RI military stresses 'hearts and minds'

BANGKOK (JP): The Indonesian Armed Forces (ABRI) has always been a strong proponent of international humanitarian law, Maj. Gen. Prabowo Subianto, commanding general of the Army's special forces says.

"History has shown that its official policy toward the treatment of people affected during the conduct of hostilities has always been relatively humane," Prabowo said in a paper presented at a meeting of military instructors to discuss the application of international humanitarian law.

Prabowo, whose paper was read by Maj. Gen. Agus Widjojo, cited ABRI's operations in East Timor to illustrate his point.

Captured separatist guerrillas were well treated, he said.

"After receiving medical care, if they can prove that they have not been involved in any criminal activities, they are returned to their families and are given some skills and capital to start normal lives.

"In the event of psychological problems upon returning to their villages, they are given a plot of land elsewhere."

Any misconduct by ABRI members, "would be an aberration, and not official policy," Prabowo said.

ABRI's doctrine is based on the concept of a people's army to enforce the sovereignty of the Indonesian government, he said.

"The key is to win the hearts and minds of the people.

"Strict adherence to the rule of international humanitarian law will support the effort to win the hears and minds of the people. This is the key to victory and in fact the philosophical basis of the Indonesian Armed Forces," he said.

The five-day seminar is organized by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) for East Asian countries.

The participants also heard yesterday a paper on law of war training for peacekeeping contingents presented by Lt. Gen. J.M. Sanderson of the Australian army; a paper on security forces and the implementation of international humanitarian law versus human rights by C.De Rover, ICRC delegate to the Police and Security Forces; and on the media and the protection of victims of armed conflict by Simon Long of The Economist.

Review

Prabowo's paper, titled International Humanitarian Law in Low Intensity Conflict, reviewed the situation in Indonesia.

Almost all military operations conducted in Indonesia in the last 20 years could be classified as low intensity conflicts, he said.

The threats that ABRI must confront are terrorism and insurgence, which are classic forms of low intensity conflicts, he said.

"Admittedly, sometimes it would be hard to distinguish between combatants and non-combatants because they (the latter) hide behind the people, and use the people as a human shield and use human rights issues to advance their causes.

"However, (the) record states clearly that Indonesian soldiers who fail to distinguish between combatant and non-combatant civilians during a military engagement, who inflict harm on them, are tried and sentenced according to the law," Prabowo said.

Basic rules of combat behavior were important before operations in enemy fields, as there will always be misunderstanding and confusion in any stressful situation, he said.

The practical implementation of these basic rules is not an obstacle to successful military operations, he said. "On the contrary, this is a means of ensuring order and discipline within the ranks, an important element of sound military leadership." (lem)