Yang Razali Kassim - The general is not saying. But it's what he fails to say that confirms it: dissatisfaction is building up within the military against President Abdurrahman Wahid.
In the beginning, the unhappiness had to do with the president's "overkill" in pushing for the supremacy of civilian rule. Now, the gripe is about a "palace conspiracy" by presidential aides to undermine the authority of the new military commander, Admiral Widodo.
Perhaps partly because of this, the military, which is supposed to withdraw completely from the legislature by 2004, is fighting back to keep at least some of its presence in the political leadership.
In an exclusive interview with BT here, the Chief of Territorial Affairs, Lt-Gen Agus Widjoyo, would not want to be drawn into commenting on talk about the so-called palace conspiracy. But the general, a military thinker, confirmed a plan by the military to demand at least 20 seats and possibly a faction of its own in the MPR, the highest policy-making body in the country.
Significantly, he did not deny that the relationship between the civilian leadership and the military could be destabilised by generals who act in concert with civilian politicians. He described such officers as the "political-soldier types" and a threat to the growing professionalism of the military.
"The problem encountered by a newly professional military, entering an environment of civilian supremacy, is when there are individuals who start playing politics from within the military, when in fact the military is meant to be a professional organisation. This sort of political-soldier types may not exist unless by the temptation or seduction of external civilian politicians," he said.
Throughout the interview, the three-star general refused to be specific about whom he meant by the "political-soldier types", or the "external civilian politicians". But his comments are seen to refer to two generals recently appointed by Gus Dur and a key palace official, Bondan Gunawan.
The two generals are Army Chief of Staff, General Tyasno Sudarto, and the Commander of the Strategic Reserve, Lt-Gen Agus Wirahadikusumah. Both were specially handpicked by Gus Dur and placed in their current positions over the heads of others in the normal promotion process.
They are very close to Mr Bondan, a civil activist recently made a key man in the State Secretariat. He has close links with Gus Dur from their days in the Forum Demokrasi movement. Analysts say some sections within the military view the three – or four if Gus Dur is included – as forming the backbone of the "palace conspiracy".
While the president has succeeded in installing them, their positions are believed to be insecure. There is talk that the two top generals are being increasingly isolated within the military. Part of the distancing is due to the perception that their rise will undermine the authority of Admiral Widodo.
Asked if this is all true, Lt-Gen Agus sidestepped the question, talking instead about the need to "learn from past experiences". At the same time, he stressed that civilians should not intervene too far in the TNI's internal arrangements. "The reshuffle of personnel within the TNI is part of the internal management of TNI. Standard Operating Procedures exist," he said.
So, does he think the political-soldier types would endanger the professionalism of the military at a time when it should be disengaging from politics? "There are indicators that if we are not careful, a situation could develop into such a state," the general said.
Explaining why the military is reversing its withdrawal from the national decision-making process, Lt-Gen Agus said TNI is a major component of Indonesian society and this is reflected in the free seats it has held in Parliament, or DPR.
Members of the DPR were automatically members of the MPR. If TNI appointees withdraw completely as required under a new law, the military would also lose its seats in the MPR, he said.
"But as the MPR is the highest policy-making body in Indonesia, it is only fair to say that it embraces and represents all components of the nation. This is especially true for TNI because TNI can't exercise its political rights due to its non-participation in the general elections. We feel that as one of the national components, TNI should have its representatives in the MPR." Lt-Gen Agus called this a form of "political rights in lieu of" its non-participation in the general elections.
Explaining why the military wants at least 20 seats and its own legislative faction, he said: "To have influence in the decision-making process in the MPR, we have to have at least about 20 seats, and ideally form a separate faction." Lt-Gen Agus was in Singapore at the invitation of Singapore Press Holdings.