Political maneuvers communist: Feisal

JAKARTA (JP): Armed Forces (ABRI) chief Gen. Feisal Tanjung has likened ongoing political maneuvers by various interest groups to those made by the Indonesian Communist Party in the 1960s.

Feisal asked ABRI members yesterday to remain loyal to his command so as not to be easily influenced by the maneuvers in the lead-up to the 1997 general election.

"Their moves include tricks to discredit the New Order administration under President Soeharto," he told 415 senior officers gathered in the East Java town of Malang.

Feisal said political activists have taken to the streets, splashing banners with messages critical of the government written in "dirty and unethical" words.

"What they did was exactly the same as what Indonesian Communist Party activists did in 1965," he said as quoted by the official Antara news agency.

The general did not name any group in his speech.

On July 8 and 9, the East Java capital city of Surabaya was rocked by major labor strikes involving thousands of workers from 10 factories. The military forcibly dispersed the crowd and three students have been detained on suspicion of masterminding the protests.

Major cities have also witnessed waves of street protests against last month's military-backed Indonesian Democratic Party congress which ousted the democratically elected party leader Megawati Soekarnoputri.

Earlier this month a number of influential figures in Jakarta issued a so called "July 1 Statement" expressing their concern over what they saw as suppression of democracy and rising political violence.

Under their dual function doctrine (Dwifungsi), the Armed Forces plays a dominant role in the Indonesian political scene.

On Wednesday, Feisal said in Jakarta that the Armed Forces remain "very solid" despite efforts to undermine its unity in the run-up to the forthcoming election.

"ABRI members have always been solid despite the political maneuvers by various interest groups," he said when meeting with airborne operation command troopers.

Feisal reminded the 421 officers from the Armed Forces eastern command in Malang yesterday that the highest command is himself.

Uniformity of command will ensure effective control of the Armed Forces, he said. (pan)