KMS Mentions 3 Problems regarding the Change of Indonesian Military Commander

Gatra.com | November 4th, 2021 21:12

Jakarta, Gatra.com – The Civil Society Coalition (KMS) for Security Reform stated that there were 3 serious problems regarding President Joko Widodo's (Jokowi) move to propose General Andika Perkasa as a candidate for the Military Commander.

"The move by the Indonesian President Joko Widodo to propose General Andika Perkasa as a candidate for the Commander of the Indonesian Armed Forces contains three serious problems," said KMS for Security Reform which consists of 14 organizations in a press statement received by Gatra.com on Thursday (4 /11).

Hussein Ahmad from Imparsial, said that the first problem was that President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) had ruled out the pattern of dimension rotation that prevailed in the Reformation era in the regeneration of the TNI Commander as the norm that applies in Article 13 Paragraph (4) of the Indonesian Military Decree (UU) No. . 34 of 2004.

“Jika merujuk pada Pasal 13 Ayat (4) UU TNI, maka jabatan Panglima TNI dijabat secara bergantian oleh perwira tinggi aktif dari tiap-tiap angkatan yang sedang atau pernah menjabat sebagai Kepala Staf Angkatan,” ujarnya.

The Coalition believes that the application of the rotation pattern will foster a sense of equality between dimensions, balance the orientation of the Military's posture development, as well as equal opportunities for high-ranking officers, regardless of the dimension of origin.

"This can also have a positive impact in the form of strengthening the internal solidity of the Military," he said.

In addition, the rotation pattern is important in order to reduce the jealousy that is very likely to occur among soldiers due to the impression that the President of the Republic of Indonesia threatens one dimension within the military, as in the New Order era.

The pattern of rotation of the position of the Commander, which has been started since the beginning of the Reformation, certainly needs to be maintained, moreover it has also been mandated in the Military Decree.

"In short, we think that the President of the Republic of Indonesia, Joko Widodo, should not ignore the pattern of changing the Military Commander-in-Chief based on a dimension rotation," he said.

Second, Hussein continued, the President has proposed a name whose track record still needs to be tested by an independent state institution in the fields of law, human rights, and eradicating corruption. In this case, the National Human Rights Committee (Komnas HAM) and the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK).

According to KMS, Jokowi in proposing candidates must consider the news about the murder of Papuan leader Theys Hiyo Eluay. The appointment of candidates must pay attention to information comprehensively by involving credible institutions.

"In order to strengthen the considerations of the President of the Republic of Indonesia in making the right decisions," said Hussein.

As for the third, the Civil Society Coalition views that the development of maritime-centric regional security threats today requires greater attention in the maritime sector.

The Civil Society Coalition for Security Reform consists of KontraS, Imparsial, LBH Jakarta, HRWG, Setara Institute, Public Virtue Research Institute, Amnesty International Indonesia, Initiative for Democracy and Security (IDeKa), Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW), ELSAM, National PBHI , LBHM, LBH Pers, and ICJR.

Previously, President Jokowi proposed Andika Perkasa to the DPR on Wednesday (3/11), as a candidate for the Commander of the Indonesian National Armed Forces to replace Marshal Hadi Tjahjanto, who will soon retire.

Jokowi proposed the single candidate through the Letter of the President of the Republic of Indonesia (Surpres). Based on Article 13 Paragraph (5) of Law no. 34 of 2004 concerning the Millitary, the president proposed the name of the candidate for the Commander of the Military for approval from the DPR.