Military of Indonesia
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| Military of Indonesia |
|
|---|---|
 Flag of Indonesia |
|
| Leadership | |
| Commander-in-Chief | General Djoko Santoso |
| Available for military service |
60,543,028, age 18–49 (2005 est.) |
| Fit for military service |
48,687,234, age 18–49 (2005 est.) |
| Reaching military age annually |
2,201,047 (2005 est.) |
| Expenditures | |
| Budget | $4,74 billion (2008) |
| Percent of GDP | 3.2% |
The Armed Forces of Indonesia (Indonesian: Tentara Nasional Indonesia, TNI , formerly Angkatan Bersenjata Republik Indonesia, best known by the acronym ABRI comprises approximately 410,000 personnel including the Army (TNI-AD), Navy (TNI-AL) including marines, and Air Force (TNI-AU).
The army is by far the largest, with about 303.000 active-duty personnel, compared to around 74,000 in the Navy and 33,000 in the Air Force.[citation needed]
Defense spending in the national budget is less than 1% of GDP, but is supplemented by revenue from many military-run businesses and foundations, both legal and illegal. The force doesn't include law enforcement and paramilitary personnel such as,POLRI (Indonesian police) approx. 380,000 personnel, BRIMOB [police mobile brigade] approx 39,000 armed personnel, MENWA [university student regiment] approx 26,000 trained personnel, and HANSIP [civilian defence].
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[edit] Political role of the military
During the Suharto era, the military had a "dual function" (dwifungsi in Indonesian); first, it would preserve the internal and external security of the country, preserving it as a unified nation, and second, it would ensure that government policy followed a path that the military leadership felt was wise.
This justified substantial military interference in politics. Long-time president Suharto was an army general, and was strongly supported by most of the military establishment. Traditionally a significant number of cabinet members had military backgrounds, while active duty and retired military personnel occupied a large number of seats in the legisalture. Commanders of the various territorial commands played influential roles in the affairs of their respective regions.
Indonesia has not had a substantial conflict with its neighbours since the 1963-1965 confrontation with Malaysia, although competing South China Sea claims, where Indonesia has large natural gas reserves, concern the Indonesian government. Without a credible external threat in the region, the military's primary role in practice has been to assure internal security. Military leaders now say they wish to transform the military to a professional, external security force, but acknowledge that the armed forces will continue to play an internal security role for some time.
In the post-Suharto period since 1998, civilian and military leaders have advocated removing the military from politics (for example, the military's representation in the House of Representatives was reduced and finally ended), but the military's political influence remains extensive. The TNI has been notorious since the massacre of alleged pro-communists in 1965-6 and the East Timor Crisis. In both events, the TNI allegedly mistreated and killed hundreds and thousands of people.
[edit] Army
The Indonesian Army was initially formed during the War of Independence, when it participated in a guerilla war along with informal militia. As a result of this, and the need to maintain internal security, the Army has been organized along territorial lines, aimed at defeating internal enemies and external invaders once they have occupied the nation.
[edit] Navy
Personnel of the Indonesian Navy is estimated at 74,000.personnel The Indonesian Navy purchased a number of ships of the former East German navy in the 1990s. Navy vessels include KRI Cobra and others. In 2006, Indonesian Navy purchased 2 Kilo class - 636 conventional submarines, 2 Shipset Yakhont Missile and 20 BMP-3F amphibious light tank with option of 100 more BMP-3 from Russia. Indonesia also plan to buy landing craft ships from Russia.[citation needed] Oddly enough, the Navy elects to use army-style ranks.
[edit] Aircraft inventory
All Indonesian Navy aircraft serve in DINAS PENERBANGAN TNI-AL (Indonesian Naval Aviation) The Indonesian Navy also purchased 8 Mi-2 (now based in Surabaya), but only two have arrived due to problems with Indonesian Navy Agencies.[citation needed] The Navy operates 52 fixed wing aircraft, and 23 combat and transport helicopters.
