Indonesia's powerful military will bow out of politics for good after losing its reserved seats in the country's top legislative body, the armed forces chief promised Sunday.
"For the future, we will really leave the arena of practical politics and we will focus ourselves especially on the matter of defence," said General Endriartono Sutarto.
The annual meeting of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR), which ends later Sunday, will be the last in which unelected seats are reserved for the military and police.
Under democratic reforms agreed in 1999, the military and police lose their 38 appointed representatives at both parliament and the MPR. The new parliament which was chosen in April polls will be an all-elected body.
The next MPR will be formed from the parliament and a new elected body called the Regional Representatives Council and will hold its first meeting on October 1.
The move marks the culmination of democratic reforms which began after the resignation of military-backed dictator Suharto in 1998. This year Indonesians directly elected their president after decades when the MPR picked the leader.
Sutarto had pledged to keep the military neutral in elections this year and ordered them not to vote in the parliamentary and presidential polls.
He told reporters that soldiers would only vote in 2009 if the political situation is conducive.
"If the political life is already good, democratic life is proceeding healthily and there are no political forces trying to persuade TNI (the armed forces) to support them, then soldiers will have their voting rights and can vote in 2009," the general said.
He called on legislators elected on April 5 to create a professional military.
"If they really feel that this state needs a professional and strong force, strong in its duties and functions, then they should of course fight for the armed forces to really become a professional force," Sutarto said.
Comments
Comments are closed.