Gen. Feisal warns of disintegrative forces

Gen. Feisal warns of disintegrative forces

JAKARTA (JP): Armed Forces (ABRI) Chief Gen. Feisal Tanjung
warned last night of disintegrative forces at work as the nation
prepares for the 1997 general election and the presidential
election the following year.

The military will not allow any action that could tear the
nation apart, Feisal said in a nationwide televised speech on the
eve of ABRI's 51st anniversary.

"ABRI will act and will not take any risks whatsoever. It will
always place the interests of the nation above those of groups or
individuals, especially now when the nation is going through the
various preparatory phases for the 1997 election," he said.

The military sees "the function of the election as not only to
invigorate constitutional democracy, but also to guarantee
sustainable development so the country stays on the right path as
it advances and strives to reach its goals," he said.

"The general election is not a vehicle to preserve the status
quo. It is part of the constitutional efforts to achieve the
nation's goals," he said.

Feisal appealed to the nation to continue "to forge unity,
preserve harmony, exercise wisdom and stay away from provocations
for disintegrative behavior and other acts that could destroy the
fruits of development."

He said the theme of this year's ABRI anniversary is to
safeguard and ensure the success of the 1997 general election and
the 1998 People's Consultative Assembly.

The assembly meets in March 1998 to elect a president and vice
president.

Feisal said despite some shortcomings, ABRI has managed to
move forward in its efforts to turn its posture into a
professional, effective, efficient and modern force.

The ABRI anniversary celebration reaches its peak today with a
military parade at the Senayan east parking lot, which will be
led by President Soeharto. (emb)

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