Maj. Gen. Muchdi installed as new Kopassus chief

Maj. Gen. Muchdi installed as new Kopassus chief

JAKARTA (JP): The Army's special force (Kopassus) got a new
commandant-general Saturday when Maj. Gen. Muchdi Purwopranjono
replaced younger Lt. Gen. Prabowo Subianto as leader of the elite
unit.

Lesser-known Muchdi was formerly Tanjungpura Regional Military
Commander, overseeing Kalimantan. He becomes Kopassus' 16th
chief.

While Prabowo was born in January 1951, Muchdi was born in
April 1949. He graduated from the Armed Forces Academy in 1970,
and spent 12 years of his early career in the special forces,
after which he was assigned to territorial tasks in various
military units.

Muchdi was recruited to the Intelligence Training Center in
1986. Two years later, he was appointed chief of the Jayapura
Military District and left his mark with the arrest of Irian Jaya
separatist leader Thomas Wapay Wainggai.

The separatist leader died in a Jakarta prison in 1996. When
his body was flown home to Abepura near the Irian Jaya capital of
Jayapura a riot erupted after some youths were barred from paying
their last respects to him.

Muchdi was also noted for his management of unrest in East
Java in the run-up and during the 1997 election campaign. He was
then deputy chief of the Brawijaya Regional Military Command,
overseeing East Java and the surrounding regions.

Speaking about his "late" appointment to the special forces
top post, Muchdi said he was not really bothered by it. He
pointed out that in modern management, skills and abilities
superseded seniority.

"A better person will precede those with lesser skills and
abilities," he said.

"However, there must be reasons for the Armed Forces leader to
put me in the top Kopassus position," he added, but did not
elaborate.

In his speech, Army Chief of Staff Gen. Subagyo H.S. said the
rapid change and greater challenges demand that the Kopassus
soldiers strengthen their intelligence skills.

Improvement of the skills is needed so that every operation
may be supported by astute and thorough analysis of situation in
the field. "This (analysis) is needed in order for you to be able
to conduct early detection and prevention," he said.

Former Vice President Gen. (ret) Try Sutrisno said after the
transfer ceremony Saturday that Kopassus should continuously
improve its members' professionalism and modernize its equipment
in order to keep up with challenges of the 21st century.

"Kopassus should remain strong but be able to easily adjust to
different situations," he told reporters.

Present at the ceremony were former coordinating minister for
defense and security Gen. (ret) Maraden Panggabean, former
minister of defense and security Gen. (ret) Leonardus Benjamin
Moerdani, former army chief of staff Gen. (ret) Wismoyo
Arismunandar, a number of senior Armed Forces officers and
defense attaches of friendly countries.

Also present at the ceremony were cabinet ministers -- State
Minister of Public Housing and Settlement Akbar Tandjung, State
Minister of Land Affairs Maj. Gen. (ret) Ary Mardjono, Minister
of Manpower Theo L. Sambuaga and State Minister of Youth Affairs
and Sports Agung Laksono.

Prabowo is a 1974 graduate of the Armed Forces Academy. He
became a one-star general after only 21 years of military
service. The son of senior economist Soemitro Djojohadikoesoemo
and son-in-law of President Soeharto, Prabowo was the first among
his classmates to reach the rank of general.

Observers say he has a good combination of intelligence,
excellent military skills and mental stability. He speaks
English, French, German and Dutch equally well.

Prabowo was appointed deputy commander of Kopassus in 1994.
and promoted to command the elite unit the following year. He
helped restructure the force from four to five groups in June
1996, and obtained his second star in August of the same year.

Earlier this month he was promoted to three-star general,
which many observers considered as a preparation for his new post
as the head of the Army's Strategic Reserves Command (Kostrad).
His installment as the Kostrad chief was held earlier this month.
(imn)