JAKARTA, KOMPAS — As is the case with military organizations in other countries, the Indonesian Military also conducts military operations other than war (MOOTW). Indonesia's current sociopolitical condition makes MOOTW an unavoidable necessity.

However, a number of more detailed rules are needed for the implementation of MOOTW so that they do not disturb the efforts of the military, which on Oct. 5 will be celebrating its 71st anniversary, to shape its members into professional soldiers.

In Article 7, paragraph (2) point (b) of Law No. 34/2004 on the Indonesian military, 14 forms of MOOTW are stipulated. As with military operations in war (MOW), MOOTW are also part of the military's tasks to maintain national sovereignty and integrity and to protect the nation.

Currently, there are many forms of MOOTW carried out by the military, from working alongside the National Police to eradicate terrorism to being involved in agricultural work, such as controlling fertilizer distribution, building irrigation infrastructure and providing agricultural education.

Indonesia Military commander Gen. Gatot Nurmantyo said last weekend at the Kompas office in Jakarta that President Joko Widodo's instructions at the Indonesian Army Dandrem/Dandim function in Pangkalan Bun, Central Kalimantan, in December 2015, had served as the military's reference to carry out agricultural work.

At the function, the President instructed the Indonesian Army to safeguard the government's target of realizing food self-sufficiency.

MOOTW are also undertaken by the Indonesian Military in response to disasters, such as land and forest fires. The soldiers have handled so many land and forest fires that those on duty in fire-prone regions have developed a deep understanding of how to deal with fires.

Their involvement in extinguishing land and forest fires not only demands the soldiers sacrifice their time and energy but also put their lives at risk. Head soldier (post.) Wahyudi, 26, died in August when trying to extinguish a land and forest fire in Riau.

Some soldiers carry out MOOTW by being present at a number of public facilities, such as stations and airports.

The military commander said that the soldiers' presence at public facilities was because it had been requested and was not merely so they could be seen as conducting MOOTW. The threat of terrorism made it necessary for soldiers to be present at vital spots to help secure the public and also make attackers think twice about attacking.

Regarding terrorism eradication operations, such as the Tinombala Operation executed with the National Police in Poso, Central Sulawesi, the military commander stressed that the threat of terrorism was not only a security problem. Terrorism had proven able to weaken nations, as evidenced in the Middle East after the Arab Spring movement.

Training

If the military could choose, Gatot said, it would choose to have its soldiers on duty at stations and airports return to their units. This was because such work prevented the soldiers from training. "In peaceful conditions, like now, there is an opportunity for the military to keep training to improve its battle ability so it will be ready if there is war," he said.

However, the military continued to try to ensure that MOOTW tasks did not interfere with its professionalism. This was achieved by clear job division. For agricultural work, for instance, those deployed would not be combat troops but territorial units, such as village supervisory non-commissioned officers (Babinsa). This was in line with Babinsa's job of helping local residents overcome the conditions they experienced.

Regarding the possibility of fraud in MOOTW, such in fertilizer distribution, Gatot said that such matters must be assessed case by case. He explained that the military had been asked to control fertilizer distribution because the task had previously been perverted.

Defense Minister Ryamizard Ryacudu asked all parties involved not to have negative perceptions of the military's MOOTW. He stressed that the military was now professional, so there was no need to be worried or suspicious that the program was looking to restore the military's dual function to that of the pre-reformation era.

Agreement

Imparsial Executive Director Al Araf said that there were around 30 MoUs between the military and ministries for various MOOTW.

He noted that according to Article 7 paragraph 3 of the Indonesian Military Law, military operations in war and MOOTW carried out by the military must be based on state policies and political decisions.

On that, Al Araf believed that other than the Indonesian Military Law, there should be another law for MOOTW implementation in the form of a supporting regulation.

This regulation would serve as a basic guideline and principle, as well as providing regulations on military involvement with regard to MOOTW. This supporting regulation was mandated in MPR Decree No. VIII/MPR/2000 on the role of the Indonesian Military and National Police. Article 4 of the MPR decree stated that the military was to help in the implementation of humanitarian activities, help the police with security duties as mandated by the Constitution, and to be active in world peacekeeping units.

House of Representatives Commission I member from the PDI-P faction, Charles Honoris, said that deliberations for the supporting regulation had been planned before 2014. However, to date, it had not been discussed. "I have mentioned this at House Commission I, but there has not been any response from the other factions," he said.

House Commission I deputy chair TB Hasanuddin said that state policies and political decisions regarding MOOTW could be adequately achieved through discussion of the activities by the House and the government, which in this case was usually represented by the Indonesian Military commander.

"However, for urgent incidents like natural disasters, the military can get directly involved without discussion with the House. Such discussions would be for MOOTW like the military involvement in agriculture," Hasanuddin said.

Deliberation was needed because MOOTW were linked to budget and task readiness.

"Readiness is important because the Indonesian Military has to be prepared for war. If the military has other tasks, like supporting food self-sufficiency, there must be prior training. Then the question is, who will train them and what equipment will the military need for the task? All this will end up in budget discussions because the military's budget is generally for battle preparation. These things should to be discussed between the military and the House, so a political decision is needed for MOOTW," Hasanuddin said.