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Analysis: TNI Law revision, a wasted chance to boost military professionalism
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All set: Personnel of the Banteng Raider Infantry Battalion (Yonif Raider) at the 4th Regional Military Command (Kodam IV) Diponegoro in Semarang, Central Java, attend a ceremony on Friday to mark their official dispatch for a peacekeeping mission in Lebanon. (JP/Suherdjoko) (JP/Suherdjoko)
T
he revision of the Indonesian Military (TNI) Law has not only sparked widespread controversy in public but interestingly also revealed a semblance of a rift within the government and military leadership.
The revision has provoked a wave of criticism and protests from civil society, especially due to the closed and rapid deliberation of the draft, which is feared will result in low-quality legislation that fails to anticipate long-term challenges.
Among key arguments against the revision is a provision in the draft law that allows active military personnel to occupy civilian posts in five more government institutions based on the President’s discretion. The opposition, mainly civil society groups, insists that the revision will further damage the hard-won democracy achieved by the Reform movement since 1998.
The concern seems to be understandable as there are active military officers holding strategic civilian posts in the government of President Prabowo Subianto, such as Lt. Col. Teddy Indra Wijaya as the cabinet secretary and Maj. Gen. Novi Helmy as president director of the State Logistics Agency (Bulog).
Prevailing Law No. 34/2004 on the TNI stipulates 10 civilian posts that military personnel can occupy without having to give up their military careers. Through the revision, the posts will be expanded to 14.
The new civilian jobs that can go to active military personnel are those in the fields of border management, disaster relief, counterterrorism, maritime security (coast guard) and the Attorney General’s Office (AGO). The military’s entry to the latter four institutions has been in place for some time but has not been addressed in the TNI Law.
