TNI to study territorial function
TNI to study territorial function
JAKARTA (JP): Army Chief off Staff Gen. Tyasno Sudarto
asserted on Thursday the necessity to review the Indonesian
Military's (TNI) territorial function, including the much
criticized military commands, because of past misuse.
Speaking to military commanders and retired Army generals
here, Tyasno said as a consequence, TNI would revamp its
structure and reduce the number of military commands to a
minimum.
"The number of military commands is likely to be reduced and
their structure also will be evaluated and adjusted in accordance
with the present situation," he said.
The archipelagic country has 16 regional military commands,
all under the Army.
Tyasno did not reveal when the reorganization would take
effect, saying it was up to the government and the House of
Representatives to enact a legal basis for the plan.
If the proposal goes as expected, certain provinces like
Jakarta and Central Java will see the military presence reduced
in some military districts, military subdistricts and among
troops stationed in villages, according to Tyasno.
"But, in the troubled provinces of Aceh, Riau, Papua and other
remote areas, a maximum presence of troops is needed for security
reasons," he said.
He said the presence of military commands and subordinate
structures in the provinces had been subject to criticism because
in the past they also carried out political missions.
"The military has been criticized and opposed for taking a
security approach instead of a social welfare approach in
handling problems and for siding with the government rather than
giving protection to the people.
"You will see our good will pay dividends for all misdeeds we
committed in the past. We are returning to our original mission
of winning the people's hearts."
Among the attendees of the meeting were former vice president
Gen. (ret) Try Sutrisno, former TNI chief/minister of defense
Gen. (ret) Edi Sudrajat, former Army's Strategic Reserve Command
(Kostrad) chief Lt. Gen. Tarub, and TNI's delegate to the House
of Representatives.
Tyasno conceded that past mistakes had sparked calls for TNI
to reform its territorial mission.
He said TNI's territorial job would remain to create a safe
feeling among people as well as to maintain national unity.
The new approach to the territorial mission can be conducted
consistently with the phasing-out of the military's political
function.
"TNI will be able to focus on its sole duty of handling
disturbances because it will no longer be involved in practical
politics," he said.
He insisted that the present implementation of the territorial
function was ineffective and far from optimum because of the
deployment of unprofessional soldiers in the field and the lack
of coordination between the government and the military.
"Besides, there is no legal umbrella for the implementation of
military doctrine," he said.
Tyasno also said the Army was making internal and external
reform to improve professionalism among its soldiers and improve
relations between the military and the people.
As part of its internal improvement, the Army will emphasize
discipline among its members and upgrade their skills, he said.
"All soldiers must be well prepared for deployment whenever
and wherever their commandant orders," he said, adding that
soldiers found guilty of violating the military code of ethics or
the civil law would be punished.
He promised the Army would continue promoting a human approach
and be more sympathetic to the people in carrying out its
territorial mission. (rms/emf)