More soldiers to be discharged over disgraceful Binjai incident
Apriadi Gunawan, The Jakarta Post, Medan
Eight other Army officers of Army Airborne Battalion 100/PS will soon be discharged from the Bukit Barisan Military Command, following the recent bloody attack on the Langkat Police station and on the Police Mobile Brigade headquarters in the North Sumatra town of Binjai, a senior military official said on Saturday.
Maj. Gen. Idris Gassing, chief of the military command overseeing North Sumatra, West Sumatra and Riau said the decision was made in a bid to help the investigative team in determining the cause of the incident.
Speaking to the press after the celebration of the 57th anniversary of the Indonesian Military on Saturday at the Naval Base I Belawan harbor, Medan, Idris admitted that the actions of his personnel were dishonorable but he could not have anticipated the incident.
"As the military commander for this area, I apologize for my servicemen's misconduct and I give my word that I will repair or replace any police property damaged in the incidents," he said.
The attack took place on Sept. 27 after police officers refused to release a drug trafficker said to be protected by the soldiers. Seven policemen, one military personnel, and three civilians were killed during the clash. In addition, 27 security officers and one civilian were hospitalized with severe injuries.
Earlier, Army Chief of Staff Gen. Ryamizard Ryacudu discharged 20 soldiers on Wednesday involved in the incident.
He appointed Lt. Col. Zaidun to take over as commander of the airborne battalion and said that all of the soldiers in the airborne unit would be transferred.
The discharged soldiers will be tried by a military tribunal, and another 100 to 200 soldiers from the airborne battalion will be questioned further about their knowledge of the attacks.
Airborne Battalion 100/PS is one of several units under the Army's Strategic Reserves Command (Kostrad) tasked with crushing rebellions and separatist movements.
Currently four airborne units are posted in the North Sumatra town of Binjai, the South Sulawesi capital of Makassar, the South Kalimantan capital of Banjarmasin and the Maluku capital of Ambon.
Ryamizard had also floated the idea of dismissing Idris from his current post as Bukit Barisan military commander.
When asked about the possibility of being replaced, Idris said that he was ready.
Separately, unidentified men shot a policeman on Jl. Bambu in Medan on Friday morning.
He indicated that certain parties were circulating rumors that Army soldiers were involved in Friday's shooting.
"I hope none of my soldiers from Bukit Barisan Military Command are affected by this rumor," he said.