Jakarta – The Civil Society Coalition for Security Sector Reform has criticised the move to involve members of the Indonesian Military (TNI) in combatting the problem of street muggings in the Jakarta area.
Coalition representative Ardi Manto Adiputra, director of Indonesian Human Rights Watch (Imparsial), believes that the plan to deploy combat battalions by the Jakarta Regional Military Command (Kodam Jaya) constitutes a misguided and excessive policy.
This according to the coalition also signals the blurring of the boundaries between defence and security functions in Indonesia, because the involvement of the TNI in handling civilian crimes such as muggings is seen as contrary to the principles of security sector reform.
"As well as having the potential to foster a repressive approach and excessive use of force within the civilian sphere", he stated in a written statement on Monday May 25.
The coalition warned that the mandate of reformasi – the political reform process that began in 1998 – is to ensure that the practice of military dominance within the civilian sphere no longer occurs, and to guarantee that the TNI focuses on its function of national defence.
Adiputra said that if acts of street robbery and domestic security issues continue to be addressed through military deployment then the state is effectively retreating from the spirit of reformasi. It also shows the failure to strengthen civilian institutions that ought to serve as the primary vanguard for law enforcement and public security.
The coalition emphasised that the TNI is actually an instrument of national defence prepared to confront threats of war and external armed aggression, not to deal with common criminal acts in society.
"The problem of muggings, violent theft, or urban security disturbances fall within the realm of civilian law enforcement, which is the responsibility of the police and local governments", he explained.
In the context of dealing with muggings in Jakarta, in the Coalition's view the local government bears a significant responsibility to implement preventive and mitigative measures.
These efforts, he said, can be carried out through mapping and socialisation in high-risk areas, improvements to street lighting, the installation of CCTV cameras at crime hotspots and public education on safe riding practices at night.
"Meanwhile, the police have the constitutional mandate to conduct security patrols, investigations, prosecutions, and law enforcement against criminal perpetrators", said the Coalition.
"Therefore, the involvement of the TNI in handling muggings is actually unnecessary. The presence of combat personnel in the civilian sphere actually carries the potential to increase the use of disproportionate force, heightening the risk of human rights violations", he added.
Earlier, the Kodam Jaya announced that it would deploy troops to assist the police in handling violent street robberies that have become rampant in Jakarta and surrounding areas recently.
Kodam Jaya information head Lieutenant Colonel Noor Iskak from the Air Defence Artillery Corps (Arh.) said that one of the TNI's duties within the scope of Military Operations Other Than War (OMSP) is to assist the police in their duties.
"In our patrol activities, we provide support in accordance with a request from the Jakarta Metro Regional Police; however, legal enforcement actions against street robbers remain the responsibility of the police", Iskak said when contacted on Monday.
He explained that the personnel involved in patrols are personal from District Military Commands (Kodim) in accordance with their respective areas.
"Added to by personnel from other units, augmenting patrol strength in accordance with a request from the Jakarta Metro Regional Police", he said. (tfq/fra)
- The Civil Society Coalition for Security Sector Reform statement can read in Bahasa here: https://www.amnesty.id/kabar-terbaru/siaran-pers/koalisi-pelibatan-tni-untuk-mengatasi-begal-di-jakarta-adalah-bentuk-respons-berlebihan-dan-menyimpang-dari-fungsi-tni/05/2026/
[Translated by James Balowski. The original title of the article was "Koalisi Sipil Kritik Pengerahan Anggota TNI Atasi Begal di Jakarta".]
