Adhyasta Dirgantara, Robertus Belarminus, Jakarta – The Rose Team (Tim Mawar), which was a small team created by the Army's Special Forces (Kopassus) Command Group IV in 1998, apparently still leaves traces to this day.
While in 1998 the Rose Team was the mastermind behind the kidnapping operation of pro-democracy political activists, now they are in strategic government positions. In the era of President Prabowo Subianto alone, several former Rose Team members received strategic positions and honorary ranks.
Such as for example Djaka Budi Utama who occupies the position of Director General of Customs and Excise at the Ministry of Finance. Then, there is also Nugroho Sulistyo Budi, who is the head of the National Cyber and Cryptography Agency (BSSN).
Then Chairawan Kadarsyah Kadirussalam Nusyirwan who was the rank of three-star honorary general by Prabowo, as well as Untung Budiharto who also received the rank of three-star honorary general.
However, it turns out that the granting of strategic positions to former Rose Team members started during when the 7th president Joko "Jokowi" Widodo was still in office.
At that time, Prabowo, who served as Minister of Defence for period 2019-2024, proposed two former members of the Rose Team as Ministry of Defence officials and Widodo approved it through Presidential Decree Number 166/TPA of 2020.
The two were Brigadier General Yulius Selvanus and Brigadier General Dadang Hendrayudha. Hendrayudha was trusted to become the Director General of Defence Potential at the Ministry of Defence. Meanwhile, Selvanus was appointed as Head of the Defence Strategic Installations Agency at the Ministry of Defence.
Mastermind behind abduction of 98 activists
The Rose Team was a small team created by Kopassus in 1998 and was the mastermind behind the operation to abduct pro-democracy political activists in the same year.
Fourteen activists were arrested by the Rose Team, but nine of them were returned home, while there were several other prisoners who remain missing, one of whom was Wiji Thukul.
The Rose Team was formed because of the events of July 27, 1996. At that time, thugs supported by the Army seized the offices of the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) on Jalan Diponegoro in Central Jakarta and attacked sympathisers who supported opposition figure Megawati Sukarnoputri as its chairperson.
This incident then prompted Kopassus Commander (Danjen) then Major General Prabowo Subianto to give a special assignment to Major Bambang Kristiono, Commander of Battalion 42. He was asked to serve as Commander of the Merpati Task Force. The team's task was to collect data and information about radical activities.
Kristiono then summoned Captain Fauzani Syahril Multhazar, Captain Nugroho Sulistyo Budi, Captain Yulius Selvanus and Captain Dadang Hendra Yudha, to analyse the information by forming a special team in mid-July 1997.
There were three teams formed, namely the Rose Team, the Young Guard Team (Tim Garda Muda) and the Support Team (Tim Pendukung). The Rose Team was tasked with detecting radical groups and perpetrators of riots and terror.
On January 18, 1998, an explosion occurred at the Tanah Tinggi Flats in Central Jakarta. This incident made the rose Team further intensify their performance. The Rose Team prepared a plan to arrest a number of activists suspected of being involved in the bomb explosion.
Major Kristiono got the names of nine people from intelligence data that were to be captured by the Rose Team. They were Desmond J Mahesa, Pius Lustrilanang, Haryanto Taslam, Faisol Riza, Raharja Waluyo Jati, Nezar Patria, Aan Rusdianto, Mugiyanto and Andi Arief.
The Rose Team had already prepared a place to detain the activists at the Kopassus headquarters in Cijatung. East Jakarta. Their first target was Desmond, an activist and lawyer with the National Legal Aid Institute.
On February 3, 1998, at around 9.30 am, Captain Multhazar ordered Captain Hendrayudha, Captain Budi and Captain Utama to arrest Desmond. Desmond was picked up when he left his office at around 12 noon. The arrest was made as he was alighting from a Mikrolet bus he was riding.
After being arrested, Desmond, with his hands tied and his eyes covered with a black cloth, was taken to the Kopassus headquarters in Cijatung. While at the headquarters, Desmond suffered severe physical torture including being beaten. He was also taken to an underground cell.
Following this, Captain Multhazar ordered Captain Selvanus to arrest Aan Rusdianto, a People's Democratic Party (PRD) activist living at the Klender Flats in East Jakarta.
That night, Captain Selvanus disguised himself as the Pak RT (head of the neighbourhood association). He knocked on Aan's door and as soon as the door was opened, Aan was immediately arrested and taken to the Kopassus headquarters.
In addition to Aan, apparently Nezar was also at the flat. He was also arrested and the two were taken to Kopassus headquarters and arrived at around 8.30 pm.
Captain Selvanus ordered the Captain Utama to stay at the Klender Flats in case more people come.
Unfortunately, when the Captain Utama was about to enter the unit rented by the PRD activists, Duren Sawit Sub-district Military Command (Koramil) officers were already there. They arrested Mugiyanto who was in one of the rooms.
After Aan and Nezar, on February 4 Pius Lustrilanang was also arrested by the Rose Team in front of the Cipto Mangunkusumo Hospital in Salemba, Central Jakarta.
