Udayana Military HQs to be moved to West Timor
Annastashya Emmanuelle and Yemris Fointuna, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta/Kupang
The Indonesian Military (TNI) says it is planning to relocate the Udayana Military Command from Bali to the East Nusa Tenggara provincial capital of Kupang, West Timor, for border protection reasons.
The 161 Wirasakti Kupang Military Commander, Col. Inf. Moeswarno Moesanip, and East Nusa Tenggara Vice Governor Johanis Pake Pani hailed the plan on Friday, saying that the planned relocation was a good decision considering that East Nusa Tenggara bordered newly independent East Timor and Australia.
"For the sake of national defense, I find it suitable for a military command as a TNI strategic compartment to be established in Kupang," Moesanip said in Kupang.
According to the vice governor's assessment, a stronger military presence in West Timor was necessary to maintain security along the border areas and create a feeling of safety among the local people.
"At present, East Timor and Australia have yet to become a threat, but in the future things may be different. Therefore a sufficient strategy must be developed and the plan to relocate Udayana Military Command to Kupang should win support from all sides in West Timor," Johanis said.
Gen. Endriartono Sutarto -- President Megawati Soekarnoputri's main candidate for the TNI's top post -- spoke about the military headquarters' planned relocation during a fit and proper test at the House of Representatives last week.
Military and defense analysts have criticized the plan, which they said was a spontaneous reaction to East Timor's independence.
Indonesian policymakers are advised to be mindful of the shift in international approach regarding security issues which now focus on increasing cooperation with neighbor countries.
"In contradiction with the Cold War era, there is a growing tendency of countries to be interdependent and to enhance cooperation to improve their own people's welfare," M. Rifqie Muna, a defense and military observer from the Research Institute for Democracy and Peace (RIDeP) told The Jakarta Post on Sunday.
Instead of moving the IX Udayana Military Command, which would only harm the country's image, the TNI would be better off solidifying its line of command which often overlaps.
"Having a well coordinated force would be far more effective (in protecting the border) than moving the entire military command to West Timor, especially when there is no urgency to do so," he said.
TNI is especially sensitive when it comes to matters relating to East Timor, particularly after the former Indonesian territory voted for independence in a UN-sponsored ballot.
Under international scrutiny, Indonesia started its first ad hoc tribunal to try those responsible for the atrocities in East Timor, including military and police personnel.
After the bloody breakaway from Indonesia's 24-year occupation, East Timor became formally independent on May 20, the celebration of which was attended by President Megawati Soekarnoputri despite legislators' disapproval.
President Xanana Gusmao, the country's first president, has consistently sent out messages of reconciliation to Indonesia, calling on both sides to look toward a harmonious future and not to dwell on the past.