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Retired generals shaping up party strategies
Jakarta Post - March 27, 2014
Former commander of the Army's Special Forces (Kopassus) Lt. Gen. (ret) Prabowo Subianto of the Gerindra Party is among the frontrunners in the presidential race, while former Indonesian Military (TNI) commander Gen. (ret) Wiranto has been declared the Hanura Party's presidential candidate.
Another former TNI commander, Gen. (ret) Endriartono Sutarto, and former Army chief of staff Gen. (ret) Pramono Edhie Wibowo, have been struggling to win a ticket via the Democratic Party's ongoing presidential convention.
The emergence of retired military generals as potential vice-presidential candidates also shows that the TNI is still deemed to be influential in politics, despite the political reform requiring the military to focus on its role as the country's defense force.
Besides the four aforementioned generals, former Army chief of staff Gen. (ret) Ryamizard Ryacudu and current TNI commander Gen. Moeldoko have also been tipped as potential presidential candidates.
Of all the scenarios, a civilian-military state leadership pair has been deemed as having a good chance in winning local and regional elections.
At least four of the 12 election-competing political parties are chaired or patronized by former generals. The President and former TNI chief of territorial affairs Gen. (ret) Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is Democratic Party chairman. Prabowo is Gerindra's chief patron while Wiranto is Hanura chairman.
The Indonesian Justice and Unity Party (PKPI) is led by Lt. Gen. (ret) Sutiyoso, who served as Jakarta military commander from 1996 to 1997.
But other retired generals have been laying low when it comes to their political aspirations, with some only appearing in parties' organizational structures and others only known as being "affiliated" with certain parties.
Either way, the former generals are believed to have a crucial role in shaping parties' strategies and tactics, thanks to their intelligence and territorial skills.
"There is mutual symbiosis there," security and defense analyst from the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI), Jaleswari Pramodhawardani, said recently.
"It is normal that the retired generals have political interests or agendas when joining certain parties. At the same time, it is also natural that parties seek military circles to help them reach their targets," she told The Jakarta Post.
Former Navy deputy chief of staff Vice Adm. (ret) Moekhlas Sidik, who is chairing Gerindra's campaign team for the legislative election, admitted that he, as well as many other generals in the party's camp, had chosen to keep a low profile.
He said that it was Prabowo who suggested he should stay away from the media and focus on his job, "at least until the legislative election is over".
But some maneuvers are indeed made public intentionally. They can carry different hidden purposes but one thing is for sure, they have triggered public discourse.
One recent example was when Gen. (ret) Luhut Binsar Panjaitan, a respected adviser to Golkar Party chairman and presidential candidate Aburizal Bakrie, publicly expressed his appreciation of the presidential nomination of popular Jakarta Governor Joko "Jokowi" Widodo. The retired general held a press conference only hours after the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) announced Jokowi's nomination on March 14.
While many saw the move as another indication of the escalating power struggle within Golkar, analysts suggested it could instead have been part of a new Golkar strategy, particularly given Luhut's position as deputy head of Golkar's advisory council.
Before entering politics, Luhut spent most of his military career in Kopassus, believed to be the era in which he developed his tactical and territorial skills. He was also a minister under the administration of the late president Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid.
"Retired military officers are used to duties of defending national integrity and protecting the country from foreign threats. This leads to strong nationalistic characters," Jaleswari said.
"Another remarkable skill usually possessed by retired generals is leadership. This could also lead to skills in mobilizing people. If they gave a good performance in their militaristic posts, they could also have the potential to influence other retired military officers and their families," she said, adding that all of these elements could help craft strategies to assist political parties in winning elections.
PKPI chairman Sutiyoso admitted his experience in the military had been beneficial for his current political career. "If you held a territorial commander position, you must have learnt about politics as well," he said during a recent interview with the Post.
But Sutiyoso said it was not only about political parties wanting to use the skills of the retired generals. "We [retired generals] have a culture of maintaining our commitment to this nation even after retirement. Look at me. At my age [of 69] I still feel fit and healthy, so why should I be expected to just do nothing?"
The PKPI is known for the band of noted retired generals in its camp, such as Gen. (ret) Try Sutrisno and Lt. Gen. (ret) Yusuf Kartanegara. "The PKPI has been perceived as a 'retired generals' party' because we have them in our main organizational structure. But other parties actually have many more retired generals than us," Sutiyoso said.
