Written by: Dhiya Farras Suryakusuma Staff of Research and Development

March 20th, 2025 marked a new journey in Indonesia’s political dynamics as the Indonesian Parliament passed a controversial revised military law (UU TNI), allowing the military to take civilians’ positions in government such as the Supreme Court. The revised constitution also has changed the military retirement change and permitted the military handle other jobs besides war, including cyber security. After the law was passed, both fear and rage took hold of society, leading to protest movements all around Indonesia. The law has raised concerns not only domestically, but also internationally, with the dire possibility of Indonesia becoming a conflict state on the precipice. 

Image 1. Protest movement in front of Indonesian Parliament building
Source: Kompas.com

The Views on Indonesia’s Military Law

The revised military law, apparently, is not so “brand-new”. Way before March 20th, even before the law’s draft got leaked, the law had already been a concern among Indonesians dating up to when then incumbent President Soeharto implemented the “dwifungsi ABRI” policy, which allowed the military to take civilian positions in government while they still had their military jobs to protect the country. During the authoritarian president’s New Order regime, there were vast restrictions on freedom of expression due to the military’s broad role in the government. This occurred to the point where the press was silenced and people did not have their deserved freedom of speech. Through these strategies, the repressive government successfully made fear as Indonesians’ constant friend. Looking at the newly revised military law, as well as the background of the current president, Prabowo Subianto, a former general who were accused for human rights violations back in the New Order regime, which also happened to be Soeharto’s ex-son-in-law, Indonesians are concerned about the return of the New Order that could limit their freedom of expression and violate their rights.

International reactions show a similar concern as in Indonesia. Since the protest on March 20th, the military law has also become a hot topic in foreign media, raising concern as well as attention as Indonesia is ironically known as a “democratic country”. Various reasons, one being the fear of regional political instability, are the drivers behind these concerns. Indeed, in some countries ruled by the military like Myanmar, political instability could develop into violent conflict. Thailand, as stated by Rangsiman Rome, a Board Member of ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights (APHR) who is also Thailand’s Member of Parliament, declared that Indonesia’s revised military law threatens Indonesia’s democracy, as reported by APHR. Philippines, stated by Arlene Brosas, Philippines’ Member of Parliament as well as APHR Board Member, also shared the opinion that Indonesia’s military law could threaten not only Indonesia’s democracy, but also human rights, as reported by APHR. 

The Impact of the Military Junta in Myanmar and its Similarities on Indonesia

Conflict is common in military-ruled Myanmar, where tensions are high between the military and pro-democracy groups. This has proven that a state dominated by the military can not carry out one of its most important duties: protecting its citizens. Aside from not being able to provide safety to its people, the military junta has also made foreigners, especially the press, experience difficulties when entering Myanmar. Journalists, for example, may be banned from stepping into affected areas when they are about to report the impact of a natural disaster. This led to the ignorance of other countries because they had no way of knowing how truly grave the damage caused by the affliction was. 

Moreover, the limitation of internet use in Myanmar also plays a role in hindering the spread of the information, making Myanmar even more isolated as other countries can not provide proper assistance. Add to that the concern of intervening Myanmar’s inviolable sovereignty if they provided a humanitarian situation, and whether they had the right to intervene based on the R2P norm at all. Other than that, when it comes to natural disasters, such as the earthquake that happened a few weeks ago, the country faced difficulties due to the high demand of medical teams and also the poor distribution of aid, similar to what occurred in 2023 when the military junta delayed access for aid communities to travel to the impacted areas of Typhoon Mocha. 

Nowadays, Indonesia has become more similar to Myanmar. One of the similarities is the shrinkage of free speech: Myanmar with its military junta and Indonesia with its revised military law. The restriction of the right to free speech was seen in various attempts to silence the press, proven by the terror package containing a dead pig head and beheaded rats to Tempo because of its journalists’ vocal criticisms against the government. The murder of a female journalist, Juwita, by a navy soldier, Jumran, in Banjarbaru also gave a picture of what would happen to Indonesia because of the revised military law: human rights violations by the military. In the worst case, Indonesia could develop into a conflict state due to the instability of social and political conditions, violation of human rights from the military – such as murder and unlawful imprisonment of activists – and the background of Indonesia’s current president with many accusations in the past.

Conclusion

The newly revised military law has raised concern, not only among Indonesians, but also among other states as well due to the possibility of military soldiers undertaking civilian positions in the government. The broad military role in the civilians’ area could threaten Indonesia’s freedom of speech and worsen Indonesia’s image towards other countries. Moreover, Indonesia could develop into a conflict state because of the instability of social and political conditions caused by the military law, which allows a broader role for the same military that has a track record in violating human rights and committing mass atrocity crimes established in the Rome Statute. This could become a paradox, as Indonesia’s way to “ensure the safety” of its people would only cause them to feel more unsafe in their own homeland.

References

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