Glembert
KN. Indonesia’s parliament passed revisions to the country’s military law on Thursday, Last Week allocating more civilian posts for military officers as hundreds of students and activists protested against the legislation. Civil society groups say it could take the world’s third-biggest democracy back to the draconian ‘New Order’ era of former strongman president Suharto, when military officers dominated civilian affairs. Demonstrations took place in front of the Indonesian Parliament building as the TNI Bill was passed into law. Activisits also raised concerns about the military’s ability to conduct operations beyond warfare with minimal oversight. House Gerindra Party faction chair Budisatrio Djiwandono said that the amendments to the TNI Law uphold the principles of civilian supremacy and the reform spirit. He emphasized that the Gerindra faction ensures the revision does not contradict democracy but rather aims to align the military’s duties with the strategic needs of national defense. Democracy activists and students are intensifying their opposition to a revision to the Indonesian Military (TNI) Law that would expand the armed forces’ role in civilian affairs, as the House of Representatives plans to pass the controversial bill in an upcoming plenary session. The legislature, controlled by parties supporting President Prabowo Subianto, is planning to pass the revision, less than two months after the President formally requested an amendment to the legislation. Law and Human Rights Minister and Gerindra Party member Supratman Andi Agtas maintained that the initiative to amend the TNI Law came not from President Prabowo Subianto or the executive branch but was initiated by lawmakers at the House of Representatives (DPR). After the fall of Soeharto and his authoritarian regime in May 1998, our nation vowed never to give the Indonesian Military (TNI) the tools to undermine civilian rule again. But after a quarter century, we seem to have forgotten the lessons of that period. First, former president Joko “Jokowi” Widodo cozied up to the TNI in his effort to consolidate power, and now his successor, President Prabowo Subianto, is ushering the nation back to the old days, when the military ruled the roost under the pretext of security and stability.
This alarming tendency has manifested most recently in the revision of the 2004 TNI Law, which was passed on Thursday with unanimous support from all eight party factions in the House of Representatives. The House of Representatives has moved one step closer to passing legislation that will expand the Indonesian Military’s (TNI) role in civilian governance despite growing opposition from pro-democracy and human rights groups who fear the new law will erode decades of democratic progress. On Tuesday, all eight political parties represented in the legislature threw their support behind the bill. During the working committee meeting on the TNI Law revision at House Commission I, Law Minister Supratman Andi Agtas said that active TNI soldiers can fill civilian positions in 14 ministries and institutions. If active TNI soldiers want to fill positions outside of the 14 ministries and institutions, they must retire. The government previously proposed to have TNI soldiers filling positions in 16 ministries and institutions.
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