Legislative amendments spark fears of a return to military supremacy in Indonesia
By Hellena Souisa with wires
Topic:Laws
11m ago11 minutes agoThu 20 Mar 2025 at 8:29am
Two people wearing skullcaps and suits salute the camera, a number of other people have their backs to the camera.
President Prabowo Subianto, a former soldier, has been accused of paving the way for the return of military supremacy. (Supplied: Indonesian President Media and Press Office/Laily Rachev)
In short:
Indonesia's parliament has passed changes to its National Armed Forces (TNI) Law that allow serving armed forces personnel to serve in a greater range of government roles.
Civil society groups warn the moves could signal a return to the era of former strongman president Suharto, who used the military to dominate civilian affairs.
What's next?
Democracy groups and students have vowed to protest the changes at Jakarta's parliamentary building.
Indonesia's parliament has passed contentious revisions to the country's military law that critics say could take the country back to the draconian "New Order" era of former strongman president Suharto.
The amendments passed on Thursday to the National Armed Forces (TNI) Law allow active military personnel to have a greater role taking on civilian positions in government institutions.
President Prabowo Subianto, who took office last October and was a special forces commander under Suharto, has been expanding the armed forces' responsibilities into what were considered civilian areas, including his flagship program of free meals for children.
Rights groups have criticised the increased military involvement because they fear it may lead to abuses of power, human rights violations, and impunity.
Speaker Puan Maharani led the unanimous vote in a plenary council and officially passed the law, saying that it was in accordance with the principles of democracy and human rights.
High angle shot of a meeting room with two long tables full of people facing each other.
A plenary meeting at Indonesia's parliament discussing the revision of the National Armed Forces Law. (Supplied: Detik/Agung Pambudhy)
The government has said the bill requires officers to resign from the military before assuming civilian posts at departments such as the Attorney's General Office.
Budi Djiwandono, the deputy chief of committee overseeing the military law bill, said the government would ensure that it upholds civil supremacy.
Mr Djiwandono, who is also Mr Prabowo's nephew, added that no active military personnel would be placed in state-owned companies, dismissing concerns they would be involved in business.
"The geopolitical changes and global military technology require the military to transform … to face conventional and non conventional conflicts," Defence Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin told parliament, while defending the revised law.
"We will never disappoint the Indonesians in keeping our sovereignty," he added, but did not specify what geopolitical challenges he was referring to.
Ahead of the parliamentary session, protesters from democracy groups and students said they would will stage rallies in front of the parliamentary building in Jakarta.
Military personnel were called in for security in the parliamentary building to assist police and there were just a few dozen protesters at the time the bill was passed.
Legislative process behind closed doors
The development process for the revisions sparked controversy because it was partly conducted behind closed doors and involved limited public participation.
The parliament's Defense and Security Commission on Saturday consulted stakeholders, including the Ministry of Defense, during a closed meeting at the luxury Fairmont Hotel Jakarta, only 1.5 kilometres from the parliament building.
Activists forced their way into the five-star hotel's meeting room, carrying protest posters and demanding the meeting be held openly for the public to follow.
Two men, one of whom had shoulder-length hair and a black shirt, held a poster inside the room.
Andrie Yunus crashed a meeting to discuss the proposed legislative changes being held at a Jakarta hotel. (Supplied: Bisnis/ Anshary Madya Sukma)
"We demand that the discussion process on the bill be stopped because it is not in accordance with the legislative process, it is being held behind closed doors," said activist Andrie Yunus.
Mr Yunus, a representative of the Civil Society Coalition for the Security Sector (CSCSC), said the meeting showed a low commitment to transparency and public participation.
During the revision process, the parliamentary working committee only invited civil society elements twice, with the last consultation only hours before the bill was finalised on Tuesday.
A man with glasses wearing a white shirt and suit smiles looking at the camera.
Feri Amsari says the process to revise the TNI law was flawed. (Supplied)
Feri Amsari, a constitutional law expert from Andalas University's Faculty of Law, said the legislatively process should include meaningful public participation.
"There is a process that accommodates the public's right to be heard, to express themselves, and to receive an explanation if their opinion is rejected," Mr Amsari told the ABC.
Mr Amsari said another concern was that the academic paper and draft revisions to the bill were not publicly accessible.
"To be able to participate, the public must know the reasons for the changes, including what articles were changed and why, through the academic paper and the draft law,"
he said.
Mr Amsari said the combination of all these factors could be seen as "an attempt by parliament to avoid public participation that could criticise, provide input or even reject the draft".
Has the military already returned?
Rights group Legal Aid Institute said the revision would pull Indonesia back 30 years to an era where the late strongman Suharto used the military to dominate civilian affairs and crush dissent in the world's most populous Muslim-majority country.
"The revision is a legislative crime that threatens Indonesians and the future of democracy," said Arif Maulana, deputy chair of the institute.
Allowing the military to be more involved in civilian affairs could also lead to abuse of power, human rights violations, and impunity, said Usman Hamid of Amnesty International Indonesia.
Indonesia's Special Forces Kopassus soldiers, October 5, 2012.
It is feared that the revision of the TNI Law will be the gateway to the return of the military's dual function. (Reuters: Beawiharta Beawiharta )
In a statement, the CSCSC said the revisions had the potential to bring South-East Asia's largest democracy back to a "dual-function" military system (or "dwifungsi" in Indonesian) in which the active military personnel were allowed to hold civilian roles.
The practice was abolished following the country's 1998 reforms.
A man in a white shirt and suit is surrounded by reporters' microphones and recording equipment.
Minister of Law Supratman Andi Agtas denied the return of the military's dual function through the revision of the TNI Law. (Supplied: Tribunnews.com/Rizki Sandi Saputra)
Minister of Law Supratman Andi Agtas said the revisions did not signify a return to the military's past dual-function doctrine, emphasising that all military appointments would remain strictly related to national defence and security.
Mr Agtas also said that any active-duty soldier wishing to take on civilian roles outside these designated institutions must first retire from military service.
But Feri Amsari said that aspects of the dual function doctrine were already in place in the Indonesian government.
Research by Imparsial, a non-governmental organisation that focuses on monitoring human rights, found 2,569 active TNI soldiers in civilian positions in 2023.
"Then why is this revision of the law still being carried out? I think this is an attempt to legitimise something that is wrong," Mr Amsari said.
ABC/Reuters
Posted11m ago11 minutes agoThu 20 Mar 2025 at 8:29am
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