History of ABRI, the joining of TNI and Polri
Jakarta (ANTARA) – The Armed Forces of the Republic of Indonesia or ABRI for short is an institution of the Indonesian Armed Forces which consists of a combination of TNI and Polri organizations.
The history of the formation of ABRI began with President Soekarno, who at that time stated that he would form ABRI consisting of an army and a police force.
According to the official National Police website, the decision was then stated through MPRS Decree Numbers II and III of 1960 that ABRI consisted of the Armed Forces and State Police.
Based on Presidential Decree No.21/1960, the title of Junior Minister of Police was abolished and replaced as Minister of State Police along with other Armed Forces and included in the field of national security.
On June 19 1961, the DPR-GR (Mutual Cooperation People’s Representative Council) passed the Basic Police Law No.13/1961. In this law, it is stated that the position of the National Police is an element of ABRI which is equal to the Indonesian Army, Navy and Air Force.
Also read: History of the TNI and its ranks from highest to lowest
Then, through Presidential Decree No.94/1962, it was regulated that the Minister of Police, Minister/KASAD, Minister/KASAL, Minister/KSAU, Minister/Attorney General, Minister of Veterans Affairs were coordinated by the First Deputy Minister for defense and security.
Furthermore, through Presidential Decree No. 134/1962 the minister was changed to Minister/Chief of Staff of the Police Force (Menkasak). Then the title Menkasak was changed again to Minister/Commander of the Police Force (Menpangak) and was directly responsible to the president as head of state government.
The unification of the Armed Forces under one command is to achieve effectiveness and efficiency in carrying out their roles, and not be easily influenced by the interests of certain political groups.
Based on Presidential Decree no. 155/1965 dated July 6 1965, AKABRI education was equalized for the Armed Forces and Polri for one year in Magelang.
However, in 1964-1965, ABRI faced various challenges, especially from the Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) trying to instill its influence into the fabric of Indonesian life, including within ABRI through infiltration and special guidance for its political interests.
The PKI’s efforts became more intense and culminated in a coup against the government with the G30S/PKI incident, leaving the Indonesian nation at that time in a very critical situation.
In this critical situation, ABRI carried out its duties as a defense and security force and as a social and political force. As a defense and security tool, ABRI crushed the PKI rebels and their remnants.
Also read: List of TNI commanders from time to time
As a social and political force, ABRI encourages the creation of a new political order to implement Pancasila and the 1945 Constitution in a pure and consistent manner.
In 1967, the integration of ABRI was taken to another level through Presidential Decree No. 132/1967 dated 24 August 1967, establishing the Principles of Organization and Procedures in the Defense and Security Sector.
This states that ABRI is part of the Defense and Security Department organization including the Army, Navy, Air Force and AK, each of which is led by the Force Commander and is responsible for carrying out its duties and obligations to the Minister of Defense and Defense/Army Commander. At that time, ABRI led by General Soeharto was elected as the first Minister of Defense/Army Commander.
After Suharto was elected president of the Republic of Indonesia in 1968, the position of Minister of Defense/Commander of Defense was transferred to General M. Panggabean.
During the New Order era when President Soeharto was in power, ABRI participated in the world of politics in Indonesia. The military’s involvement in Indonesian politics is part of the implementation of the ABRI dual function concept.
This dual function concept provides an opportunity for ABRI, not only to play a role in the military-defense and security world, but extends to the socio-political field because the two are mutually sustainable.
During the reform period after the fall of Soeharto, the political situation in Indonesia began to change and also affected ABRI. This had an impact on the elimination of ABRI’s dual function and the separation of the police from the military.
At that time, the National Police, which was under the auspices of ABRI, was considered to have blurred the role boundaries between the civil and military police. Until the demand for the National Police to separate itself from ABRI emerged, based on the fact that the National Police’s services were in conflict with their main task, which was community-oriented.
On April 1 1999, the TNI and Polri were officially separated again into their own institutions. This is based on the issuance of Presidential Instruction of the Republic of Indonesia Number 2 of 1999 concerning policy steps in the context of separating the National Police from ABRI.
Based on these provisions, the MPR issued MPR Decree No.VI/MPR/2000 concerning the separation of the National Police and the TNI on 18 August 2000, in accordance with the roles and functions of each separate institution.
In 2000, the National Police of the Republic of Indonesia was officially re-established and the term ABRI as army was returned to TNI or Indonesian National Army.
Then, Law Number 2 of 2002 concerning the National Police of the Republic of Indonesia and Law Number 34 of 2004 concerning the Indonesian National Army were enacted.
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Reporter: Sri Dewi Larasati
Editor: Suryanto
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