Let TNI do the job, but with restrictions

Imanuddin Razak, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

A request for the Indonesian Military (TNI) to take part in effectively preventing and acting against terrorism in the wake of the second Bali bomb blast was recently delivered by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. And TNI Chief Gen. Endriartono Sutarto has responded by suggesting that the Military would restore the dormant territorial command to deal with the matter.

Quoting a popular proverb, Sekali pedang dihunus, pantang untuk mundur (Once the sword is unsheathed, it is taboo for a knight to retreat), it is now rather difficult for the President to withdraw his statement.

And the only remaining position that the President can take is to make sure that the mandate he has given to the TNI will not be abused by this institution.

Susilo's public request on Oct. 5, 2005 for the TNI to get involved in the government's campaign against terror showed on one hand his determination to immediately respond to such a terrorist attack.

On the other hand, however, it also showed the President's desperation in bringing to an end the series of bombing attacks that have been hitting the country since the late 1990s. It also demonstrates the powerlessness of the Indonesian intelligence community and Police, which are legally responsible for domestic security affairs, who collectively are still unable to bring the two top bombing fugitives -- Dr. Azahari Husin and Noordin M. Top -- to justice.

The President's official statement while addressing the TNI's 60th anniversary was responded to by Endriartono immediately after the ceremony. Endriartono surprisingly stated that the TNI would reactivate its territorial command -- from the provincial- level Regional Military Command (Kodam) to the village-level unit, known with the term Babinsa -- in order to meet the President's request.

The territorial command used to be equipped with intelligence arms, with Babinsa being at the forefront of the system.

The military chief's statement has drawn strong opposition from various elements in the community, who expressed their fear of the return to human rights and political abuses by the military should the command be reinstated. Many, including People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) Speaker Hidayat Nur Wahid, suggested that the State should empower the existing intelligence community and the police to tackle such terrorist attacks, rather than reestablishing the command.

Questioning the government's policies, especially on strategic issues involving the lives of the country's over 220 million population, is a must and guaranteed by al democratic societies. The question should then be why or what has made the President turn to the TNI to help the government in its campaign against terror attacks in the country?

Constitutionally speaking, the authority and responsibility to deal with domestic security affairs lays with the police. Such authority is guaranteed by Article 30 of the Constitution and Law No. 2/2002 on National Police.

It's been three years since the first blasts rocked Bali. But the police still find it difficult to locate the whereabouts of Azahari and Noordin, who are believed to be the masterminds behind the series of bomb attacks in the country over the past few years, and have only managed to capture the bombers and their accomplices.

The police's incapacity was admitted by police internal think tank member, Bambang Widodo, who said in a seminar on security sector reforms last August that it was impossible for the police to deal with the terror attacks alone.

The police force indeed has adopted a good structural system to prevent such terror attacks. However, the system -- known as koban in Japanese -- which puts police officers on the ground in neighborhoods -- is still on trial at the Bekasi Police, West Java. It cannot be expected to perform at such a short notice while the need for immediate handling of terror attacks is palpable. It will take the police at least five years to train its officers and establish koban offices nationwide.

Meanwhile, it is not possible to expect much from the country's intelligence community either as they lack the constitutional basis to move and deter any potential terror attacks. While the intelligence bill is being drafted, expecting the National Intelligence Agency (BIN) to do its utmost to combat terrorism, despite the coordinating role it has among the country's intelligence circles, is also an impossibility.

Now, it is up to the Indonesian people to decide whether to continue with all the controversies and let the terrorist attacks continue, or allow the TNI help with the task, but with clear job specifications, i.e. to curb and deal with the terrorist attacks only.

After all, it is the President's prerogative to order the TNI to actively become involved in the matter. Therefore, there should be a presidential decree that clearly gives a mandate to the TNI to perform only the designated duty.

And should one day the mandate be abused by the TNI, the whole nation, most of whom voted for Susilo in last year's election, can demand accountability from the President as the one who gave this mandate to the TNI.