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Analysis: ‘Brown Party’ Time for sweeping police reform
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East Java Police personnel attend the 76th anniversary of the National Police on Jul. 5, 2022, in Surabaya, East Java. (Antara/Didik Suhartono)
T
he National Police have come under public scrutiny yet again after the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) accused the institution of abusing its power to sway election results in some of the party’s strongholds in the recent regional head elections.
Calling the police the Partai Coklat (Brown Party, in reference of the color of the uniform) for election meddling in favor of candidates backed by the ruling coalition, the PDI-P’s claims have renewed public demand for sweeping reforms within the force. The allegations come on the heels of a series of acts of brutality, including extrajudicial killings, involving police personnel that justify drastic measures to ensure accountability of the law enforcement agency.
After preliminary results of the regional elections indicated potential losses for the PDI-P in several gubernatorial races, including in its traditional strongholds of Central Java and North Sumatra, the party lashed out at the police for engaging in politics by mobilizing support for candidates endorsed by former president Joko “Jokowi” Widodo.
It was PDI-P lawmaker Yulius Setiarto who coined the term the “Brown Party”, likening the police to a political party. Instead of launching an investigation into the alleged violations of neutrality, however, the House of Representatives, through its ethics council, reprimanded him for his statement, which was deemed a violation of the House’s code of ethics.
The party has therefore called for the removal of National Police chief Gen. Listyo Sigit Prabowo, who is widely known as a close confidant of Jokowi, as a form of accountability. The PDI-P has also demanded revision of the Police Law to place the corps under the supervision of the Home Ministry or the Indonesian Military (TNI) to prevent the force from any future abuse of power.
The government-controlled House has opposed the idea, arguing that placing the police under a ministry or the military contravenes the spirit of the Reform movement since 1998. During the New Order, the police fell under the Armed Forces’ auspices.
A lawmaker from President Prabowo Subianto’s Gerindra Party, Habiburokhman, dismissed the PDI-P’s allegations of police meddling, saying the force had remained neutral during the elections.
