Dodging the draft

Born of a long, bloody revolution which taxed immeasurable sacrifice, it is no wonder that the words "war" and "struggle" are etched into the fables of Indonesian nationalism.

The sacrifices that our forefathers endured to create this nation should forever be remembered. It is the constitutional and inherent duty of citizens to defend this hard earned sovereignty. There is no question of that.

Unfortunately, since independence a kind of militaristic vogue has colored civilian life, despite a near-complete absence of external adversaries.

It's time to cease such ways of thinking. The wars some may think we're still fighting were all over a long time ago. The revolution is over!

The glory of tomorrow does not lay in the arrogance of might or coercive power. Our struggle now is to liberate the nation from hunger, ignorance and suppression.

Indonesia should still be proud to have an effective armed force without military might itself having to become the centerpiece of the nation's pride.

That is why we view with anxiety the introduction of a bill that could, in a few years time, draft citizens aged between 18 and 45 into the military reserves.

We question the need for mandatory military service given the absence of any perceivable external threat. It is almost impossible to imagine that our neighbors in Southeast Asia, Papua New Guinea, Timor Leste or Australia, would seek to attack Indonesia in the foreseeable future. Regional diplomatic arrangements in place ensure that the advent of open conflict between nations in the region is highly unlikely.

Mandatory military service in a time of no apparent threat would only result in undedicated servicemen who would eat away at the military's core professionalism by continuously questioning their commanders.

If the Indonesian Military (TNI) strongly believes that it needs to beef-up its manpower, we suggest a Reserves Corps comprised of volunteers -- part-time soldiers -- who can be called-up for active duty for training or deployment.

For a military that is always complaining of budget constraints, the cost of a limited reserves force would be lower than that of a perpetually rotating draft. This also allows resources to be allocated into buying new equipment and improving training.

Mandatory service means new recruits would have to be trained every year to replace those who leave. Furthermore the draft system fails to provide the critical skills that only come with years of training and experience.

The end result would be a less well-trained yet costly army.

Some may argue that military training is beneficial to instill discipline; the kind of discipline required for a modern industrial nation.

South Korea and Singapore -- countries which impose mandatory military service -- have been cited as examples in which the skill sets acquired through military training have become assets in their country's leap to industrialization.

We agree that discipline is a particular characteristic that many Indonesians sorely lack.

But the if the price for discipline is the militarization of society, then the country best seek other alternatives.

For much of the past three decades, our military has been used against its own people. There have been far too many instances where innocent civilians have become the targets of military wrath.

Indonesia does not have clear prohibitions, such as those in the United States, that forbids the use of the military on its own soil. There are also questions on whether the military, the Army in particular, has truly accepted its exclusive role in the defense domain and forsaken its desire to intrude into internal political and security issues.

One can understand the dilemma faced by a conscript army if, for example, it were deployed to Aceh or Papua. The issue of mandatory military service is not only socially divisive; it could potentially threaten national unity.

Rejecting military service does not imply a lack of patriotism. If the Indonesian state was under external threat, millions would instinctively rush to the frontlines as they did during the war of independence.

On the contrary, it is the logic of compulsory military service with its forced patriotism and militarist indoctrination that violates the nation's yearning to create a vibrant, just and civilized society.