Indonesian military improves quality and role of education and training command
Jumat, 28 November 2014 18:34 WIB |
General TNI Moeldoko. (ANTARA/Andika Wahyu)
Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The Indonesian Military (TNI) has improved the quality and role of the Education and Training Command (Kodiklat) in a bid to boost the quality of human resources in the institution.
"The military policy involves the improvement of human resources, taking into consideration the arrival of sophisticated weapons system," Indonesian Military (TNI) Chief General Moeldoko stated here on Friday.
Moreover, he remarked that upgrading the capabilities of the soldiers with the latest technology was also incorporated in the primary weaponry defense system (Alutsista).
"It is pointless without interoperability. The power of the military (navy, air force, and army) will be designated properly, both in terms of software and hardware. So, it will be in control," Moeldoko affirmed.
Besides improving the ability to operate main weapons systems, Moeldoko noted that the TNI has also improved its quality and intelligence capabilities.
"We are taking effective and efficient efforts. We want to create intelligent humans who have the mastery of intelligence by educating them for a period of over six months at the Strategic Intelligence Agency (BAIS)," he reported.
General Moeldoko also emphasized that the ranks of the military leadership have also formulated policies to improve the strength of the military by eliminating sectoral ego.
"All of our policies run properly," he added.
(Uu.A063/INE/KR-BSR/F001)
Indonesian military improves quality and role of education and training command - ANTARA News
Indonesia’s Maritime Role Hinges on ‘Pillars’
By
Bantarto Bandoro on 08:41 pm Nov 27, 2014
Category
Commentary,
Opinion
Tags:
Joko Widodo,
maritime policy,
National Police,
Navy
An officer from the Indonesian Navy surveying the Singapore Straits amid naval signal flags on a Naval Command Center in Batam, Indonesia, during an Indonesia and Singapore navy joint demonstration in the Singapore Straits in this file photo on May 27, 2005. (EPA Photo/How Hwee Young)
President Joko Widodo is serious in making Indonesia a more active and capable maritime player in the region. But this requires not only a stronger and more modernized navy, as well as a better equipped marine security police, but also effective inter agency coordination dealing with a wide spectrum of maritime affairs.
The national police for maritime security and the navy, however, have already complained about the prospect of their role in supporting the government’s maritime nexus — unless they are given a much larger budget to buy fuel in order to operate their patrol boats.
Joko’s message about Indonesia’s rightful aspirations as a seagoing Indo-Pacific power — that is, an archipelagic country connecting two oceans — is at the outset full of rhetoric until he, in the East Asia Summit (EAS) held in Naypyidaw, Myanmar, outlined the five underlying pillars of the policy: A revival of Indonesia’s maritime culture, recognizing the link between the country’s archipelagic geography, identity and livelihood; improved management of Indonesia’s oceans and fisheries through the development of the country’s fishing industry and building maritime food sovereignty and security; boosting Indonesia’s maritime economy by improving the country’s port infrastructure, shipping industry, and maritime tourism; maritime diplomacy that encourages Indonesia’s partners to work together to eliminate conflict arising over illegal fishing, breaches of sovereignty, territorial disputes, piracy and environmental concerns like marine pollution; and bolstering Indonesia’s maritime defenses, both to support the country’s maritime sovereignty and wealth, and to fulfill its role in maintaining security.
Those five pillars are integrated and one cannot be seen in isolation from the other if the Indonesia’s maritime nexus is to be proven strategically beneficial for the country’s well being.
In his East Asian Summit speech, the president said Indonesia is “obliged” as a “fulcrum between two oceans” to bolster its maritime defenses, both to protect its own sovereignty and to maintain regional navigational safety.
The fourth and fifth pillar of Indonesia’s maritime policy looks well enough to provide the country’s maritime defense as well as the safety of navigation and maritime security.
The world “pillar,” to some evoke the sense of Samson standing between two huge pillars of a great building, with a hand on each pillar. He pushes the pillars with all his might until it causes them to collapse, killing him.
The world pillar brings to mind visions great strength that stand upright and hold an important structure in place.
The president vowed to restore Indonesia’s maritime status and profile by adhering to the strategic importance of the sea in dealing with comprehensive maritime issues.
The Asia Pacific will definitely be central to Indonesia’s maritime nexus. It not only the world’s most politicized maritime region, but it is also full of instances of maritime diplomacy going back centuries involving not only traditional maritime powers like the United States and the United Kingdom, but also less traditional maritime powers.
The president hopes the pillars of the country’s maritime policy will serve to anchor Indonesia’s role as a force for security as well as regional stability.
Joko stated in his inaugural speech that Indonesia will continue to adhere to and execute a free and active foreign policy, regardless of the impact of the changing strategic environment Indonesia faced.
With maritime nexus as one of the main components of Indonesia’s external relations, Jokowi wanted to strike a balance between economic development and the enhancement of its maritime infrastructures (pillar two and three). Not only that, the policy also aims at making Indonesia a leader in tackling fresh regional maritime security issues as envisioned in the fourth pillar of the policy.
Indonesia’s quest for a strong and sustainable maritime status does require constant strategic policy steps to further prove the importance of those five pillars as they imply that Indonesia has to enhance and strengthen, if not regain, its international standing by taking fresh maritime security initiatives. But that would mean countries in the region also need to step up cooperation and support in Indonesia’s attempt to eliminate conflict over illegal fishing, territorial disputes, piracy, and environmental concerns like marine pollution.
For Indonesia’s trading and security partners, President Joko’s maritime policy presents ample and interesting opportunities for collaboration. This is the essence of the fourth pillar of the country’s maritime nexus.
It is appropriate, if not timely, that the pillars of Indonesia’s maritime nexus is introduced as the country and the region are now facing and will continue to face the reality that issues related to maritime security have extended beyond the classical geostrategic issues.
The fourth pillar of the maritime policy indicates that maritime security issues have now become more complex and diffused due to the very quick changes in the economy and technology, which heavily impact on the security of the state and stability of the region. A sense of a diffused and global maritime security threat has prevailed.
With the introduction of the pillars of Indonesia’s maritime policy, the country is politically and strategically committed to developing some kind of long-term insurance for regional maritime security and stability of the Asia Pacific.
The logical and strategic consequence is that Indonesia would have to mobilize whatever national resources it has at its disposal to make sure that the pillars stand upright and hold up the nation’s maritime infrastructure.
Not only that: the government must make sure that the funding for the maritime policy pillars is available to secure the maintenance of such a maritime nexus.
In short, Indonesia’s approach to global and regional maritime security issues is already unfolding, knitting states together in collaborative partnerships to promote a better and safer environment of maritime security.
Bantarto Bandoro is a senior lecturer at the School of Defense Strategy at the Indonesian Defense University (IDU) in Jakarta.
Indonesia's Maritime Role Hinges on ‘Pillars’ - The Jakarta Globe
