"We want active personnel to be able to work from the Office of the Coordinating Maritime Affairs Minister, since there are various sectoral issues that can be handled by naval officers," Luhut said on Wednesday.

When the TNI Law was deliberated and eventually passed in 2004, the Office of the Coordinating Maritime Affairs Minister was not yet established, so the law did not include any provisions for allowing active TNI personnel to work at the ministry, Luhut said.

The position and office of the Coordinating Maritime Affairs Minister was established shortly after Joko "Jokowi" Widodo assumed the presidency in 2014.

Article 47 (2) of the TNI Law stipulates that active military personnel can serve at several government offices, including those of the Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister, the Defense Ministry, the Presidential Military Secretary, the State Intelligence Agency (BIN) and the Supreme Court.

"There are various [...] maritime issues that must be handled by Navy personnel who understand maritime [affairs]," said Luhut, adding that the issues ranged from illegal fishing to maritime security.

He said the ministry had discussed revising the law with the House of Representatives Commission I overseeing defense and security. "We will soon submit [the revision] to the House," he added.

Luhut's plan comes amid revisions to the 2003 Terror Law, a key issue of which was the greater involvement of the TNI in counterterrorism operations. (ahw)

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