Army leaders to meet local veterans

Army leaders to meet local veterans

BANDUNG (JP): Army leaders plan to hold talks with retired
senior officers to discuss their perceptions about state affairs.

Army Chief of Staff Gen. R. Hartono said yesterday he has yet
to set the date and venue for the forum where the participants
can express their ideas freely.

"The idea has long been planned," Hartono told journalists
after swearing in several Army officials assuming their new
posts.

The chief of staff announced the plan at a time when several
Army generals are in the hot seat over their criticism of the
bureaucracy, including the Armed Forces.

Last month, President Soeharto questioned the outspoken
veterans' commitment to implementing the 1945 Constitution and
the state ideology Pancasila.

Several retired generals like A.H. Nasution, Solichin G.P. and
Bambang Triantoro replied that their comments were an effort to
contribute ideas for the betterment of the nation.

Hartono said the idea to bring together the veterans and
active officers for talks came up long before the controversy
over retired general's criticism flared up.

"It's you (journalists) who made it as if the idea is
something new," he scoffed.

Hartono said that the Army leadership will select veterans to
invite to the seminar, but priority will be given to graduates of
the Army Staff and Command School who finished their studies
between 1951 and 1961.

The general said some veterans naturally view current affairs
with an old frame of mind, which is not always suitable.

"The current condition is of course different from the past,
although there is nothing fundamental," Hartono said. (17/pan)