Is TNI serious about its reform commitment?

Imanuddin, Staff Writer, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Is the Indonesian Military (TNI) serious with its commitment to carry out internal reforms? Most senior and influential military figures would say "yes" -- adding, "but it should be gradual".

If probed further about reform in TNI, officers are likely to answer that it will certainly take place "as long as it does not bring political destabilization and civil unrest".

People may still remember that the late Lt. Gen. Agus Wirahadikusumah, known as a "reformist", went through a bitter experience when he was replaced as chief of the Army's Strategic Reserves Command (Kostrad) and left grounded with no position at all within the military leadership structure, for airing his ideas on immediate and thorough reform in the TNI.

Agus, a confidante to then president Abdurrahman Wahid, reportedly did not even have his own desk at the Army Headquarters after his dismissal from Kostrad.

Then coordinating minister for political and security affairs Wiranto said that Agus' statement threatened the TNI's unity and that the reform measures he had proposed were not yet applicable. Indonesians, Wiranto said, were still not ready to accept such immediate openness.

The downfall of president Soeharto in May 1998 had driven the country to pursue reforms in all sectors of society, including the TNI. As part of its commitment to reform, the TNI announced its willingness to gradually quit politics and its territorial function.

The TNI has repeatedly said that it will withdraw from the House of Representatives (DPR) in 2004 and fully shed its political role when it quits the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) in 2009.

It has long been suggested that the TNI's territorial function, previously known as its sociopolitical function, be eradicated. At least, the idea was raised by former Army chief of staff Gen. Rudini in April 1997, who said that the TNI chief of sociopolitical affairs and the TNI chief of general affairs were two key positions that often overlapped.

The planned handover of the TNI's territorial function, however, was only officially announced by then TNI chief of territorial affairs Lt. Gen. Agus Widjojo last August. If implemented, TNI's territorial affairs will then be held by a two-star general, who will report to the TNI's chief of general affairs.

But Widjojo maintained that the TNI would not abolish its territorial function but would hand the function over to local administrations and the National Police.

He admitted, however, that someday TNI must release its territorial function to local administrations and police and solely focus on defense, such as training and preparing combat units in the regions and preparing defense plans for the regions.

He hinted at the possibility of dissolving TNI's territorial institutions below military resort commands (Korem), including the district military command at the regency level (Kodim) and all military units at lower levels, including subdistrict military command (Koramil) and military officers in charge of village security (Babinsa).

Widjojo's statement was welcomed by military observers. Some, such as Indro Tjahjono, expressed reservations. He doubted that the plan to drop the military's territorial function would take place smoothly as there were still many officers who wanted to be involved in politics.

Indro suggested that if the military really wanted to drop its territorial function, it should be followed by the dissolution of the regional military commands (Kodam).

There has not yet been any response from TNI Headquarters on such suggestions, which, if endorsed, would leave dozens of two- star generals with no structural posts.

With its territorial function, the military has been deeply involved in civil affairs, especially during the administration of former president Soeharto, who used military networks down to the village level to silence his critics.

Nevertheless, the military's territorial work has in some cases brought about improvements to the physical development of local areas such as in helping to build infrastructure and improving people's social welfare.

A legislator from the Military/Police faction in the House of Representatives (DPR), Christina M. Rantetana, defended the military's seriousness with its reform agenda, saying that there were many military officers who agreed that they should no longer be used as a political tool.

To many, reform in the military means TNI's independence from the influence of the state apparatus or the ruling government.

Many may still recall the days before the downfall of Soeharto in May 1998 when around 100,000 student protesters gathered at the DPR/MPR compound and were about to move to the presidential palace in an attempt to force Soeharto to resign.

The students canceled their movement after receiving information that the TNI had been ordered by the then president to shoot on site anyone attempting to approach the palace.

Yet, the political developments in the capital, which saw the resignation of key Cabinet ministers and the MPR's official request that Soeharto resign, had forced the then TNI chief Gen. Wiranto to see the then president and told him that the TNI could not carry out his instruction to shoot the protesters as it would mean killing thousands of people.

A year before, the military's "proper" stance in observing such a critical situation and its relationship with the ruling government, had already been suggested by Rudini.

The TNI's independence from the government was then practiced by Wiranto's successors who had the courage to question a presidential instruction and even ignore it. This could be observed from the TNI leaders' objection to a plan by then president Abdurrahman to declare and impose a state of emergency in the last days of his presidency.

Apart from the TNI's commitment to reform, people may also have to observe an unwritten but widely accepted agreement among elements in the TNI that it will do all it can to maintain the unitary State of the Republic.

Within the TNI it has been accepted that the military could take the initiative to take necessary steps to prevent disintegration.

Many analysts believe that the TNI will take control of the situation if the country does begin to disintegrate. And if that happens, the country may see the establishment of a military-led government.