JAKARTA: A coalition of civil society organizations (CSO) launched a petition on Wednesday (July 31) opposing the growing involvement of the Indonesian Military (TNI) in President Prabowo Subianto’s priority programmes, alleging this threatens democracy, human rights and the rule of law.
Launched by the Civil Society Coalition for Security Sector Reform (SSR), which includes rights groups Imparsial, the Commission for the Disappeared and Victims of Violence (Kontras), Amnesty International Indonesia and the Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI), the petition had garnered signatures from at least 57 civil society groups and 270 individuals at the time of publication.
“We urge the government to evaluate policies that involve the military in civilian spheres and restore the TNI’s role and function as a professional institution that focuses on defence,” SSR programme coordinator Hussein Ahmad of Imparsial said on Wednesday, as he read out the petition during the launch event.
The coalition stated the country had witnessed the TNI’s expanding presence in social, political and economic affairs. It stressed that in expanding its role beyond national defense, the military had strayed from its constitutional mandate and reversed democratic progress following the 1998 reform movement.
The civil groups also highlighted the TNI’s growing involvement in key government initiatives, including Prabowo’s flagship free nutritious meal program and the Red and White Cooperatives.
Further, military troops have been involved in law enforcement efforts through the forest area enforcement task force (Satgas PKH), which is responsible for seizing forest areas from illegal plantation and mining operations.
“The military is essentially trained and educated for war, not to carry out political, economic or power interests,” Hussein said, adding that deploying active-duty military members in civilian affairs risked undermining the TNI’s professionalism.
The petition warns that growing militarization of the civilian sphere has contributed to an increase in violence against ordinary citizens.
For example, five people had died after taking part in a mandatory boot camp for prospective managers of the Red and White Cooperatives and the smart fisheries village programs. Both initiatives are key parts of President Prabowo’s policy agenda.
The coalition also demanded that the government halt the establishment of 750 so-called territorial development battalions (BTP), warning the plan would expand the TNI’s territorial command structure and risked reviving the military’s former dwifungsi (dual function) role in defense and politics during former president Soeharto's New Order regime.
“The involvement of military territorial structures also risks increasing intimidation, criminalization, forced evictions, restrictions on access to information and violence against communities defending their land and living spaces,” said Yahya Ihyaroza, head of the legal division at Kontras.
The military’s BTP has been in spotlight recently after Forestry Minister Raja Juli Antoni gave 17 forest area use approvals (PPKH) to Defense Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin, which will allow the Army to build 750 BTP bases across 961 hectares of forestland nationwide.
The battalions are tasked with noncombat missions, such as food security support and crime prevention.
Sjafrie said environmental sustainability would be maintained while converting forests to accommodate BTP bases, but environmentalists have countered that doing so will weaken the ability of forest ecosystems to retain water and absorb carbon as well as increase the risk of ecological disasters.
The CSO coalition also slammed the handling of the acid attack against Kontras deputy coordinator Andrie Yunus in March, which involved four members of the military’s Strategic Intelligence Agency (BAIS), saying the case reflected failures in the military justice system and persistent challenges in addressing a broad pattern of impunity.
Responding to the petition, TNI spokesperson Maj. Gen. Muhammad Nas told The Jakarta Post on Friday that the military “carries out its duties in accordance with prevailing laws, regulations and established mechanisms”.
The Government Communications Agency (Bakom) was not immediately available to respond to the Post’s request for comment on July 31. - The Jakarta Post/ANN
