Efforts to reform Indonesia's militaristic police to become a democratic, professional and accountable civilian police force have been ongoing for a decade with minimum success due to a lack of a concrete platform, obserers say.
"We have been debating over the same problems for 10 years. We should be in a position where we can make evaluations and continue with what we think is right," said Tri Hari Prihatono of ProPatria Institute, a defense watchdog which organized a public discussion on the reform of the National Police on Tuesday.
Nanan Sukarna, a National Police specialist in socio-cultural issues, said that reform is largely hampered by the massive amount of responsibility imposed on the police force and the high expectations of the public.
"People talk as if the National Police is the only institution responsible for matters of state security. The truth is that many other institutions are involved, but we often don't keep track of each other's progress," he said.
He said the continuing implementation of the community-policing concept, which positions the community as an active element in maintaining security, would require participating stakeholders to adapt their approach. "The community must change, respect the law, and be more responsible for their environment," Nanan explained.
The discussion was held in connection with the launching of a book titled National Security Framework for Police Reform: Taking the Heart and the Mind, published by ProPatria Institute.
The book suggests that the government shift its focus from state security to human security, a concept introduced more than a decade ago through international relations.
The book identifies the current image of the National Police as being one of the most "corrupt" institutions in the nation. This represents a major problem in securing public trust.
Bambang Widodo Umar, a lecturer from the University of Indonesia's School of Social and Political Sciences, said the police force needs support from other institutions.
He said the instrument for reforming the National Police was structurally on track, but conflict of interests surrounding the role of the police required the involvement of other related institutions.
Bambang said "The focus of our national security is still the security of the state and not human security. This needs to change. The National Police are often placed in conflicting situations, sometimes against the community."
Rudi Satrio Mukantardjo, a lecturer at University of Indonesia's School of Law, said an independent institution is needed to bridge the gap between the community and the police.
"In speaking to community-policing bodies and the National Police, I find they both identify the gap between the police and the community which it serves," he said. He added that the National Police Commission (Kompolnas), an independent institution established in 2006, could be the best organization for the job. Kompolnas is directly accountable to the President in determining the direction of relevant policies.
Although Kompolnas has provided recommendations to the President regarding the appointment and dismissal of the National Police chief, its influence to date has been minimal. (lva)
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