Sudrajat and Hanibal – Due to criticisms of human rights violations, TNI will no longer guard sites of vital national interest.

A good intention does not always become a blessing for others. On the contrary, it can become a "hot potato" which one is reluctant to receive.

The good intention we are talking about here is the measure which is about to be taken by the Indonesian Military (TNI) commander General Endriartono Sutarto, namely handing the responsibility for the security of valuable sites over to the National Police (Polri).

This is an appropriate measure, as safeguarding national security against any kind of danger is the responsibility of the police. However, overall, the police are unprepared, which only adds to their present burdens. For that reason, National Police chief General Da'i Bachtiar is trying to persuade Endriartono not to make good on his idea too quickly.

"Please don't be in such a hurry," said the head of the TNI's Information Center, Maj. Gen. Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin, to Tempo, imitating Da'i's statement in a coordination meeting for politics and security, held on Thursday of last week.

Da'i's reaction is understandable. In addition to the limited number of police personnel available, the routine operational budget hardly suffices.

In such a predicament, Da'i himself is more inclined to agree if each company hires its own security personnel. Even if the police were involved, it would only be to coordinate matters. Alternatively, police can be dispatched at certain times, but only when they are truly needed.

Endriartono has a strong reason for wanting to release the TNI from this responsibility as soon as possible. From the beginning, the basis for TNI's involvement in securing such locations was only to be found in a decree made by the TNI commander, not in a government decree. Of course, this decree became obsolete when Law No. 3/2002 on National Defense came into being. There it is emphasized that the duties of the TNI are in the field of defense, more in facing threats from abroad.

Meanwhile, security on the home front is fully under the jurisdiction of Polri. So? "Why should we drag our feet on the matter? I mean, we don't have the legal authority," said Sjafrie. This time he was imitating Endriartono's reply to Da'i.

The Ambassador of the United States to Indonesia, Ralph L. Boyce, applauded the stance taken by the TNI commander. But, he reminded that someone has to continue to guarantee the security of US assets in Indonesia. "I respect the decision of the TNI commander, but we hope that our economic assets in Indonesia will continue to be well-guarded," said Boyce.

Endriartono first made mention of his intention to fully concentrate on defense at a press conference in Cilangkap early last week. On this occasion, he said that there are 17 sites of national interest which are guarded by 2,170 soldiers. The soldiers hail from their respective Regional Military Commands (Kodam), where the sites of vital national interest are located (see table). From that total, 700 of the soldiers are stationed at Freeport. Meanwhile, security for PT Arun and ExxonMobil in Aceh is completely under the responsibility of the martial law administration.

Aside from the legal and formal reasons, Endriartono also revealed that there has been an attitude change on the part of company owners, who feel that the TNI resembles a hired army. As an indication, these companies are now requesting written work contracts to be made with the TNI. Endriartono did not mention exactly which companies are behaving this way.

A government official who deals with petroleum matters confirmed that, of late, a number of foreign companies have tended to be cautious in the use of TNI personnel. "Foreign companies are truly wary of TNI due to human rights concerns," he said. But in general this was due to the demands of stockholders in the home country. It seems that they always mention the Timika case as an example.

This refers to the shooting of two American citizens, Edwin Leon Burgen and Rickey Lynn Spier, which took place in the vicinity of PT Freeport at the end of August 2002. The accusation which has strongly been made was that TNI soldiers perpetrated the incident. This is despite the fact that the investigation, which involved the FBI, has not yet made a conclusion in that direction.

This controversial incident dragged on with the release of Freeport's financial report last March. The report mentioned that Freeport spent US$5.6 million in 2002 for TNI security operations. It was mostly paid in kind for expenses such as food for soldiers, maintenance of transportation, and the construction of barracks. "Those soldiers only received additional pocket money of Rp500,000 per month, Rp5 million in tactical funds for the Kodams, and Rp2 million in tactical funds for the Battalion Commands [Danyon]," said Sjafrie.

Now, as a middle road between TNI's intention and Polri's preparedness, the government is set to redefine the roles of the two institutions in securing vital interests in Indonesia. This, according to Coordinating Minister for Politics & Security, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, will be accomplished over a transition period, so as not to disturb current security operations for vital sites. If fact, if a site is no longer considered to have strategic value, "Security will immediately be handed over to local and internal security personnel," he said.

Even so, under certain conditions the TNI can still be assigned to secure vital interests, for instance in the Province of Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam. "In a situation of martial law, and in the context of restoring security, this duty is still generally borne by the TNI," said Yudhoyono.

Companies in the oil and gas industry have not been affected much by the TNI commander's statement. Many have already begun to direct their own security affairs in recent years. They have also involved local residents as a part of their community relations endeavors.

For instance, in mid-May, the Oil & Gas Upstream Authority Body (BP Migas), as the coordinator for security for oil and gas companies, signed a memorandum of understanding with the National Police chief. Three months later, this was followed by compiling an operations manual and a fieldbook, made in conjunction with police ranks all across Indonesia.

In accordance with the MoU, Tjokro Suprihatono, Head of Security for BP Migas, said that assistance from Polri is only requested if it is impossible for their internal security detail to deal with a particular disturbance. On top of that, each time a company requests assistance, it must first be authorized by BP Migas. If not? "We will not process claims for reimbursing their security expenditures," said Tjokro to Tempo.

With this type of working arrangement, the amount of outlays for security funds is relatively small. This is because the total budget set aside by BP Migas for about 100 existing companies is only about 2 percent of revenues. "The level of disturbances is very incidental, and they do not take place every month. At the most there are only [peaceful] protests," said Tjokro.

TNI-Guarded Vital Interests

Bukit Barisan I Kodam - (500 personnel)

Sigura-sigura HEP Plant: 150 soldiers
PT Inalum: 150 soldiers PT Caltex Dumai: 200 soldiers

Sriwijaya II Sriwijaya - (140 personnel)

Plaju Oil Refinery: 50 soldiers
Sungai Gerong Oil Refinery: 50 soldiers
PT Pupuk Sriwijaya: 40 soldiers

Siliwangi III Siliwangi - (120 personnel)

Suralaya Electricity Plant: 40 soldiers
PT Dirgantara Indonesia: 40 soldiers
Regional Ammunition Depot: 40 soldiers

Diponegoro IV Diponogoro - (140 personnel)

Kilang Minyak Cilacap

Brawijaya V Kodam - (140 personnel)

Paiton Electricity Plant: 30 soldiers
Petrokimia Gresik: 30 soldiers
Madiun Ammunition Depot: 30 soldiers
PLTU Gresik: 30 soldiers
PT Pindad: 20 soldiers

Tanjung Pura VI Kodam - (140 personnel)

PT Badak: 15 soldiers
LNG Bontang Plant: 40 soldiers
PT VICO: 20 soldiers
PT UP V Pertamina Balikpapan: 40 soldiers
Pupuk Kaltim: 25 soldiers

Wirabuana VII Kodam - (140 personnel)

PT Nikel Soroako: 60 soldiers
Regional Ammunition Depot: 80 soldiers

Trikora XVII Kodam - (700 personnel)

PT Freeport Indonesia Corporation, Tembaga Pura, Papua

Kodam Jaya - (150 personnel)

Puspitek Serpong: 110 soldiers

Regional Ammunition Depot: 40 soldiers

Total Personnel: 2,170