BOOK REVIEWS
SUSILO BAMBANG YUDHOYONO AND HIS GENERALS
by Leonard C. Sebastian
http://www3.ntu.edu.sg/rsis/publications/policy_brief/Dr%20Yudhoyono%20policy%20brief_Jan07.pdf
Policy Brief: No 1/2007 January 2007
In analysing the TNI relationship with the Yudhoyono presidency, this paper argues that Dr Yudhoyono enjoys the loyalty and trust of the TNI elite. The current relationship can be defined as partnership where the President protects the institutional interests of the TNI while insulating it from excessive reform measures that might impede its effectiveness and in return benefits from the assurance that the TNI will secure his Presidency.
Realpolitik Ideology: Indonesia's Use of Military
By Leonard C. Sebastian
Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, Indonesia
ISBN:9812303111
publication date: 2006
Realpolitik Ideology presents path-breaking research on the Indonesian military (TNI) going beyond traditional scholarship on the TNI's dual function or dwifungsi which has been one of the dominating fields of analysis in Indonesian studies since the 1970s. Addressed to political scientists, sociologists, historians, anthropologists and defence practitioners, this book interprets security policy in terms of its social roots asserting that the realpolitik behaviour of the TNI has strong "socio-cultural" undertones, which in turn shape the development of military doctrine. The argument made in the book is that only through a better understanding of the doctrines that reinforced the military's significant presence in Indonesian affairs and their subsequent restructuring can Indonesia's policy-makers attempt meaningful reform of the TNI. Readable, accessible and yet exhaustively researched, Realpolitik Ideology examines the origins and development of ideas on security from the point of view of the TNI and explains why civil-military relations are still fraught with uncertainty, and why the recent changes in military ideology, removal of military posts in the legislature, ongoing divestment of its business, and other measures still do not guarantee that the military will not intervene in the affairs of state. Among its many valuable contributions, this book details: . the background to Indonesian concepts of national security . internal operations and the weak infrastructural power of the state, with an excellent discussion on the intelligence agencies . concepts for external defence, according to the TNI, including Indonesia's important but little-known contribution to UN peacekeepingmissions . defence and national security planning . the most recent laws relating to national security and the role of the military in Indonesia. Realpolitik Ideology offers suggestions about how to redefine concepts of national security to increase civil and democratic space and accountabilities and redress the historic imbalances between the civilian government and the military in Indonesia.
The Army and Politics in Indonesia
By Harold Crouch
ABOUT THE BOOK
"A comprehensive description of the Indonesian Army’s history of political involvement. Crouch’s incredible knowledge of so many facets of intrigue and manipulation, of names, dates, enemies and friends, and specific circumstances under which each attempted coup and counter effort was made if phenomenal. His attention to the supporting literature and his own personal experiences in-country certainly would indicate that Mr. Crouch is a – if not the – leading expert in this complex and bewildering subject...Highly recommended." – Perspective: Reviews of New Books in Political Science
"The author has produced the most thorough and balanced account of contemporary Indonesian politics yet to appear in print." – Canadian Journal of Political Science
"A valuable contribution to our knowledge of modern Indonesia." – Journal of Southeast Asian Studies
In this highly-respected work, Harold Crouch analyzes the role of the Indonesian Army in that country’s politics, putting special emphasis on the Sukarno years, the gradual takeover of power by the military, and the nature of Suharto’s New Order government. The Army and Politics in Indonesia is now updated with a new preface and epilogue that expands the book’s coverage to the 1980s.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
HAROLD CROUCH is a Senior Fellow in the Department of Political and Social Change, Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies, Australian National University where his research is concerned with Southeast Asian politics. He taught political science at the University of Indonesia in Jakarta from 1968 to 1971 and in the Department of Political Science at the National University of Malaysia from 1976 to 1990.
ISBN : 979-3780-50-9 Size : 15.2 x 23 x 2.4 cm Weight : 650 g Pages : 384 Format : Softcover Price : USD 29.95
Autonomy and Disintegration in Indonesia
Book Review
Source: ASEAN Economic Bulletin
Publication Date: 01-DEC-04
Autonomy and Disintegration in Indonesia. Edited by Damien Kingsbury and Harry Aveling. London: Routledge Curzon, 2003. Pp. 219.
Since the passage of regional autonomy laws in Indonesia, that country has moved headlong into one of the most massive transfers of political power in recent history. But Indonesia choose not to grant autonomy to the provinces but to the almost 400 regencies across the archipelago. Jakarta has also made special deals with the two most troublesome and independence-minded provinces of Aceh and Papua, granting them exceptions with the devolution of power to the provincial level. Autonomy and Disintegration in Indonesia is an exploration of this. It also grants considerable space to the problem of independence and communal-related conflicts.
