Lemhannas Supports Plan to Establish Territorial Development Battalions on Java Island
JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com — The Governor of the National Resilience Institute (Lemhannas) RI, Ace Hasan Syadzily, supports the Ministry of Defense’s plan to establish the Territorial Development Battalion (BTP). The policy to increase BTPs, particularly in all districts/cities across Java, is seen as a strategic move. ‘I think the concept has been designed and planned by the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Indonesia and I think what is being reinforced now, or increased, especially across all districts/cities in Java, is a policy that is very strategic and indeed being carried out gradually by the Ministry of Defense,’ Ace said at Lemhannas’s office in Jakarta on Wednesday (20/5/2026).
Ace revealed the reason why the Java Island region becomes the main priority in accelerating the formation of the BTP. ‘And why is Java prioritised? Because Java with its very large population and the potential that could trigger security instability also makes this BTP something that must be prioritised,’ he said.
Besides defence and security function, the presence of BTP in the region is also projected to synergise with strategic government programmes, one of which is in the agricultural sector (food security).
‘In order to ensure that various government priority programs, such as food security, can be ensured there is also a partnership with the Territorial Development Battalion,’ he said.
He emphasised that the Ministry of Defense’s step to accelerate the formation of the BTP is in line with the President Prabowo Subianto’s vision as stated in Asta Cita.
According to him, the presence of the battalion is expected to accelerate national targets that have been set by the government.
‘So I think by accelerating the process of forming the BTP, the Territorial Development Battalion, we hope it will further accelerate the achievements of Asta Cita, especially in the context of food security and also in maintaining security in our country that can truly be realised,’ he said.
Ace also emphasised that a robust national resilience can only be achieved if the security situation is conducive.
‘Because one of the prerequisites for national resilience, I think, is how we create a more conducive security situation, in addition to pushing the government’s priority programs such as food resilience to be realised,’ he added.
Earlier, Defence Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin said the absence of military troops at the district level leads to many muggings and crime in various places. This is the reason the government is forming 750 new battalions by 2029.
Sjafrie said that after the TNI placed battalions and built bases in areas it had taken as examples, muggings and crime disappeared in more than 50 percent of those areas.
According to him, the duties of the Territorial Development Battalion include patrolling around with vehicles provided by the defence industry.