Military/Police faction supports amendment
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Defusing public criticism on the amendment to the Constitution, the military and police faction in the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) said on Wednesday that it fully supported the ongoing amendment.
Insp. Gen. (Pol) I Ketut Astawa, the faction's representative in the MPR ad hoc commission dealing with the amendment to the Constitution, told a media conference at TNI headquarters in Cilangkap, East Jakarta, on Wednesday that the amendment was in line with the spirit of reform.
"The MPR, through its Decree 11/2001, has mandated the ad hoc committee to carry out the amendment, and this aspiration of the people must be supported," Astawa said.
The military and police faction, which has 38 representatives in the MPR, is believed to be one of few that tried to halt the current process of amending the Constitution because it would scrap its presence in the Assembly.
The amended article on the composition of the Assembly stipulates that all MPR members should be chosen via a democratic election, effectively excluding military and police personnel from the Assembly, as they are not allowed to participate in general elections.
Astawa said that the current debate over the amendment was normal, and that the debate would not destabilize the nation.
"The arguments on either side will serve as input for the ad hoc commission deliberating the amendment. However, the decision rests with the annual MPR session, which will be held in August," said Astawa.
The arguments over the amendment came to light after a Forum for Constitutional Studies (FKIK) demanded that the MPR halt the current amendment, arguing that the process had deviated from its original purpose.
However, he emphasized that the preamble to the 1945 Constitution and the unitary state should be kept intact.
"The preamble sets out the fundamental norms and values of our people, therefore it should not be a target of amendment," he said.
Meanwhile, Vice President Hamzah Haz voiced implied support on Wednesday for the current amendment to the Constitution, saying that only Article 33 of the 1945 Constitution should be excluded from the amendment process.
Article 33, which promotes social welfare and fairness for the public, is the character and foundation for the country's economy and it is still relevant to today's circumstances, Hamzah said.
"Those who wish to change Article 33 lack an understanding about the national economy," Hamzah said when opening a working meeting of the Indonesian Cooperatives Board (Dekopin).
Article 33 highlights cooperatives as the prominent economic organization, and states that important means of production in the country should be under state control.
According to Hamzah, Article 33 was crucial to ensure that there would be no gap between the rich and poor in the country, which could easily lead to social conflict.
"If there is a striking social and welfare gap in society today, that is not the Article's fault, but is caused by the lousy implementation of the Article," said Hamzah.
"To narrow the gap between the rich and poor, the implementation of Article 33 should be improved, rather than the article amended," he added.
Separately, House Speaker Akbar Tandjung shared the military and police faction's view, saying that the amendment process had to be left to MPR members because the decree issued last year had mandated the Assembly to continue with the amendment process.
Deputy chairman of the Reform faction Afni Achmad said the motion to block the amendment process was against the aims of the reform movement.
"It is like a person who tries to prevent the sun from rising: It's impossible," Afni told The Jakarta Post.