Pius' arrest was followed by Haryanto Taslam who was kidnapped on March 8, 1998. Taslam was a pro-Megawati PDI activists.
The next abduction occurred on March 12, 1998. Faisol Riza and Raharja Waluyo Jati were caught at the Cipto Mangunkusumo Hospital.
After abducting the eight people, on March 27, on Major Kristiono's orders, Captain Multhazar was asked to arrest Andi Arief.
Andi Arief was the general chairperson of the Indonesian Student Solidarity for Democracy (SMID) and a member of the PRD's Central Leadership Committee. Andi was arrested at his brother's house and then taken to Kopassus headquarters and detained in an underground cell.
But it was not just nine people, it turns out that around 14 more activists were detained by the Rose Team at the Kopassus Headquarters, one of whom was radical people's poet and PRD leader Wiji Thukul. Wiji's whereabouts are still unknown.
However, the nine people managed to return to their respective homes safely.
Even so, Prabowo's relationship with some of the people who had been abducted seems to have been repaired. During the 2024 presidential election campaign, Prabowo embraced many 98 activists, even joking with them.
"Also present is Agus Jabo, Prima [Party] chairperson. I'm sorry I tried to hunt you down before. In the past. On orders. I was stubborn in the past", said Prabowo on January 27, 2024.
"Then, Brother Budiman Sudjatmiko. I'm also sorry, Man, I was hunting you too. But, I've already apologised to you", he added referring to the former PRD chairperson who went on to join Megawati's Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P).
Vulgar and excessive power sharing
Military observer Professor Muradi from the Padjadjaran University says that Prabowo has been excessive in giving away positions and awards to former Rose Team members. According to Muradi, Prabowo shares power blatantly or in a vulgar way.
"Prabowo is too much, too much, goes too far in the end. Why? Because in the end, people's perceptions are related to the distribution of power, yes, the situation is vulgar. I mean in a vulgar way, that's what is practiced by Pak [Mr] Prabowo today. In the past, during Pak Jokowi's time, it was done on the quiet, on the sly, I think so. Slowly, he let them in", said Muradi, when contacted by Kompas.com on Tuesday October 14.
Muradi said that even though the former Rose Team members received reparation for the crimes committed in the past, giving them government positions is still unethical.
"Why is it unethical? Because, yes, they committed crimes in the past. Crimes of a humanitarian nature, that is. Whatever we want to call it, for example about the Rose Team, we both understood how they did that, right. But, even if, for example, Pak Prabowo wants to place them [in positions], not at the forefront. What is unethical is because they are at the forefront, as if it were an achievement", he said.
"Now, meanwhile there are many soldiers, officers who are much more competent, much smarter, much more capable, they can't advance because they're not considered close to Pak Prabowo", continued Muradi.
Muradi said that if giving positions and honours to former Rose Team members was Prabowo's debt of gratitude, there was actually no problem. However, he reiterated that the positions given should not be strategic and not at the forefront.
"This is the problem, apart from being given positions, the restoration of earlier ranks, yes. Then the second addition is giving much more strategic positions, which in my opinion is vulgar and excessive. So, the measures for sharing positions are no longer timid. This is already the future, and it doesn't just apply to the Rose Team. Almost all institutions in the ministries, institutions, including BUMNs [state-owned enterprises] are like that. Then suddenly in the first year [of Prabowo's presidency] it becomes vulgar", he said.
Therefore, Muradi suspects that Prabowo wants to pay off his debt of gratitude while still holding on to power. He guesses that Prabowo may not be confident about holding on to the presidency for two terms because he is rushing to hand out positions to colleagues, even though he had only been in office for a year.
"So, he doesn't seem to be sure about two terms. With a situation like that. What does this mean? By reading it as his term in power will be short, say four years, yes. Because the last year is usually preparations for elections and so on. In the end, all debts of gratitude should have been settled, everyone who is considered important should have been given rewards, appreciation, and so on. Maybe in not so many years he will no longer be president", added Muradi.
Kompas.com has tried to contact the leadership of the House of Representatives (DPR) Commission I and the Palace to ask for a response regarding the distribution of strategic positions to former Rose Team members. However, no one has responded at all.
The Palace did actually comment on the appointment of former Captain Djaka Budi Utama as Director General of Customs and Excise earlier this year. They argued that Utama was now a civilian.
"The person concerned resigned on May 2. And on May 6, the president issued a letter of discharge, the discharge of the person concerned from their military service, from Lieutenant General Utama's military service", said the Head of the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) at that time, Hasan Nasbi, at his office in Central Jakarta on Monday May 26.
"So now the newly appointed Director General of Customs and Excise has the status of a retired officer, the same as a civilian. And his employee status at the Ministry of Finance means a P3K [Full-Time State Employee]. A P3K who serves as Director General of Customs and Excise", he continued.
[Translated by James Balowski. The original title of the article was "`Tim Mawar di Jabatan-jabatan Strategis".]
Source: https://nasional.kompas.com/read/2025/10/14/19264791/tim-mawar-di-jabatan-jabatan-strategis
