Can police stand on their own?

When the National Police celebrated its 52nd anniversary on Wednesday, calls for its separation from the rest of the Armed Forces were gaining a new momentum. The Jakarta Post's Ahmad Junaidi, Arief Suhardiman, Edith Hartanto, Dwi Atmanta, Sylvia Gratia M. Nirang, Kornelius Purba and Kosasih Daradjat report on the long-standing debate.

JAKARTA (JP): Calls for the separation of the National Police from the Armed Forces have come to the surface once again following several incidents in the past two months which rocked the nation. Many people are questioning the police's failure to live up to their function as public protectors and servants.

The incident on May 12 during a student protest at Trisakti University at which four students were shot dead and 35 people injured, has reverberated awfully around the police as the force that was in the front line against the protesters.

The police's position got worst in the next two days when the city was rocked by massive riots. The government said the violence claimed more than 500 lives, most of them found in debris of burning buildings, not to mention the gang rape and sexual harassment of Chinese-Indonesians.

Hatred against the police was at its peak. Angry crowds burned and destroyed at least 45 police posts throughout Greater Jakarta, 23 police cars and armored vehicles and hundreds of public facilities.

Minister of Defense/Armed Forces Commander Gen. Wiranto announced a few days after the Trisakti incident that the four students were shot dead by live ammunition.

This statement sparked a controversy as the then National Police chief Gen. Dibyo Widodo issued a statement later in May that the police were not involved in the incident. He said none of his men were armed with live ammunition.

Police guideline No.05/IV/1994 states they are only to be armed with blanks, rubber bullets and tear gas while soldiers are armed with blank, rubber and live ammunition.

"They say the police were put in the front line of handling protests and riots in the middle of May. But you can judge what is really happening here," Dibyo said.

"The police have become scapegoats," he said.

Reliable sources say that the command of the situation was held by the City Police until May 12, and after that it was taken over by the Jakarta Military Command.

Eighteen policemen were named as suspects in the Trisakti incident. Two are standing trial at the Jakarta Military Court.

Both the City Police chief and the National Police chief were replaced soon after the Trisakti incident.

On his last day as National Police chief, Dibyo underlined the importance of separating the police from the rest of the Armed Forces.

"I believe that the police have to be given their autonomy by the government. I think that is the most important thing now," he said.

Noted law expert Loebby Loqman told The Jakarta Post that the Trisakti case is just one of dozens of reasons why the police must be separated from the military.

"The police's job is to protect and serve people. The military's job is to destroy and kill an enemy. That's the difference," he said.

Wiranto said it would require a great deal of study before the police could be separated from the military and therefore could not be done in a short time.

"The issue (of separation) has been discussed by the Armed Forces for a long time. But there are other important things that have to be taken in consideration," he said.

Among these is the capability of the police to handle social order disturbances on a national scale.

"Could the police handle that without the support of military forces? Could they move quickly without back up support from other Armed Forces branches?

"People demand security and order in society ... and another thing, what about doctrine? There will be great changes here and it will take a long time to rearrange all of this," Wiranto said.

Experts and observers, however, say that the police's separation from the Armed Forces is a crucial matter and therefore must be done as soon as possible.

"Police separation will have certain consequences. But I say again, it is time for the National Police to become a nondepartmental institution," Maj. Gen. (ret) Koesparmono Irsan, who is also a member of National Commission on Human Rights, said.

It would be better if the police divorce themselves from the Armed Forces and became an institution under the president's supervision, he said.

Koesparmono reiterated that the police have a different culture from the other military branches.

"The police are civilians in uniform. Being a cop is a job that combines law enforcement aspects and the protection and service of the people. Unlike the military, the police have greater humanity," he explained.

His statement is supported by military observer Salim Said, who says it is time for the Armed Forces to reform themselves from within.

"The police must be separated from the military forces because obviously their duties and characteristics are completely different.

"The police should have an image as the protectors of society, not a frightening image, which is the representation of military forces." he said.

The separation will also allow the police to become independent. "What we see now is that the military interferes with the police's roles in society. This must be wiped out."

For common people, however, the separation does not really matter. "The police must improve themselves whether they are separate or not," said Siahaan, a public transportation minivan driver plying the Kampung Melayu-Senen route.

The police has a doctrine "to protect and to serve". But they have a poor public image as many of them are corrupt.

Ronny Nitibaskara of the University of Indonesia said in a recent seminar on the police's roles in society that the police have to get rid of their corrupt mentality and bad habits in a bid to prepare for autonomy.

"I'll tell you a story. There was a man living deep in the jungle of Sumatra, praying to God to give him Rp 1 million. The next day, a policeman came and gave him an envelope.

"He opened it and found Rp 200,000 in it. Then he prayed again. This time he said: 'Please God, if you want to give me money, don't give it through the police'," Ronny said, to roars of laughter from the audience. (team)