Assessing 12-year military reform in Indonesia : major strategic gaps for the next stage of reform

The Indonesian military remains one of the most crucial institutions in a democratising Indonesia and continues to be a key factor in any discussion regarding the future of the country. Forced to withdraw from formal politics at the end of the New Order regime, the military leadership has been embar...

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Main Authors: Iisgindarsah, Sebastian, Leonard C.
Other Authors: S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies
Format: Working Paper
Language:English
Published: 2012
Subjects:
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/10356/93911
http://hdl.handle.net/10220/7538
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Institution: Nanyang Technological University
Language: English
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spelling sg-ntu-dr.10356-939112020-11-01T08:41:09Z Assessing 12-year military reform in Indonesia : major strategic gaps for the next stage of reform Iisgindarsah Sebastian, Leonard C. S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies DRNTU::Social sciences::Political science The Indonesian military remains one of the most crucial institutions in a democratising Indonesia and continues to be a key factor in any discussion regarding the future of the country. Forced to withdraw from formal politics at the end of the New Order regime, the military leadership has been embarking on a series of reforms to “professionalise” the armed forces, while maintaining their standing within Indonesian society. This paper attempts to provide an assessment of the military reform process during the last 12 years in Indonesia. To this end, it will provide an overview regarding the role of the Indonesian military during the Suharto era; analyse to what extent the process of democratisation has shaped the role and mission of the military; explore the perceptions and motivations of the actors involved in the reform process; review what has been achieved; and highlight the outstanding issues that remain unaddressed. With regard to the final point, this paper discerns three major strategic gaps that undermine the processes of military reform in Indonesia, namely: the “regulation loophole”, the “defence-economic gap” and the “shortcomings of democratic civilian control”. Considering these problems, this paper concludes that while the military officers’ interest in day-to-day politics will gradually diminish, the military professionalism will ebb and flow depending more on the behaviour of political elites and their attempts to address the major strategic gaps in the next stage of the country’s military reform. 2012-02-28T04:23:20Z 2019-12-06T18:47:35Z 2012-02-28T04:23:20Z 2019-12-06T18:47:35Z 2011 2011 Working Paper Sebastian, L. C., & Iisgindarsah. (2011). Assessing 12-year military reform in Indonesia : major strategic gaps for the next stage of reform. (RSIS Working Paper, No. 227). Singapore: Nanyang Technological University. https://hdl.handle.net/10356/93911 http://hdl.handle.net/10220/7538 en RSIS Working Papers ; 227-11 54 p. application/pdf
institution Nanyang Technological University
building NTU Library
continent Asia
country Singapore
Singapore
content_provider NTU Library
collection DR-NTU
language English
topic DRNTU::Social sciences::Political science
spellingShingle DRNTU::Social sciences::Political science
Iisgindarsah
Sebastian, Leonard C.
Assessing 12-year military reform in Indonesia : major strategic gaps for the next stage of reform
description The Indonesian military remains one of the most crucial institutions in a democratising Indonesia and continues to be a key factor in any discussion regarding the future of the country. Forced to withdraw from formal politics at the end of the New Order regime, the military leadership has been embarking on a series of reforms to “professionalise” the armed forces, while maintaining their standing within Indonesian society. This paper attempts to provide an assessment of the military reform process during the last 12 years in Indonesia. To this end, it will provide an overview regarding the role of the Indonesian military during the Suharto era; analyse to what extent the process of democratisation has shaped the role and mission of the military; explore the perceptions and motivations of the actors involved in the reform process; review what has been achieved; and highlight the outstanding issues that remain unaddressed. With regard to the final point, this paper discerns three major strategic gaps that undermine the processes of military reform in Indonesia, namely: the “regulation loophole”, the “defence-economic gap” and the “shortcomings of democratic civilian control”. Considering these problems, this paper concludes that while the military officers’ interest in day-to-day politics will gradually diminish, the military professionalism will ebb and flow depending more on the behaviour of political elites and their attempts to address the major strategic gaps in the next stage of the country’s military reform.
author2 S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies
author_facet S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies
Iisgindarsah
Sebastian, Leonard C.
format Working Paper
author Iisgindarsah
Sebastian, Leonard C.
author_sort Iisgindarsah
title Assessing 12-year military reform in Indonesia : major strategic gaps for the next stage of reform
title_short Assessing 12-year military reform in Indonesia : major strategic gaps for the next stage of reform
title_full Assessing 12-year military reform in Indonesia : major strategic gaps for the next stage of reform
title_fullStr Assessing 12-year military reform in Indonesia : major strategic gaps for the next stage of reform
title_full_unstemmed Assessing 12-year military reform in Indonesia : major strategic gaps for the next stage of reform
title_sort assessing 12-year military reform in indonesia : major strategic gaps for the next stage of reform
publishDate 2012
url https://hdl.handle.net/10356/93911
http://hdl.handle.net/10220/7538
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