Legislators insist on deliberating military bill

Legislators insist on deliberating military bill

Kurniawan Hari and Tiarma Siboro, Jakarta

Despite the growing opposition toward the Indonesian Military
(TNI) bill, major factions in the House of Representatives are
insisting on deliberating the government-sponsored draft.

Chairman of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-
P) faction at the House Tjahjo Kumolo said the bill was designed
to provide the TNI with clear guidelines in its duty to defend
national unity.

"There is no intention whatsoever to revive the political role
of the military," Tjahjo said after receiving representatives of
non-governmental organizations who urged the faction to support
their demand for a delay in the bill deliberation schedule.

The NGO representatives and experts will meet with other
factions at the House in a last-ditch effort to prevent the
deliberation from proceeding. They held talks on Thursday with
House Commission I on security and defense that has been
appointed to debate the bill.

Munir, from human rights group Imparsial, asked the
legislators to allocate more time to gain inputs from the public.

The House commission has allocated three days from Aug. 2
through Aug. 4 to hear opinions from military experts and retired
military officers on the bill. The deliberation itself is slated
to start on Aug. 24, and is expected to finish before the current
House ends its term at the end of September.

The new House legislators who were elected in the April 5
polls will be installed on Oct. 1.

"The legislators can start the deliberation, but they must not
rush to endorse the bill. We will appreciate the legislators if
they allow the new legislators to continue the deliberation,"
Munir said.

Under Soeharto's New Order government, the military, then
known as the Armed Forces (ABRI), executed both security and
political duties at the expense of democracy. The military's
territorial control was evident with the appointment of Army
officers as governors, regents and mayors.

Tjahjo promised the PDI-P faction would not hastily endorse
the bill.

"We will look thoroughly into the content of the bill. It's
more important to proceed with the deliberation while giving the
public access to the debate," Tjahjo said.

Commission I member Chatibul Umam Wiranu of the National
Awakening Party also suggested that deliberation should not be
rushed, so as to avoid producing flawed legislation.

Opposition to the bill also came from former military chief of
social and political affairs Lt. Gen. (ret) Hasnan Habib, who
called on lawmakers to drop the draft, which he said could revive
the military's role in politics.

Speaking at a seminar on Thursday Hasnan criticized the bill
for contradicting the Constitution and the law on state defense.

According to the Constitution, the military is responsible for
defense while the police are responsible for security. The bill,
however, allows the military to meddle in security affairs.

Military analyst Mochtar Pabottingi of the Indonesian
Institute of Sciences (LIPI) also gave a thumbs-down to the draft
for adopting the old paradigm of unity between the military and
the people, which he said would hamper professionalism in the
military.

"The military is a state apparatus that plays a key role in
guarding the state. The concept of unity between the military and
the people will only provide excuses for the military to
interfere in civil affairs, including politics," Mochtar said.