NEWSANALYSIS

NEWSANALYSIS

TNI chief appointment: When political and national interests
collide

Imanuddin Razak
The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

The Indonesian Military (TNI) Commander Gen. Endriartono
Sutarto's term in office has been extended twice. He has also
tendered his resignation for the second time earlier this month.

According to Law No. 34/2004 on the military, his term cannot
be extended further as he will be 58 in April, the maximum
authorized age for a high-ranking TNI officer.

The question will then be who ought to succeed Endriartono as
commander, especially after the TNI headquarters has explained
that the opportunity to be named as the military's top position
is open to not only the most senior officer Gen. Ryamizard
Ryacudu, the former Army Chief of Staff, but also the three newly
appointed chiefs of staff -- Lt. Gen. Djoko Santoso of the Army,
Vice Adm. Slamet Soebiyanto of the Navy and Vice Marshal Djoko
Soeyanto of the Air Force.

Prior to the reshuffle of the military chiefs of staff,
Ryamizard was apparently the only eligible candidate for the top
post at the TNI headquarters, as the qualifications are that the
commander must have held a chief of staff post and be under the
retirement age.

However, the latest statement from TNI headquarters has not
made it clear who the next commander will be, or when the
President will name him.

All four officers apparently have an equal chance as Article
13 of the Law No. 34/2004 stipulates that the President can only
pick active senior officers who hold or have held at least a post
of chief of staff as TNI commander.

Recently, it has been suggested that new Army chief of staff
Djoko Santoso could get the nod. His relatively noncontroversial
track record and media-shy style could make him the top
contender. Foreign governments also seem to appreciate his
diplomatic approach on many cases.

His style is completely different from his predecessor
Ryamizard, who is politically controversial due to his
no-quarter-given attitude and tough nationalistic stance against
separatist movements in Aceh, Papua and Maluku provinces.

Yet, if political aspects are ignored and the 2004 Military
Law is adhered to down to the letter, the next TNI chief should
be Air Force chief Djoko Soeyanto.

Article 13 of the Military Law stipulates that the post of the
TNI Commander should be rotated equally among the three branches
of the military. And it is now the turn of an Air Force man to
lead the TNI because the last two TNI chiefs were from the Army
and Navy.

But apart from the military law, a lower ruling -- the TNI's
internal regulations -- suggests a completely different set of
dynamics since it states that new chiefs of staff can only be
promoted after having undergone their first three-month
performance evaluation.

Despite claims from TNI headquarters that all four are equally
eligible for the top post, this often forgotten regulation could
effectively nullify the chances of the three other officers.

The three new chiefs of staff were only appointed on Feb. 17
and they will not have completed their three month review when
Endriartono retires on April 29, due to his age.

And if this is the case, Ryamizard's opportunity to become TNI
chief is wide open despite the fact that he himself will be
reaching the retirement age of 55 four days before Endriartono's
58th birthday -- the maximum age that President can extend
retirement.

Despite these dynamics, Ryamizard may still be named if the
President favors him. The President is also allowed to put off
Ryamizard's retirement by a year.

Another factor in Ryamizard's favor is that he tops the
shortlist of candidates for TNI chief submitted by TNI
headquarters to the President.

Many things must happen before the President endorses
Endriartono's retirement request and appoints a new TNI chief;
the consent of the House of Representatives being one of them.

There are also some political considerations that President
Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono may ponder before naming a successor for
Endriartono.

The President must appoint a TNI chief who will have strong
control over the military, an institution that has been stripped
of its direct and active involvement in politics, but still has
great influence on the country's political affairs.

Yet, the President, a retired general himself, must be very
careful about how close he gets to the military, as he may have
learned from his predecessor Megawati Soekarnoputri.

The President must also consider the voices of the
international community, although it should not be the main
consideration, before appointing the new TNI chief, especially as
it might be a sort of prerequisite before they resume military
ties and cooperation with Indonesia.