Separatist movements are main threat to RI, not terrorism
Separatist movements are main threat to RI, not terrorism
Abdul Khalik, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Indonesia's defense white paper puts terrorism behind separatism
as the main security threat to the country, a policy that prompts
the need of maintaining the military's territorial function, an
official said.
Director-General for Strategic Defense Planning of the
Ministry of Defense Maj. Gen. Sudrajat said that the territorial
integrity of Indonesia found its relevance now that the general
public was concerned about the existence of the unitary state of
Indonesia, while terrorism remained the center of controversy in
the country.
"There is misunderstanding among neighboring countries and the
U.S. toward Indonesia's perception of threats. We perceive
Indonesia's integrity as the primary concern, while other
countries may presume terrorism is their main concern," Sudrajat
told the general conference of the Council for Security
Cooperation in the Asia Pacific (CSCAP) here on Sunday.
Indonesia is currently launching a major offensive to quell
the prolonged separatist movement in Aceh and has sent
reinforcement troops to Papua to deal with the threat of
separatism there.
The post-New Order administrations have granted the two
provinces special autonomy status in order to appease the outcry
for independence there.
Traditional threats, which may manifest themselves in the
forms of invasion or aggression from other countries, look very
unlikely to materialize for quite a long time in the future,
Sudrajat said.
"Such threats won't come from our neighbors because according
to our calculations, Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines or even
Australia are not in a position to invade Indonesia. The only
country that can invade Indonesia is the United States, in the
condition that we are proven to harbor terrorists," he said.
Separatism, he said, has emerged as the real threat, as well
as cross-border crimes, sea piracy, hijacking, the problems
experienced by migrant workers and drug trafficking.
"Eradicating these domestic issues requires the police and
Indonesian Military to work together," said Sudrajat.
Sudrajat highlighted the necessity of maintaining the
territorial function of the Indonesian Military (TNI) in order to
keep soldiers close to society.
"The understanding that the military should be contained to
military bases and barracks, for the time being, is not our
paradigm. We can't treat Indonesian Military the same way as the
western countries treat their soldiers. Here the military
originated from the people, fought together with the people and
for their interests," he said.
Rights and pro-democratic activists have been calling for an
end to the military territorial function, on the ground that the
role, inherited from the New Order, has justified its wide-
ranging involvement in the sociopolitical field.