JP/P.J. Leo
The year 2009 was an eventful one for the Defense Ministry and the Indonesian Military (TNI), as they witnessed a change in leadership following the re-election of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.
Yudhoyono picked Purnomo Yusgiantoro, who previously served as minister of energy and mineral resources, to replace Juwono Sudarsono as defense minister, as well as changed the chiefs of the Army, the Navy and the Air Force.
Shifting Purnomo’s portfolio from energy and mineral resources was widely criticized despite the fact that the new minister had served a stint in the 1990s as vice governor of the National Resilience Institute (Lemhanas) and claimed to have good relations with top military brass during his time at Lemhanas and in the Cabinet.
While maintaining his focus on poverty alleviation, Yudhoyono has also put a higher priority on the defense sector with his plan to revitalize Indonesia’s defense industries as part of his 100-day programs. Purnomo followed up on the idea by organizing a series of discussions and workshops on revitalizing defense industries — long dormant and ignored by their own owner, the government — which resulted in a number of decisions and suggestions.
The first point was despite its weaknesses, the government was committed to domestic weapons systems produced by national defense industries. The commitment is expected to provide added value to the national economy. Among the weaknesses are higher prices, late deliveries, lower technical specifications and quality, as well as poor after-sales services.
Second, understanding that weapon systems have limited and niche markets for the TNI and National Police, the government plans to revise Presidential Regulation No. 80/2003 on Procurement to allow direct appointment.
The third point was on the three choices for financing defense procurement, either using Government Regulation No. 54/2008 on Domestic Loans (PP PDN), selling bonds to replace dependence on export credits, and commercial corporate loans.
Also decided were the establishment of the Defense Industry Policy Committee (KKIP) to steer the development of defense industries and the use of multi-year financing in the state budget to procure domestic weapons systems.
Ending the series of workshops, the Defense Ministry signed a US$80 million contract with state aircraft maker PT Dirgantara Indonesia to procure three CN-235 maritime patrol aircraft (MPA) for the Indonesian Navy, to be delivered in two years.
The Navy has also received the first of two landing ship tanks (LST) from state shipbuilder PT PAL Indonesia. The KRI Banjarmasin, which cost about $30 million, is part of a procurement deal for four LSTs with South Korea, which has agreed to build two of the LSTs at PAL’s facilities in Surabaya.
Crippled by a decade-long arms embargo sanctioned by Western countries for alleged human rights abuses, particularly in East Timor, revitalizing the defense industries is expected to reduce Indonesia’s dependence on certain countries who always attach strings to military procurement.
There is still a long way to go before one can judge whether Purnomo deserves credit for stewarding the TNI into a more professional force, just as Juwono did over the past five years in managing the TNI’s internal reform.
During his stewardship, Juwono put the military under civilian supremacy and concluded the military reform by transferring the military’s businesses to the aegis the Defense Ministry, at least of paper. Juwono also set the path for a better remuneration system for TNI servicemen, effective January 2010.
Now Purnomo can focus on how to increase the TNI’s capabilities amid a tight budget, a perennial problem that has had to wait as the government concentrates on alleviating poverty.
The limited budget has caused a number of tragic accidents involving aging, under-maintained aircraft, in which dozens of soldiers and higher-ranking officers have been killed.
It is no secret that the Air Force, for instance, operates airplanes much older than the aviators who fly them and the ground crew who man them. The Navy is also reliant on decades-old warships and tanks, making them inefficient.
Replacing such old weapons systems is indeed expensive but mandatory to maintaining a professional and efficient force to allow the TNI to carry out its duties, both military and otherwise.
Lack of funding has also made it almost impossible for the military to take care of its servicemen, to the extent of causing a very rare riot when the 751st Infantry Battalion in Papua ran amok after their commanders could not finance the return of a deceased soldier’s body to his hometown. It seemed the riot was just the tip of the iceberg, as the battalion commander was also accused of improper conduct by cutting the soldiers’ paychecks.
Another disciplinary problem is the frequent clashes between units, and especially between soldiers and the police, which need to be tackled further by the military leadership.
However, the Indonesian public can still be proud of its soldiers who keep serving under the colors of the United Nations in various peacekeeping missions, from South Lebanon to the Democratic Republic of Congo.
What’s left to do now is transfer this achievement to the TNI as a whole to win the hearts and minds of Indonesians at home.
With an increase in the budget for the defense sector, from about Rp 33.6 trillion this year to about Rp 40.6 trillion in 2010, it is expected that Purnomo and the TNI leadership will be able to continue the internal reform by transforming the TNI into a truly professional military.
The TNI, however, should also keep in mind its historical identity as the people’s military, the national military and a fighting military.
The author is a staff writer at The Jakarta Post.
