EPA
Critics warn that changes in Indonesian military law could return Indonesia to the dark days of the Suharto military dictatorship
The Indonesian Parliament has adopted controversial changes to legislation which will allow its soldiers a more important role in the government.
Critics warn that this decision could return to Indonesia in the dark days of the military dictatorship of Suharto, which lasted 32 years until it was forced to leave its functions in 1998.
The revisions supported by President Prabowo Suubianto – a former special forces commander and the son -in -law of Suharto – allow military officers to take positions in the government without withdrawing or resigning from the armed forces.
Hundreds of pro-democracy activists have camped outside the Parliament since Wednesday evening to protest against changes.
“The essence of democracy is that the military should not engage in politics. The military should only manage the barracks and national defense,” said Wilson, activist of the Indonesian Association of Families of the Disparus (Kontras), a group defending the militants who disappeared during a repression in 1997 and 1998.
“Since 1998, there has been a crawling murder of democracy. And today marks its peak. Democracy has been killed by the House of Representatives,” Wilson at the BBC told.
Revisions allow active military personnel to occupy positions in 14 civil institutions, against 10. They also increase retirement age by several years for most ranks. The highest four -star generals can now be used up to 63, compared to 60.
Thursday evening, the crowd of demonstrators in front of Parliament had passed nearly a thousand. “Return the army to the barracks!” “Against militarism and the oligarchy,” read the banners they have held.
The police and the military defended the demonstrators around the demonstrators.
Although there have been efforts in the past 25 years to limit the participation of the military in politics and governance, the local human rights dog has revealed that nearly 2,600 officers in active service occupied civil roles even before the revision of the law.
Hundreds of pro-democracy activists have camped outside the parliament building since Wednesday evening to protest against changes
The changes indicate a “broader consolidation of power” within the framework of Prabowo, said Dinarto Dinarto, leading the analyst in Indonesia of the public policies consulting Global Counsel.
The fact that the main opposition party approved the changes – despite the initial opposition – still stresses this change, he noted.
“By integrating military perspectives in the civil fields, legislation could reshape the political orientation of Indonesia, potentially prioritize stability and control of the State on democratic governance and civil freedoms,” said Dinarto.
The “double function” of the armed forces, where they have control of security and administrative affairs, was at the heart of the Suharto regime.
For some Indonesians, Prabowo embodies this authoritarian era. It was he who led the unity of the special forces accused of the kidnapping of activists in 1997 and 1998.
Many feared that his return to political power and become president would erode the hard but fragile democracy of Indonesia.
Since its entry into office last October, Prabowo has already expanded the participation of the military in public spaces. Its flagship program of $ 4 billion for children and pregnant women, for example, receives logistical support from the armed forces.
The defense of amendments Thursday, the Minister of Defense, Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin, told Parliament that “geopolitical changes and global military technology” demand that the military transform to tackle “conventional and unconventional conflicts”.
“We will never disappoint Indonesians to keep our sovereignty,” he said.
However, some rights defense groups argue that the increase in military control in public affairs beyond the defense will undermine impartiality.
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The demonstrators burn the effigies of former President Suharto and several former military generals in the streets of Jakarta in 2000
“How can actors in active service from the Prosecutor General Office remain impartial when they are always linked by military command?” Asked Virdika Rizky Utama, researcher at Think-Tank Para Syndicate, based in Jakarta, reports Benar News.
“If the military gains an influence on the judicial system, which will keep them responsible?”
“President Prabowo seems determined to restore the role of the Indonesian army in civil affairs, which have long been characterized by generalized abuses and impunity,” said Andreas Harsono, researcher in Indonesia at Human Rights Watch.
“Government’s haste to adopt these modifications undermines its commitment to human rights and responsibility.”
Kontras has also noted that “precipitation of the government to modify the (law) strongly contrasts with its prolonged inaction on other critical commitments of human rights”.
“This long struggle cannot stop simply because the law has been adopted. There is only one word: Resist,” undergraduate Sukma Ayu, undergraduate at Muhammadiyah University, Professor Hamka in Jakarta.
“We will continue to protest until we claim victory … We have no choice but to occupy the” people’s house “,” she said.
