Why Are Civil Positions for TNI Soldiers Expanded to 15 Agencies?

What are the five new positions proposed for TNI soldiers to occupy?

On Tuesday (11/3/2025), the government and the House of Representatives agreed to revise Law Number 34 of 2004 concerning the Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI). The discussion will focus on expanding civilian positions for TNI personnel, which were originally limited to 10 ministries or agencies, to 15 ministries/agencies. If active personnel hold positions beyond that, they must resign from the TNI.

Defense Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin presented three proposals regarding the revision of the TNI Law. These changes include Article 3 concerning the position of the TNI, Article 47 regarding the placement of TNI personnel in ministries and institutions, and Article 53 concerning the retirement age limit.

Revision of Article 47 includes a proposal to increase the placement of military personnel in ministries and institutions from the original 10 to 15. This addition covers the Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries, the National Disaster Management Agency, the National Counterterrorism Agency, the Maritime Security Agency, and the Attorney General's Office.

Previously, under the current Military Law, 10 ministries and institutions where soldiers can be assigned include the Coordinator for Political and Security Affairs, National Defense, Presidential Military Secretariat, State Intelligence, and State Encryption. Additionally, the National Resilience Institute, National Defense Council, National Search and Rescue, National Narcotics, and the Supreme Court.

Deputy Minister of State Secretariat Bambang Eko Suhariyanto stated that this addition was made to include institutions established after the enactment of the TNI Law. He also denied that this was an effort to expand civilian positions for TNI personnel.

Why is civil society resistant to the expansion of civilian positions for TNI soldiers?

Deputy Director of Imparsial, Hussein Ahmad, stated that the civilian positions that could be filled by active military personnel under the current TNI Law occurred because the government at that time was transitioning from the New Order to the Reform Era. Military personnel were placed in several ministries with the aim of strengthening the power of the regime at that time.

"I refer to Article 47 Paragraph (2) of the TNI Law as a compromise article. The argument is that during its 32 years in power, the New Order placed the military in those 10 institutions. At that time, there were no individuals capable of filling those positions," said Hussein in Jakarta, Wednesday (12/3/2025).

After running for 20 years, Hussein continued, such placements should have been replaced by officials from civilian circles. Therefore, this revision should reduce civilian positions that can be filled by active military personnel.

However, the revision of the TNI Law currently being discussed by the government and the DPR instead expands the scope for the placement of soldiers in civilian institutions. According to Hussein, this addition serves only political interests and represents a failure of reform.

What are Pepabri's concerns regarding the placement of soldiers in civilian positions?

The General Chairperson of the Association of Retired and Warakawuri TNI and Polri (Pepabri) General (Ret.) Agum Gumelar observed public concerns regarding the potential expansion of TNI soldier placement due to the revision of the TNI Law. In a public hearing with Commission I of the DPR at the Parliament Complex, Jakarta, Monday (10/3/2025), he stated that this concern must be addressed with caution in the revision of the TNI Law.

Agum did not directly reject the changes to the articles in the TNI Law. However, he hopes that the regulations regarding the placement of active soldiers in the civilian realm need careful consideration.

"We must not let what happens is that the public's antipathy grows, as if justifying the TNI's dual function," he said.

According to Agum, the public must be assured that the revision does not reinstate the dual function of the TNI. Moreover, this concern could potentially divide the nation as it is prone to being exploited for conflict.

How did the Army Chief of Staff respond to the plan to expand civilian positions for TNI soldiers?

Indonesian Army Chief of Staff (KSAD) General Maruli Simanjuntak said that the Indonesian Army is waiting for the results of the ongoing discussion on changes to the TNI Law in the DPR.

He requested that the status of active TNI soldiers who hold positions in ministries and state institutions not be used as a polemic. TNI will always obey state decisions and follow applicable rules.

"Please feel free to discuss whether soldiers should change their status or whether soldiers should retire. If the decision later turns out to be like that, we will comply. We (the Indonesian Army) will be 100 percent loyal to the decision," he said.

He said, there are members of the Indonesian Army who have potential. Therefore, it is necessary to consider their mechanism to serve in ministries/institutions. The mechanism can be discussed, including if there is a registration mechanism, or there is a trial, or determined by the President.

Does Lt. Col. Teddy's position as Cabinet Secretary violate the TNI Law?

Member of Commission I of the House of Representatives from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) faction, Tubagus Hasanuddin, issued a statement that drew attention from various parties. He said that the placement of an active soldier, namely Lieutenant Colonel Teddy Indra Wijaya, in the position of Cabinet Secretary violated Law Number 34 of 2004 concerning the TNI. The reason is that the position of Cabinet Secretary is not included in the positions that may be filled by active TNI soldiers according to the TNI Law.

Flashback to October 2024 when Teddy was appointed as Cabinet Secretary, there was indeed a polemic regarding the appointment. The reason is, the position of Cabinet Secretary is not included in the positions that can be filled by active soldiers according to the TNI Law.

So, automatically if Teddy wants to be trusted to hold the position that in the era of the 7th President of the Republic of Indonesia Joko Widodo was at the ministerial level, he must first resign from the TNI. However, then, as a solution, the regulation was changed to open the way for Teddy to continue to serve as Cabinet Secretary without having to leave the TNI.

The position of Cabinet Secretary, which was originally at the ministerial level, was changed to be included in the organizational structure of the Ministry of State Secretariat. Not only that, the position of Cabinet Secretary is positioned under the President's Military Secretary. With this placement, Teddy can automatically continue to serve as Cabinet Secretary without having to leave the TNI. This is because the TNI Law allows the position in the President's Military Secretary office to be filled by active soldiers.

If you look at the Presidential Decree of the Ministry of State Secretariat, the position of Cabinet Secretary can indeed be filled by active soldiers. However, according to the researcher of the Indonesian Defense and Strategic Studies Institute, Beni Sukadis, the problem does not stop there.