Susilo says he may look again at TNI bill

M. Taufiqurrahman and Tiarma Siboro, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

President-in-waiting Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said he would study and possibly review the controversial military bill the House of Representatives endorsed on the last day of its five-year term on Thursday.

Susilo, who has emerged as the clear winner of the country's first ever direct presidential election on Sept. 20, said that he would scrutinize the bill to determine whether it contradicted the constitution or military doctrines.

"Since it is my administration that will implement it, I think I have to study or even review the bill," Susilo told a press briefing held at his private residence in Cikeas, Bogor, West Java.

Nine out of the 11 factions in the House agreed to endorse the bill on Thursday, arguing that the draft law, which has drawn a great deal of public criticism, would help turn a politically- conscious military into a professional force devoted solely to national defense. The bill takes effect one month after the House's approval, with or without the president's consent.

Susilo, who is expected to be sworn in on Oct. 20 as the country's sixth president, did not mention any particular articles or issues that he objected to in the bill. In presidential debates prior to the first round of the presidential election on July 5, Susilo only said that he would place the military under civilian control and try to facilitate increased TNI professionalism.

The bill, which the House started deliberating on Aug. 23, has nothing to say about the future of the military's existing territorial command structure after the law takes affect, saying only that the physical presence of troops on the ground can be maintained in areas prone to conflict or incursions by foreign powers.

Public pressure has mounted for the military to scrap its territorial command structure, which former president Soeharto used to coerce the people into supporting his government for more than three decades.

The government, represented by the Coordinating Ministry for Political Affairs, the Ministry of Defense and the TNI, have sought to formally reestablish the military's territorial role, which was abolished on paper back in 1998.

The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) faction, which ardently opposed the reintroduction of the territorial role, said that the deployment of troops in troubled areas should not be parallel to the local government structure.

"The deployment of troops must not give the TNI room to further its political interests," PDI-P faction spokesperson Ahmad Basarah told the plenary meeting.

The PDI-P faction demanded that local military establishments, including Regional Military Commands (Kodam), Resort Military Commands (Korem) and District Military Commands (Kodim), and the deployment of soldiers down to the village level, should be scrapped.

Legislator Hamid Mappa of the Indonesian Nationhood Faction admitted that the bill contained flaws, but said that the next House could always amend it.

Despite the flaws, the bill, which was drafted to replace Law No. 2/1988 on the Indonesian Armed Forces (ABRI), still serve to reduce the military's power.

Article 17 of the bill states the power to deploy troops rests in the hands of the president acting with the consent of the House.

Article 18 states that in an emergency, the president may deploy troops without receiving the go-ahead from the House. However, this must be notified to the House within two days, and the troops withdrawn should the House reject their deployment.

The bill also prohibits serving military personnel from joining political parties, taking part in political activities or engaging in business activities.

Article 74, for example, states that the government must take over the commercial assets of the TNI within five years.

According to Article 5 of the bill, if a soldier wishes to take up civilian office, he must resign from the military.

Meanwhile, serving soldiers are only allowed to take up civilian in defense and security-related institutions, and must comply with the rules of the institution concerned.

To prevent one force having supremacy over another in the military, Article 13 of the bill stipulates that the post of military chief may be rotated among senior officers or the commanders of the Indonesian Army, Navy and Air force.