Experts hail TNI's plan to drop territorial function
Experts hail TNI's plan to drop territorial function
JAKARTA (JP): Observers welcomed the Indonesian Military (TNI)
headquarters' plan to drop its territorial function and to focus
on defense duties, saying it was a positive move to improve its
professionalism.
TNI's chief for territorial affairs Lt. Gen. Agus Widjojo
revealed on Tuesday that based on the results of the recent
Workshop on Military Territorial Function, the military wanted to
drop its territorial functions and would focus on defense
affairs.
"But, such a move is not that easy to implement as there are
still differences in understanding and vision among regional
military commanders," Hermawan Sulistyo, a researcher with the
Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) told The Jakarta Post on
Wednesday.
He said there were many regional military chiefs who still
adopted old practices since they adhered to the belief that the
military was superior to civilians, "and therefore they are
unable to let go of TNI's socio-political functions."
"So, the reform measures which have been agreed upon by the
military headquarters in Jakarta are not always applicable in the
provinces because many regional military commanders still defend
old military practices," he said.
"So it very much depends on who heads the regional military
commands," he added.
He said the military regional commands would still need to be
maintained for some time before being gradually phased out.
Military observer M.T. Arifin said the idea to drop the
territorial function was part of the process within the military
of leaving politics.
"I think the process is still going on and of course it takes
place in stages and takes time," he told the Post.
He agreed with Hermawan that the military regional commands
could not be phased out in the immediate future. "But their
function should be narrowed so that they deal only with defense
concerns."
Both of them, however, agreed that if the military managed to
leave its territorial function it would boost the effort to
create a professional military, whose function was only to the
defend the nation.
"As a consequence of the policy, all the military men in the
House of Representatives (DPR) must be withdrawn. And I believe
that many military officers are not happy with their presence in
the legislature," Hermawan added.
Observer Indro Tjahjono, while welcoming the plan, expressed
reservations that the plan to drop the military's territorial
function would take place smoothly since there were still many
officers who wanted to be involved in politics.
He said that competition among factions in the military was
won by those who were not in favor of the reform process and who
now enjoyed political support.
"But if the military really wants to drop its territorial
function, it should be followed by the dissolution of the
regional military commands which have been used as political
instruments in the past," Indro said in a seminar on The Military
in Megawati's Government on Wednesday.
A legislator from the Military/Police faction in the House,
Christina M. Rantetana, said there were many military officers
who agreed that they should no longer be used as a political
tool.
"Actually, we want to become a professional military which is
no longer involved in political affairs, but it is not easy. We
need support from all segments of society," she told the seminar.
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