TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Govt urged to stop receiving weaponry system grants
A member of the House of Representatives Commission I which oversees defense, intelligence and foreign affairs, Supiadin AS, said on Wednesday that the Indonesian government should stop its policy of receiving primary weaponry defense system (Alutsista) grants from other countries following the crash of a Hercules C-130 aircraft in Medan, North Sumatra, on Tuesday
Change Size
A
member of the House of Representatives Commission I which oversees defense, intelligence and foreign affairs, Supiadin AS, said on Wednesday that the Indonesian government should stop its policy of receiving primary weaponry defense system (Alutsista) grants from other countries following the crash of a Hercules C-130 aircraft in Medan, North Sumatra, on Tuesday.
'The crash of the Hercules aircraft in Medan is a clear warning for the government to stop receiving any weaponry system grants for the Indonesian Military,' he said as quoted by Antara news agency in Jakarta.
In the incident, the Hercules C-130 crashed into a residential area on Jl. Jamin Ginting in Medan, killing 113 passengers including 12 crewmembers on board.
Supiadin highlighted the condition of Indonesia's military planes received under grant schemes, saying the aircraft were mostly old.
The lawmaker emphasized that the Hercules C-130 crash was not the first incident affecting one of the country's military planes granted from another country. In April, a F-16 jet fighter from the US government burst into flames at Halim Perdanakusumah airport in Jakarta after failing to take off.
'Indonesia had agreed to receive 24 fighting jets from the US but after we received five units, only two were categorized as 'serviceable' and 'eligible' to operate,' said Supiadin.
He said the government should not delay any longer its plan to modernize Indonesia's primary weaponry defense system. While the F-16 incident in April did not cause any fatalities, the lawmaker said, the Hercules C-130 crash in Medan should act as a 'great reminder' for the government to immediately modernize its weaponry systems.
'Indonesia should take it as a lesson learned. It should use the State Budget to modernize its weaponry systems, instead of receiving grants from other countries,' said Supiadin. (ebf)(++++)
