Unspun

In an earlier posting, I wrote about how Defense Minister Juwono Sudarsono became the first Indonesian Minister to blog. One of his postings takes on the Human Rights Watch’s report Too High a Price: The Human Rights Cost of the Indonesian Military’s Economic Activities.

The posting attracted quite some attention from Shel Israel of Naked Conversations, Jeremy Wagstaff of Loose Wire and Pablo Halkyard of The World Bank.

Then, I said that this was a great development as a real conversation can take place if Human Rights Watch enters into a discussion with the Defense Minister in his blog. Well, Lisa Misol, the Business and Human Rights Researcher at HRW has responded to Juwono’s posting. Her posting on his site is similiar to a letter to an editor which she sent to the Jakarta Post and published on July 3, 2006.

The ball is now back to Jowono’s court. Will the Minister engage in a conversation with HRW? Or will he let the chance for Indonesia to demonstrate that it can communicate openly, frankly and candidly about important issues slip by?
The matter has now become more timely than ever with the discovery of a large cache of arms at the home of the recently deceased Brigadier General Koesyamadi.

Lisa’s posting is below:

Human Rights Watch issued a report highlighting the many serious problems associated with military business, including violence, intimidation, lawlessness, and corruption, because we want the Indonesian government to end this dangerous practice.

The military’s business activities are an obstacle to real reform. Civilian and military leaders have said they are committed to cleaning up the military’s finances in order to bolster civilian control, and Law 34/2004 gives them a deadline of 2009 to withdraw the military from business.

Unfortunately, Minister Sudarsono seems not to recognize the urgent need for reform. The criticism of military business does not rest on Soeharto-era practices; the problems of military profit-making are ongoing, as we carefully document in our report.

Military foundations and cooperatives in principle exist to support soldiers’ welfare, but government investigations have repeatedly shown that these “charitable” entities are used as a cover for corrupt and illegal businesses.

The government’s budget constraints are no excuse for allowing military units free rein to raise funds. Instead, officials should focus on developing an appropriate and affordable military budget, monitor it to eliminate waste and corruption, and ensure it provides a decent living standard for defense personnel.

Indonesia’s citizens have made it clear that they want a professional military, under effective civilian control, and funded by the government. Many soldiers want to see an end to military business because it taints their reputation and distracts them from their duties. They are looking to Minister Sudarsono for leadership to tackle this crucial issue. So is the international community.

Lisa Misol
Human Rights Watch

Letter published in The Jakarta Post, July 3, 2006.

The full HRW report, and summary and recommendations in Bahasa Indonesia, are available at http://hrw.org/reports/2006/indonesia0606/