Deputy Defence Minister: Prospective Red-and-White Cooperative Managers Will Not Become Reserve Components

The Ministry of Defence is evaluating the training concept for prospective managers of the Red-and-White Village Cooperatives (Kopdes Merah Putih/KDMP) and Red-and-White Fishermen’s Villages (Kampung Nelayan Merah Putih/KNMP). Deputy Defence Minister Donny Ermawan stated that they will no longer undergo basic military training (latsarmil) and become reserve components (Komcad). “Initially, they were also going to become reserve components. We have now decided that they will only be given guidance, education, and state defence training,” Donny told reporters at the Parliament Complex, Senayan, Central Jakarta, on Wednesday, 1 July 2026. This change in the training scheme was made in response to the deaths of five prospective KDMP managers during basic military training. “The bottom line is that there will be no more lessons related to weapons or military tactics,” Donny explained. “So they will only be given lessons related to nationalism, patriotism, and discipline,” he added. Donny explained that participants will be trained to build discipline through the implementation of a daily activity schedule and will be provided with leadership material related to managing cooperatives and fishermen’s villages. “A manager certainly has several staff members they must lead. How to train togetherness and cooperation. Well, those are the values we will provide,” said Donny.