Wiranto asked to counsel dissident military chief

Wiranto asked to counsel dissident military chief

JAKARTA (JP): President Abdurrahman disclosed on Monday that
he had entrusted inactive coordinating minister for political
affairs and security Gen. Wiranto to cope with the dissenting
regional military commander.

Without naming the officer, the President said he had asked
Wiranto to advise him to stop his activities in criticizing the
government unless he wants to risk his military career.

"If the officer can be disciplined I will give him a second
chance, and I have trusted Pak Wiranto to talk to him,"
Abdurrahman said after opening a seminar on a new Indonesia at
the National Defense Institute (Lemhanas).

Abdurrahman, or Gus Dur as he is popularly known, said he
conveyed the request when Wiranto recently visited Merdeka
Palace. No exact time for the meeting was unveiled by the
President.

Wiranto, who also attended the seminar, confirmed his meeting
with the President, but refused to disclose the results of their
talk.

He said only that he held regular meetings with the President
after last month's suspension from his ministerial post. The two
last met in public when Abdurrahman had dinner at Wiranto's
official residence on Jl. Denpasar in South Jakarta earlier this
month.

Abdurrahman suspended Wiranto pending the completion of an
investigation into his alleged role in the East Timor violence
last year.

Wiranto, who will retire from the military at the end of this
month, also claimed that the President still consulted him on
military affairs.

"Our differences in the political field should not be a
private matter," Wiranto said.

Last week, Abdurrahman announced that one of the country's 11
regional military commanders had voiced a detrimental statement
about the government.

Brawijaya Military Commander overseeing East Java Maj. Gen.
Sudi Silalahi quickly denied any speculation that Abdurrahman was
referring to him.

When asked about Silalahi, the President replied: "It is
people who said that, not me."

Internal steps

Meanwhile in the South Sulawesi capital of Makassar, Army
Chief of Staff Gen. Tyasno Sudarto said he summoned all regional
military commanders and Army top brass to follow up on the
President's statement.

"We have taken internal steps," Tyasno told The Jakarta Post
without elaborating.

"We have evaluated the President's statement."

Tyasno was in Makassar on Monday to preside over a ceremony
marking the transfer of duty of outgoing Wirabuana Military
commander Maj. Gen. Agus Wirahadikusumah to Maj. Gen. Slamet
Kirbiantoro.

The Army chief, who supervises all regional military commands
nationwide, said he had clarified the matter with President
Abdurrahman. He said the President had accurate information that
the military chief had held several meetings with his
subordinates expressing his disagreement with the President's
policies.

"We should be introspective due to the President's statement.
Maybe this all happened due to a misunderstanding," Tyasno said.

He declined to name the individual the President was referring
to.

"Just ask the President, I have no capacity to reveal that,"
he said. He also called on journalists not to exaggerate the
matter.

Agus Wirahadikusumah, who will take over the top post in the
Army's Strategic Reserve Command (Kostrad) from Lt. Gen. Djadja
Suparman next week, denied allegations that he was interested in
politics.

"Those accusing me of being unprofessional should look at my
track record," he said.

Agus made headlines by criticizing his senior Gen. Wiranto.
Some military officers have accused Agus of "talking too much
about politics".

"I have done nothing political. The problem is that the
military (TNI) has been depoliticized too much. The smaller the
role TNI plays in society, the stronger society will be," he
said. (27/sur/prb)