[edit] Air Force
Indonesia became the second country (after Thailand/Siam) in South East Asia to acquire an Air Force capability. Presently the Air Force operates 250 aircraft, including over 70 combat jets and 63 helicopters. There are 33.000 personnel in the Indonesian Air Force.[citation needed]
[edit] Police
While not strictly part of the armed forces, the national police often operate in a paramilitary role, independently or in cooperation with the other services on internal security missions. Indonesian Police use the name of POLRI (Kepolisian Republik Indonesia).
[edit] List of commanders
| Name | Years | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lt. Gen. Urip Sumohardjo | 1945 | Position held on an interim basis [1] | |
| Lt. Gen. Sudirman | 1945-1950 | Position known as Great Commander of the People's Security Army (Panglima Besar Tentara Keamanan Rakyat) [2] | |
| Maj. Gen. TB Simatupang | 1950-1952 | Position known as Chief of Staff of the Battle Forces (Kepala Staf Angkatan Perang) [3] | |
| Vacant | 1952-1968 | Position abolished by President Sukarno after the 17th October 1952 incident [4] | |
| Gen. Suharto | 1968-1973 | Position known as Commander of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Indonesia (Panglima ABRI) as long as Minister of Defense and Security | |
| Gen. Maraden Panggabean | 1973-1978 | idem | |
| Gen. Andi Mohammad Jusuf | 1978-1983 | idem | |
| Gen. Benny Moerdani | 1983-1988 | Also Commander of the Operational Command for the Restoration of Security and Order Kopkamtib | |
| Gen. Try Sutrisno | 1988-1993 | ||
| Gen. Edi Sudrajat | 1993 | ||
| Gen. Feisal Tanjung | 1993-1998 | ||
| Gen. Wiranto | 1998-1999 | Position known as Commander of the Indonesian National Military (Panglima Tentara Nasional Indonesia) in 1999 as long as Minister of Defense and Security | |
| Adm. Widodo Adi Sutjipto | 1999-2002 | ||
| Gen. Endriartono Sutarto | 2002-2006 | ||
| ACM. Djoko Suyanto | 2006-2007 | ||
| Gen. Djoko Santoso | 2007-present |
[edit] Embargo
Following the 2004 tsunami in Aceh the American government suspended the spare parts embargo for non-lethal equipment and military vehicles to support the humanitarian effort in the tsunami-devastated regions of Aceh and Nias. Since then the Indonesian Air Force has signed deals to purchase more C-130 transport aircraft and upgrade the current C-130s in the inventory.
On 22 November 2005, the U.S. announced that military ties with Indonesia would be restored. The decision had ended the six-year U.S. ban on arms sales. [5]
[edit] References
- ^ http://www.pikiran-rakyat.com/cetak/2005/0805/13/0801.htm
- ^ http://www.pikiran-rakyat.com/cetak/2005/0805/13/0801.htm
- ^ http://www.pikiran-rakyat.com/cetak/2005/0805/13/0801.htm
- ^ http://www.pikiran-rakyat.com/cetak/2005/0805/13/0801.htm
- ^ http://today.reuters.co.uk/news/newsArticleSearch.aspx?storyID=277361
[edit] Further reading
- Bresnan, John. (1993). Managing Indonesia: the modern political economy. New York: Columbia University Press.
- Many topics, including the political role of the military at the height of Suharto's New Order.
- Crouch, Harold. (1988). The army and politics in Indonesia. Ithaca:Cornell University Press.
- First published 1978. Now somewhat dated, but provides an influential overview of the role of the military in consolidating Suharto's power
- Kingsbury, Damien. (2003). Power politics and the Indonesian military. London: RoutledgeCurzon.
- Lowry, Bob (1993). Indonesian Defence Policy and the Indonesian Armed Forces, Canberra Papers on Strategy and Defence No.99, Strategic and Defence Studies Centre, Australian National University
[edit] External links
- Official Website of TNI
- Official Website of TNI-AD (Army)
- Official Website of TNI-AL (Navy)
- Official Website of Polri (Indonesian Police)
- Official Website of the Department of Defense
- GlobalSecurity.org : Indonesia
- Unofficial Site Of Indonesian Armed Forces
- Unofficial Site Of Indonesian Special Forces
- Indonesian Civil-Military Relations - Civil-Military Relations in Post-Suharto Indonesia and the Implications for Democracy Today: A Preliminary Analysis
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