Gerindra, for example, has 44 members on its board of patrons, including 11 retired Army generals, two retired Navy admirals, two retired Air Force marshals, and one retired police general.
More than a dozen retired military officers, with colonel as the lowest rank, have also been recruited as members of the party's advisory board, while seven others now serve as Gerindra executives.
Political Parties and their influential retired generals
Crescent Star Party (PBB)
Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P)Comr. Gen. (ret) Susno Duadji (former National Police detective chief) Lt. Gen. (ret) Arifin Tarigan (former National Resilience Council secretary-general)
Affiliated:Gen. (ret) Da'i Bachtiar (former National Police chief) Lt. Gen. (ret) Tri Tamtomo (former Bukit Barisan Military commander) Maj. Gen. (ret) Tubagus Hasanuddin (former presidential military secretary) Maj. Gen. (ret) Adang Ruchiatna (former Udayana Military commander) Insp. Gen. (ret) Sidarto Danusubroto (former West Java Police chief)
Democratic Party (PD)Gen. (ret) AM Hendropriyono (former head of the National Intelligence Agency) Gen. (ret) Ryamizard Ryacudu (former Army chief of staff) Lt. Gen. (ret) Kiki Syahnakri (former Army deputy chief of staff)
Affiliated:Gen. (ret) Pramono Edhie Wibowo (former Army chief of staff) Lt. Gen. (ret) Tiopan Bernhard Silalahi (former assistant for planning to Army chief) Marshal (ret) Toto Riyanto (former National Resilience Institute [Lemhanas] deputy governor) Lt. Gen. (ret) Suaidy Marasabessy (former TNI chief of staff for general affairs) Lt. Gen. (ret) M. Yasin (former Army deputy chief of staff) Lt. Gen. (ret) Cornel Simbolon (former Army deputy chief of staff) Maj. Gen. (ret) Nachrowi Ramli (former State Cryptology Agency chief)
Golkar PartyAir Chief Marshal (ret) Djoko Suyanto (former TNI commander) Lt. Gen. (ret) Sudi Silalahi (former Brawijaya Military commander) Maj. Gen. (ret) Sardan Marbun (former TNI's intelligence center director)
Affiliated:Gen. (ret) Luhut Panjaitan (former Army Education and Training commander) Maj. Gen. (ret) Djasri Marin (former Central Military Police commander)
Hanura PartyGen. (ret) Fachrul Razi (former deputy TNI commander) Lt. Gen. (ret) Sumarsono (former Army deputy chief of staff, close to Jusuf Kalla)
Indonesian Justice and Unity Party (PKPI)Adm. (ret) Bernard Kent Sondakh (former Navy chief of staff) Gen. (ret) Subagyo Hadi Siswoyo (former Army chief of staff) Gen. (ret) Chairuddin Ismail (former National Police chief)
Gerindra PartyGen. (ret) Try Sutrisno (former TNI commander) Lt. Gen. (ret) Sutiyoso (former Greater Jakarta Military commander) Lt. Gen. (ret) Yusuf Kartanegara (former Diponegoro Military commander) Maj. Gen. (ret) Syaiful Sulun (former Brawijaya Military commander) Maj. Gen. (ret) Haris Sudarno (former Brawijaya Military commander) Maj. Gen. (ret) Monang Siburian (a former director at the TNI Strategic Intelligence Agency)
Nasdem PartyVice Adm. (ret) Moekhlas Sidik (former Navy deputy chief of staff) Lt. Gen. (ret) Suharto (former Marine commander) Rear Adm. (ret) Freddy Numberi (former Papua-Maluku Navy base commander) Maj. Gen. (ret) Mahidin Simbolon (former Cendrawasih Military commander) Maj. Gen. (ret) Glenny Kairupan (a former TNI Strategic Intelligence Agency director)
United Development Party (PPP)Adm. (ret) Tedjo Edhy Purdijatno (former Navy chief of staff) Insp. Gen. (ret) Edward Aritonang (former Central Java Police chief) Maj. Gen. (ret) Supiadin Aries Saputra (former Iskandar Muda Military commander)
Prosperous Justice Party (PKS)Maj. Gen. (ret) Kivlan Zen (former Army Strategic Reserves Command [Kostrad] chief of staff) Lt. Gen. (ret) Andi Muhammad Ghalib (former attorney-general)
Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/03/27/retired-generals-shaping-party-strategies.html.Comr. Gen. (ret) Adang Daradjatun (former National Police deputy chief)
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