Civil Coalition Criticises TNI Commander's Claim of Responsibility for Public Security
The Civil Society Coalition for Security Sector Reform has criticised Indonesian Military (TNI) Commander General Agus Subiyanto for claiming responsibility for public security across Indonesia. The coalition’s coordinator, Dimas Bagus Arya of KontraS, stated that Agus was mistaken in asserting that the TNI would continue to patrol various regions to anticipate possible demonstrations.
According to Arya, the claim of being responsible for public security indicates that the boundary between defence and domestic security functions is increasingly being blurred. He further assessed that such a statement risks legitimising the presence of the military as a normal occurrence in civilian life.
‘Article 30 of the 1945 Constitution places the TNI as a state instrument tasked with defending, protecting, and maintaining the nation’s territorial integrity and sovereignty,’ the coalition stated in a written release on Tuesday (11/8).
Arya emphasised that the responsibility for maintaining public security and order, protecting and serving citizens, and enforcing the law is the duty of the Indonesian National Police (Polri). He noted that this division is not merely an administrative matter, adding that the separation of the TNI and Polri is one of the important achievements of the Reformasi era to end the military’s dual function and its dominance in civilian affairs.
Dimas reminded that while the law does allow the TNI to assist the Polri within the framework of military operations other than war, the TNI, as an assisting party, is not granted independent authority to determine threats, designate operational areas, or conduct routine security patrols. ‘Assistance must be based on genuine need and a lawful request. The scope, objectives, duration, operational control, and accountability must also be subject to public scrutiny,’ he said.
‘Therefore, the pretext of coordination, collaboration, or implementation based on standard operating procedures is insufficient to justify the deployment of the military in civilian spaces. SOPs are internal rules; they cannot create authority not granted by the constitution and laws,’ he added.
According to Arya, confronting demonstrations with military patrols reflects a misguided perspective. He stressed that citizens are not potential threats but rather holders of sovereignty exercising their rights. Consequently, the coalition urged the TNI Commander to immediately retract and correct his statement and to cease claiming that the TNI is the primary party responsible for public security throughout Indonesia.
Furthermore, the coalition called on the National Police to clarify whether it had requested assistance from the TNI and to specify the scope of any such request. ‘They must also ensure that TNI personnel do not conduct inspections, arrests, seizures, interrogations, surveillance of activists, or other law enforcement actions,’ the coalition stated. The Civil Society Coalition for Security Sector Reform comprises Imparsial, KontraS, YLBHI, Indonesia RISK Centre, Amnesty International Indonesia, HRWG, WALHI, Centra Initiative, Raksha Initiatives, ICW, SETARA Institute, and others.