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TNI-installations-guard
TNI to stop guarding vital installations
JP/3/VITAL
TNI to stop guarding vital installations
JAKARTA: The Indonesian Military (TNI) Chief Gen. Endriartono
Sutarto said Monday that he would withdraw troops currently
deployed at several vital installations, including PT Freeport
gold and copper mine in Papua, arguing that "guarding the places
is not part of our main tasks."
Speaking in a press conference at TNI headquarters,
Endriartono, nevertheless, said that for the time being, troops
would still guard ExxonMobil gas operations in Aceh province due
to security concerns. Aceh has been under martial law since May
19, when the government launched a military operation to crush
separatist rebels.
"Based on the Law No. 3/2002 on state defense, guarding vital
installations is not part of our duties. We are not mercenaries
either and the decision to guard the vital objects was not coming
from us, but from the government due to security considerations,"
Endriartono said. "We do not wish to be a scapegoat should
something happen to the companies."
The TNI submitted the proposal on troops withdrawal to the
government in Nov. 4 and expected that the latter would
immediately approve it.
He denied his proposal was linked to a U.S. decision to
withhold assistance for Indonesia's armed forces unless they
cooperate fully with a Federal Bureau of Investigation probe into
the ambush killing of two Americans at Freeport in August last
year which killed two Americans and an Indonesian.
Papua police last year quoted a witness as saying that
Kopassus special forces soldiers were suspected of carrying out
the attack. The military denies any involvement.
Freeport has said it paid the Indonesian military about US$5.6
million last year to protect its employees in Papua.
Former defense minister Juwono Sudarsono said earlier this
year that TNI should not have funding sources other than the
state, and that collecting payments from other sources would
erode their loyalty to the state.