Placement of TNI in Civil Positions Must Not Be Haphazard

JAKARTA, KOMPAS – Several defense experts do not object to the placement of active TNI soldiers in civilian positions, but the arrangement must be transparent and accountable. The appointment of TNI soldiers to occupy civilian positions should not be done carelessly, let alone based solely on political proximity. Ideally, there should be a strict competency selection mechanism to ensure that the placement of active soldiers in civilian positions does not create resentment among civil servants who have started their careers from the ground up.

Commission I of the House of Representatives held a hearing with three defense experts to discuss amendments to Law Number 34 of 2004 concerning the Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI) on Monday (3/3/2025) at the Parliamentary Complex, Jakarta. The three experts were Advisor to the Defense Diplomacy Strategic Forum, Major General (Ret.) Rodon Pedrason; Teuku Rezasyah from the Indonesia Centre for Democracy Diplomacy and Defence; and Kusnanto Anggoro from the Centre for Geopolitics Risk Assessment. One of the contentious issues discussed was the placement of TNI personnel in civilian positions.

Referring to Article 47 of the TNI Law, TNI personnel can only hold civilian positions after resigning or retiring from active service in the TNI. Active personnel may hold positions in offices related to the coordination of political and national security affairs, national defense, the Presidential Military Secretariat, national intelligence, state cryptography, the National Resilience Institute, the National Defense Council, National Search and Rescue (SAR), national narcotics, and the Supreme Court.

Rodon Pedrason, in the meeting, stated that the restriction had, from the beginning, sparked controversy within the TNI. In fact, according to him, every citizen has the right to be anywhere as long as it is in the interest of the state. Therefore, he proposed that TNI personnel should be allowed to openly occupy civilian positions.

He observed that the need for active TNI soldiers in civilian positions is partly due to the extensive network possessed by the TNI, reaching down to the lower levels, from military rayon commands (koramil) at the sub-district level to village supervisory non-commissioned officers (babinsa). On several occasions, such as the government's handling of the Covid-19 pandemic, it would not have been possible to proceed effectively without the assistance of the TNI.

"Military participation in government should be understood in the context of developing a civilian government, supporting a civilian government. So it doesn't just mean influencing, causing damage, but supporting. So, their placement is specifically for accelerators, to speed things up, and their placement is not to take away opportunities from other parties," said Rodon.

However, he acknowledged that a competency selection process is still necessary for TNI officers who will assume civilian positions, not merely based on political proximity. This is because, without a competency selection, it will never be known to what extent the appropriateness of the soldier in question to hold the intended civilian position.

"This means there must be an element of fairness there. We test competence, not just personal closeness, but we see the competence, whether the person concerned is really worthy. Don't suddenly become the President Director of Bulog when he has never studied. I personally also say, why suddenly become the President Director of Bulog? In fact, when on duty (as a TNI soldier), starting from second lieutenant to high-ranking officer, he was never trained on that issue," said Rodon.

Fair competition

Teuku Rezasyah agrees with Rodon. Even if there are highly qualified TNI soldiers who want to enter civilian positions, the soldiers must take part in open bidding. Their abilities must be compared with civilians.

"Maybe the theoretical ability is the same, but when it comes to leadership and managerial ability, it can be different. Okay, you (TNI soldiers) enter the civilian circle, but please take part in random tests by following the criteria of the International Organization for Standardization. Thus, it is not considered that the TNI is taking the civilian quota, but entering the civilian through a truly fair competition," he said.

Competency selection is still needed for TNI officers who will hold civilian positions, not only because of political closeness.

He reminded that the placement of active soldiers in various ministries/institutions should be carried out transparently and accountably, should not interfere with the professionalism of the TNI in carrying out its main task, namely national defense, and should not create potential conflicts of interest between the TNI and the targeted ministries/institutions.

On the other hand, for active soldiers who will fill senior positions in civil institutions, it should also be adjusted to the needs, capabilities, and coordination with the relevant ministries/institutions. "Of course, the soldiers must have the skills and experience that are greatly needed by the new institution," he said.

Kusnanto Anggoro said, regarding the placement of TNI soldiers to civilian positions, there is actually one controversial issue that needs to be answered, namely regarding who is required to guide them when they enter civilian positions. In the provisions of the legislation, it will be a collaboration between the TNI Commander and the head of the agency where the soldier is placed. But in reality, it did not run effectively. "So, this is what then needs to be regulated," he said.

According to Kusnanto, it is also necessary to think about which positions active soldiers may occupy civilian positions. Because, there should not be an assumption emerging in the bureaucratic environment that the entry of soldiers into civilian circles will actually cause career path issues in the bureaucratic environment.

"Ideally, it's like this, 'you can come in but don't bother me'. Therefore, under normal circumstances, if there are (the best ASN) in the bureaucracy, then the choice should still be an insider. That's ideal. It's a bit difficult if suddenly someone comes in as a director general or whatever. That will kill (ASN) hopes. So, in principle, the involvement of the TNI outside the TNI field, especially in a context like that, is allowed, but it also shouldn't be, let's say, killing, reducing, minimizing the development of internal potential within (the bureaucracy)," he said.

Member of Commission I of the House of Representatives from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) faction, TB Hasanuddin, agreed that TNI soldiers who can enter civil positions must be in accordance with the needs of the ministry/institution they are applying for and must be in accordance with the request of their minister. "And most importantly, they must be capable. If they are indeed graduates of IPB (Bogor Agricultural Institute), then they will be placed in the Ministry of Agriculture. If they only graduated from akmil (military academy), I'm sorry, our training is in combat. However, if they are placed in Bulog, for example, then they must study first," he said.

Member of Commission I of the House of Representatives from the Nasdem Party Faction, Amelia Anggraini, warned that it is necessary to ensure that the revision of the TNI Law does not negate the high public trust in the TNI. She argued that the revision of the TNI Law must also consider civilian supremacy.

Rejecting the TNI and Polri Bill

Meanwhile, the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) visited Commission I and Commission III of the DPR at the DPR's Nusantara II Building, Parliament Complex, Jakarta, on Monday (3/3/2025) afternoon, to deliver an open letter rejecting the revision of the TNI Law and the revision of the Polri Law. The substance of the revision of the two laws is considered not to provide a solution to the cultural problems of the institution, both in the TNI and Polri.

"Our stance, as long as the substance does not answer the issue of security sector reform, but instead increases authority, reduces control, and supervision of military institutions, we ask that it be stopped," said Head of the Legal Division of Kontras, Andrie Yunus.

Andrie then highlighted one of the articles in the revised TNI Law that has the potential to expand TNI positions in the civil service realm. According to him, this kind of model only brings back the New Order policy in the current era.

"We consider this to be very problematic and has the potential to return the government to the New Order regime or the Soeharto regime for 32 years," he stressed.

He also protested the DPR which has not involved the public in the discussion of the two bills. "We also do not want to be involved and only be used as a rubber stamp. There needs to be a substantive discussion which we think is more important as we have expressed earlier," he said.