Vaudine England, Jakarta – The newly installed public face of the Indonesian armed forces, Major-General Sjafrie Sjamsuddin, took office this week amid continuing debate about his appointment.

It has been assailed by rights activists because, as an intelligence officer for the special forces, Kopassus, General Sjafrie was active in East Timor before its independence ballot in August 1999.

"He spent many tours of duty in East Timor, culminating in a semi-official reappearance in mid-1999 when he supported the militias before and after the ballot, during widespread atrocities," states the London-based human rights group Tapol.

The general's defenders insist he has never been proven guilty of any offence and that evidence of his alleged misdeeds in helping to spark the violence which followed the 1999 ballot has yet to be substantiated. "Sjafrie is highly intelligent and a smooth operator. What you can say about him is that he has always been absolutely professional," said a source close to the military's leadership.

General Sjafrie's installation in an unusually closed ceremony on Monday further upset a critical local press. He used the occasion to announce a new hierarchical structure of public relations which will require the media to meet middle-ranking officers first, and only turn to General Sjafrie or his deputy on major policy issues. This contrasts to the previous system whereby journalists could call the forces' spokesman directly.

General Sjafrie, formerly the Jakarta military commander, has also been implicated in the deaths of four Trisakti University students during demonstrations held against former president Suharto in May 1998, when troops opened fire. No one has faced trial yet over the incident, but his name is on a list of generals to be summoned by a government-decreed National Commission of Inquiry to testify about the students' killing. Several of those already subpoenaed by the inquiry, such as former armed forces chief General Wiranto, have refused to appear, citing legal loopholes.

With the title of best graduate from the Armed Forces Academy in 1974, General Sjafrie served in another separatist hot spot, Aceh, and was one of Suharto's adjutants.

Some observers say his appointment will at least keep him out of mischief. But it is seen by many in the diplomatic and human rights communities as a snub to those who believe the armed forces must own up to their many wrongdoings. "His appointment ... is a sign of the renewed confidence of the armed forces, who feel that they can now afford to ignore public opinion and the need for basic reforms of the armed forces," said Tapol.