A central theme that runs through this book is whether Indonesia will be able to continue in its current form--the book's title gives the first hint. A number of authors raise question marks over Indonesia's future. Kingsbury writes in the introduction: "Since 1997, Indonesia has been heading down a path towards what has very often seemed like disintegration." (p. 1). Ruth McVey ponders whether or not Indonesia has lost some cohesion in recent times (p. 11) and Ann Kumar leaves the question hanging: "Can the central government hold Indonesia together?" (p. 45). Rizal Sukma, Indonesian academic and political advisor, also mentions that Indonesia is in danger of breaking up into a collection of smaller units (p. 66). Certainly the spectre of Indonesia's coming collapse is a national obsession among the Indonesian political elite. The reader gets a slightly different reflection on this problem in Edward Aspinall's chapter, which, although largely on the problem of Aceh, indicates that Indonesia as an entity may have stronger bonds than the others suggest. Otherwise how can Indonesia's cohesion outside of Aceh and Papua be explained? Aspinall notes for example that anti-Jakarta sentiment in Riau and Banten failed to generate widespread independence movements in both cases because they lack the history of military repression, which is highly evident in Aceh and Papua (p. 145). The barriers to Indonesia's dissolution are still formidable, and range from the strength of Indonesian nationalism outside of Aceh and Papua, and the extreme reluctance of the international community to see Indonesia fail.
There are other differences between the chapters of this book. The book starts with three theoretical overview chapters on the nature of state in Indonesia and in developing societies in general. Paul James, in a very thought-provoking essay, has clearly had the advantage of seeing an advance version of Ruth McVey's paper, which he systematically critiques and criticizes--apparently McVey declined to enter into the fray. Missing from this theoretical discussion is a clear explanation to the reader of terms and conceptions surrounding federalism and autonomy. The fundamental difference between the two being that federalism, or the rights of states, are constitutionally embedded, while regional autonomy remains at the discretion of the national legislature. (Although in actual practice the distinction can become blurred.)
The chapters in the second half of this volume dwell largely on case studies. The contributions by Richard Chauvel (on Papua) and Aspinall (on Aceh) are particularly strong in conveying the complexities of these two provinces, while Rizal Sukma's essay on Aceh is equally useful in terms of bringing an insider's perspective to the issues surrounding the Aceh conflict--Sukma grew up in Aceh. Elizabeth Collins examines the rise of political conscientiousness in South Sumatra, while Ismet Fanany discusses the first year of autonomy in West Sumatra. Fanany's case study of West Sumatra demonstrates how autonomy has worked for both good and ill: While the province, previously a net recipient of government funds, has done better economically than many expected, Fanany sounds a note of caution over the re-emergence of divisions of class and identity in the struggle for land and resources. Several contributions note the adoption of beggar-thy-neighbour practices in some regencies as another downside to regional autonomy. David Ray and Gary Goodpaster, in a chapter that will interest economists seeking to understand the economic and financial implications of new arrangements, caution against this kind of practice on grounds of good economics, national cohesion, attracting investors and so on.
The book ends with Minako Sakai's fascinating chapter on the politics of forming a separate province based on the islands of Bangka and Belitung--known as Babel. In noting the formation of Banten and Gorontalo as separate provinces was based on a separate ethnic identity, Babel's political consciousness is based on geography with a population that is multi-ethnic and has different languages (which is appropriate for a province with the moniker "Babel"). Sakai notes the many factors that have led to demands for a separate political entity from South Sumatra, including an episode in 1999 when a deal between Jakarta and Palembang to dump toxic waste from Singapore at Bangka Island was strongly protested by the local residents. Those residents felt that Palembang was too distant to look out for its concerns. All of this illustrates John Stuart Mill's classic argument for self-government and devolution of power, which is that those affected by the results of governance are best placed to make judgements about its effectiveness. Yet, once again we are reminded that regional consciousness has its dark side: In 2000 residents of the same island attacked and destroyed the local power company headquarters (also a symbol of Palembang's rule) after a blackout during a much anticipated television show.
Although a fraction dated by the time lag in publication, this collection of chapters is, on the whole, a very useful window on regional governance and regional violence throughout Indonesia. Unfortunately it can hardly go unnoticed that the editors and the publishers have allowed a large number of typographical errors and inconsistencies to creep into this volume. But overall Autonomy and Disintegration in Indonesia is a valuable means to understand the evolving relationship between Jakarta and its hinterlands.
ANTHONY L. SMITH
Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies, Hawai'i, USA.
AMBON OCTOBER 2006
