Critics caution over rise in military spending

Critics caution over rise in military spending

Tiarma Siboro, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Critics of the military are worried that the government's
proposal to increase the defense budget this year would be used
to expand the Army's much-criticized territorial function.

The Ministry of Defense has proposed to the House of
Representatives a Rp 5 trillion (US$538 million) increase in the
2005 defense spending from the current Rp 21.6 trillion.

Meanwhile, the Army is planning to establish 22 new
territorial commands nationwide; develop three new military
commands in Riau and Bangka-Belitung, and Merauke in Papua; and a
new division of its Strategic Resort Command (Kostrad) in Sorong,
also in Papua. The plan was unveiled by Army Chief of Staff Lt.
Gen. Djoko Santoso during a recent meeting with the House of
Representatives Commission I on political, security, and foreign
affairs.

Minister of Defense Juwono Sudarsono seemed to support the
plan, saying the expansion was crucial to help ensure security in
the country.

But human rights activists Usman Hamid and Zoemrotin K.
Soesilo were concerned the move would hamper the process of
democracy in the country and allow the Army to further strengthen
its role in the business sector.

"The presence of more territorial commands will have three
consequences: First, it will endanger the democratization
process. Second, it will ensure the military continues its
(illegal) timber business. Thirdly, it will mean we will continue
to be unable to prevent rampant human rights abuses from taking
place," Usman said.

Military analyst Andi Widjajanto from the University of
Indonesia said that the Army's plan to develop more territorial
offices was against the military's internal reform drive.

"If the Army is concerned about the development of defense
capacity, it must develop its strike force units in several
strategic areas instead of establishing (territorial)
institutions that have a structure parallel with civilian
administrations," Andi said.

The Army's plan to set up new military base in Papua comes
amid an ongoing investigation into the involvement of TNI
officials in illegal logging and timber smuggling in the
province.

The investigation comes after a report made by the London-
based Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) and the Indonesian
environmental group Telapak last month that accused security
officers and government officials of being involved in the
smuggling of 300,000 cubic meters of timber a month from
Indonesia (mostly Papua province) to China.

The two NGOs identified the Sorong, Manokwari, Fak Fak, Nabire
and Serui regencies in Papua as the main illegal logging
hotspots, from which the logs are shipped to the Chinese port of
Zhangjiagang.

A report by an internal TNI investigation team obtained by The
Jakarta Post shows that the Army, the Navy and police officers
are all involved in the logging.

According to the report, the several timber companies in Papua
are engaged in "a coordination" arrangement with TNI officers,
police personnel, customs officers and forestry officials, who
are paid between Rp 50 million and Rp 500 million.

"This coordination is a various levels, from the commander in
charge of the Navy's ships, commander of the Navy's sea defense
area, the operational assistant to the Navy's eastern fleet, the
Navy's eastern fleet commander to the Navy chief's operational
assistant," the report says.

In the police, the funds are also distributed at all levels;
from police precinct commander to the Papuan police chief, it
says.

Spokespeople from the security forces could not be reached for
comment.