PDI-P drops proposal on military

PDI-P drops proposal on military

Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) withdrew on
Friday its proposal to insert an article into the military bill
being deliberated by the House of Representatives banning newly
retired military personnel from politics.

PDI-P legislator Amris Hasan said his faction had accepted the
Indonesian Military (TNI)'s argument that the bill should deal
only with active military personnel.

"The stipulation (banning newly retired military personnel
from politics) will be taken up in other bills. We accept the
explanation from the TNI chief (Endriartono Sutarto)," Amris told
The Jakarta Post here on Friday.

The PDI-P, the largest faction in the House, had sought to
include in the military bill an article requiring military
personnel to stay out of politics for at least two years after
their retirement. The National Awakening Party (PKB), the fourth
largest faction in the House, also supported the proposal.

Despite its pledge to withdraw from politics, the TNI remains
one of the most influential political entities in the country.

In the first round of the presidential election on July 5,
three of the 10 presidential and vice presidential candidates had
a military background, raising fears that the military was
staging a political comeback.

Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who will face incumbent President
Megawati Soekarnoputri of the PDI-P in the election runoff on
Sept. 20, is a retired four-star Army general.

PDI-P faction spokesman Permadi insisted on Friday all retired
military personnel must wait for two years before joining a
political party or entering into formal politics.

Amris said this "two-year interval" would assure the retired
military personnel would not use the military network for their
political purposes.

"Without the interval, newly retired military personnel can
still use his or her influence for personal interests," said
Amris, deputy chairman of the House's defense commission.

During past hearings with legislators, some defense experts
have suggested that military officers should be banned from
politics for a certain period of time to prevent active military
officers from using their positions for political gain.

Gen. Endriartono agreed in principle that military personnel
should be prevented from entering the political arena immediately
upon retirement, but suggested the issue be taken up in other
bills, not the military bill.

"The TNI bill regulates active military personnel, while
regulations related to political activities should be put in the
political party law or other related laws," said Endriartono, who
along with Ministry of Defense secretary-general Rear Marshal
Suprihadi represented the government in the deliberation of the
bill.

Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs Hari
Sabarno was absent from the deliberations on Friday.

The lawmakers agreed to adjourn the deliberations until
Saturday night.

With just about 10 days left before legislators end their
five-year term on Sept. 30, it is unlikely the lawmakers will be
able to finish deliberating some of the more contentious issues
in the bill.