Tiarma Siboro, Jakarta – Vice Marshall Herman Prayitno has been appointed as the new Air Force chief of staff, replacing his boss Marshal Djoko Suyanto, who will soon head the Indonesian Military (TNI).
Speaking at the TNI headquarters in Cilangkap, East Jakarta, retiring TNI chief Gen. Endriartono Sutarto announced Friday that Herman, who is Suyanto's deputy, would take over from his former boss on Wednesday.
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono had issued decrees to officially install Suyanto and Herman in their new posts, Endriartono said. Yudhoyono was scheduled to swear in Suyanto on Monday at the presidential office, he said.
Endriartono declined to talk about his plans after retiring from the military. "I have served as TNI chief for three years, seven months and seven days. I just want to relax for a while," he said, brushing aside speculation the President might appoint him to lead the planned National Security Council.
Suyanto, Army Chief of Staff Gen. Djoko Santoso and Navy Chief of Staff Admiral Slamet Subiyanto also attended the announcement.
The appointment of Herman marks a major reshuffle affecting 81 high-ranking military officers, including 15 officers currently serving at the TNI headquarters.
One of these changes sees Brig. Gen. Suhartono Suratman, a former Wiradharma military commander in the country's former province of East Timor, becoming the Army chief of staff's assistant for security affairs.
Suhartono was one of three Army generals implicated in alleged human rights abuses that took place in the province in 1999 after the East Timorese voted for independence. All were acquitted of any wrongdoing by a human rights court. The reshuffle affected 10 Air Force officers, 16 Navy officers and 16 Army officers.
During the event, Endriartono spoke about the military's likely role in a post-peace deal Aceh. "We will stick to the national legislation, including the Defense Law and the Military Law. If cases of insurgency take place (again in Aceh), we will play our role as mandated by the national legislation," he said without elaborating.
The military's future security role in Aceh is still a source of controversy. The peal deal signed last August by the government and the Free Aceh Movement explicitly states that the TNI only play a role in the external defense of the province.
The government's draft law on Aceh, however, has given a greater role to the TNI, allowing it to intervene in domestic disturbances and internal security threats.