduce the
concept of the military's dual function which differentiated the
Indonesian military from those either in western or socialist
countries.
Military experts said the Armed Forces' intensifying
involvement in politics then served to check the growing force of
the now outlawed Indonesian Communist Party (PKI).
Syarwan said the abortive coup attempt blamed on the PKI in
1965 justified the Armed Forces' sociopolitical role. He said the
state policy guidelines, drawn up every five years since 1973,
gave formal legitimacy to the military's dual function.
"The Armed Forces' sociopolitical role, therefore, is not a
sort of experiment. It is part of the country's 50-year history,"
Syarwan said.
The Armed Forces, whose members do not vote, have been granted
seats in the House of Representatives, the number of which has
varied from time to time. The present House has 75 seats for the
Armed Forces.
Both Syarwan and Salim agreed that the dual role was not
necessarily aimed at giving civilian posts to military officers,
despite the fact that the military dominates the top posts in the
bureaucracy at all administrative levels.
"Military officers with civilian posts are only a small part
of the idea of the dual function. The number of military officers
who assume civilian jobs will decrease in accordance with rising
public demands, but their participation in nondefense matters
will remain," Salim said.
Syarwan said that the concept of the dual function was so
dynamic that its application was open for revision, should people
wish to pursue one.
"We will preserve the principles, but the application will
follow public expectations," Syarwan said. (amd)