The existence of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Indonesia (ABRI), which has now transformed into the Indonesian National Army (TNI), cannot be separated from the dynamics of national politics. This country was once under his leadership for quite a long time. At least, military hegemony was at the top of the leadership for approximately 32 years of President Soeharto's rule. At that time, political positions both at home and abroad were often held by military figures. Furthermore, the practice of authoritarianism can be said to be identical to ABRI's leadership in certain political positions. However, the fall of the Soeharto regime has caused the existence of the military to decline, especially after the cancellation of ABRI's Dual Function policy. This eliminated ABRI's socio-political authority, so that they were prohibited from being directly involved in the national political system. In fact, this policy became the initiator of the separation between the military and the police. This condition made the military transform masterfully into the TNI which only focused on defense-security authority.
However, the absence of the military directly in the political system does not mean that its existence has disappeared. It can be said that after almost 25 years of Indonesia undergoing reform and after the change of five presidents, figures with a military background tend to exist in political positions both in the executive and legislative institutions. Strategic positions in the economic, social, and defense sectors are often filled by them. In fact, there are also quite a few legislative positions that are directly elected by the people that are also held by military figures.
In fact, many military figures chose to enter the national political arena after entering retirement. For example, Luhut Binsar Panjaitan, Agum Gumerlar, Wiranto, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Prabowo Subianto, who have had a long career filling executive positions in government. In addition, several names such as Lodewijk Freidrich Paulus, TB Hasanuddin, Sturman Panjaitan, Moekhlas Sidik, who exist to serve in the Indonesian House of Representatives. In fact, some of them have achieved quite a lot in filling these positions. Referring to this condition, despite the dark history during the New Order era, namely when there was the hegemony of military authoritarian leadership, the level of trust and satisfaction with the military tends to be strong. At least, the mandate given by the community to him can be proven by good leadership and performance in related positions.
This is proven if we refer to the results of the National Survey conducted by the Populi Center in the April 2023 period. The level of public satisfaction based on various backgrounds towards the TNI tends to be high.
Based on the age distribution, it can be seen that the level of satisfaction of the six age ranges is consistently high. This can be seen from the percentage of satisfaction in the score (6-10) which are all above 79%. Respondents in the age range (19-25 years) are in first place with a satisfaction level of 88%, followed by respondents aged (26-35 years) with 85.8%, then respondents aged (<18 years) with 83.4%, then respondents aged (36-45 years) with 83.1%, further respondents aged (46-55 years) with 82.7%, and finally respondents aged (>56 years) with a satisfaction level of 79.2%. Seeing that the highest level of satisfaction is actually in the age range (19-25 years) which is young respondents, it can be said that the TNI is an institution that is quite popular among young people. Then if we narrow the categorization again, there are 86.3% Gen Z respondents or (<35 years) who are satisfied with the performance of the TNI. While the older generation is also not much different, where 82.1 percent expressed their satisfaction.
The level of satisfaction with the TNI also tends to be strong when we refer to the level of education and income of the community. Referring to the data on the Level of Satisfaction with the TNI Based on the level of education, satisfaction with the TNI in the six categories of education levels tends to be even. This can be seen from the percentage of satisfaction in the score (6-10) which is all six above 69%. Respondents who are graduates of S1 or higher are in first place with a satisfaction level of 88.7%, followed by high school graduates with 86.4%, then followed by junior high school graduates with 85.2%, then by elementary school graduates with 83.4%, then Academy/Diploma graduates with 74.2%, and finally by respondents who did not graduate from elementary school with 69.6%. Meanwhile, respondents who have never been to school showed a satisfaction level of 48.3%. The data indicates that the higher a person's educational level, the higher their level of satisfaction with the TNI.
Then based on income, the level of satisfaction with the TNI in the five income ranges is also considered high. This can be seen from the percentage of satisfaction in the score (6-10) which are all above 78%. Respondents with an income range of more than Rp. 7,200,000 are in first place with a satisfaction level of 90.4%, then followed by an income range of Rp. 3,000,001 - Rp. 4,800,000 with 89.4%, then an income range of Rp. 4,800,001 - Rp. 7,200,000 with 86.8%, then an income range of Rp. 1,800,001 - Rp. 3,000,000 with 82.7%, and finally an income range (up to Rp. 1,800,000 with 78.7%. These data show that the higher a person's income level, the higher their level of satisfaction with the TNI.
Based on the data above, it can be understood that the level of public satisfaction with the TNI tends to be high when viewed from the aspects of age, education, and income. Thus, the TNI is one of the institutions that has a strong position in society. The past history of this country related to the practice of military authoritarianism has not had a significant effect on the level of public satisfaction or trust in the TNI today.
In fact, this can be linked to the framework civil-military relations theory. Referring to Schiff, this theory argues that ideal civil-military relations can occur when military institutions, civilian political elites, and society can be interconnected within the political system (Schiff, 2009). In addition, the relationship between these parties can be the most important essence of the series of national development in the context of creating political, economic, and social infrastructure. Huntington (1957) stated that ideal civil-military relations can occur when civilians can act as controllers of the military or referred to as objective civilian control, so there needs to be professionalism on the part of the military.
Moreover, democracy will be created ideally if the civilians can consolidate the military as an apparatus into the political system (Barany, 2012). This makes the civilians the only holder of a full mandate over the political system including control over the military which primarily plays a role as a state apparatus. As a state apparatus, the military is truly present as a supporter of civilian legitimacy in the political system. When consolidation between the two parties can be created, the dynamics in the political system will take place stably.
So far, figures with a military background still exist in filling government positions. Indeed, they must first give up their military status and become civilians. However, their firmness, loyalty, and strong position are a special attraction for military figures in filling certain political positions. Moreover, the success of figures with a military background in carrying out their duties in government has contributed to increasing public satisfaction with figures with a military background. Thus, the impact also has an impact on the TNI as an institution that is increasingly trusted by the public.
This high level of public trust needs to be maintained. One way is by maintaining the obligation of TNI members to resign as active soldiers if they serve in government, either ministries or state institutions or agencies. This needs to be a shared concern, because signs of the loosening of this obligation have begun to emerge along with the development of discourse on the revision of TNI Law No. 34 of 2004 (Kompas, May 12, 2023). After all, the TNI was born from the people. Do not let the mandate of reform voiced by the people be harmed, including the revocation of ABRI's dual function, as conveyed by Vice President Ma'ruf Amin.
REFERENCE LIST
Barany, Zoltan. (2012). The Soldier and the Changing State: Building Democratic Armies in
Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Americas. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
Huntington, Samuel P. (1957). The Soldier and The State. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
“Vice President Reminds That Revision of TNI Law Should Not Hurt the Spirit of Reform”, Kompas, May 12, 2023.
Schiff, Rebecca L. (2009). The Military and Domestic Politics. New York: Routledge
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