TNI Denies Land Grabbing for Battalion Construction in Various Regions

The Head of the TNI Information Centre, Brigadier General Muhammad Nas, affirmed that the determination of locations for the construction of Territorial Development Battalions is entirely based on data and coordination with regional governments, not unilaterally decided by the TNI. “We need to convey here that the development of YTP and TP Brigades, which carry the YTP identity, is a government grand design as a step in defence preparation,” said Muhammad Nas at TNI Headquarters in Cilangkap, East Jakarta, on Tuesday. He explained that the construction sites are determined based on government-owned land, either belonging to the Ministry of Defence or regional governments that have been previously coordinated with. “Firstly, land owned by the Ministry of Defence. Secondly, land owned by the regional government which we communicate about with them. So it is the government that determines, not us in the TNI directly pointing to a location,” he said. According to Nas, community rejection arises because some residents feel the land belongs to them, even though they do not possess official certificates. “In several cases we have observed, the community has occupied the land for decades without certificates, so they feel it is their land. In fact, it falls under regional government land,” he stated. Furthermore, he stressed that the TNI has never come unilaterally and established a development location without coordination. “It is not, in our language, out of the blue or suddenly the TNI plots and comes in, no. It is the result of coordination with the regional government,” he said. Nas also mentioned that regional governments even participate in determining the identity and name of the battalions built in their respective areas. “If we look at the Yon TP, their names are given by customary leaders or the regional government there. For example, Golok Sakti, which was one of the mainstay weapons in that region during wartime eras in the past,” he said. Regarding residents’ rejection, the TNI claims to prioritise a persuasive approach and dialogue with the community to explain the status of the land being used. “So what we carry out is a humanist approach, a humanitarian approach, conveying data and facts,” said Nas. He also acknowledged that the community rejects the development because they feel disadvantaged. However, the TNI continues to adhere to the data provided by the regional government. “The reason the community rejects this is because they feel harmed. But what is certain is that we in the TNI determine the Yon TP locations based on data from the regional government,” he stated. Nas assured that the dialogue process with the community will continue so that the polemic over the YTP development does not trigger prolonged conflict. “The primary approach is to explain to the community about the status of that land,” he said.