| Realizing new security challenges and sharing responsibility Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono ; A 2000 Military Academy Graduate, A UN Peacekeeper and A Harvard Alumnus |
JAKARTA POST, 09 Oktober 2012
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was applauded by world leaders after addressing the United Nations General Assembly in New York (Sept. 23). He called for greater tolerance from the world’s citizens.
Citing the blasphemies leveled against Islam as portrayed in the film Innocence of Muslims, he proclaimed that freedom of speech and freedom of expression were not absolute, or unbounded by context or civility.
Notwithstanding the place of these freedoms in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, if we refuse to be sensitive to the values and beliefs of followers of the world’s religions, then the prospects for a peaceful and promising world become rather bleak.
The War on Terror, which followed the tragic events of 9/11, has been indelicately executed and appears to have spawned a clash of civilizations, pitting the West against the Islamic world.
Indonesia is the world’s largest Muslim-majority nation and, as such, should play a key role in resolving the issue, marshaling other nations to contribute constructively toward a feasible solution.
The end of the Cold War did not make the world more secure, peaceful or stable. Globalization and the information-technology revolution characterizing the 21st century have presented many opportunities; yet, they have also brought significant challenges. The world is vulnerable and filled with uncertainty because countries and peoples are increasingly interconnected and integrated. The implications for defense and security, therefore, have risen in complexity.
We can simply turn on our televisions to observe the prolonged political and security crises in various regions of the world, especially in the Middle East and Africa. Traditional conflicts, such as the strife in the Korean Peninsula, Israel-Palestine and between India and Pakistan, still capture headlines.
However, the threats of global terrorism and other non-traditional security issues including piracy, human trafficking and the narcotics trade, have further complicated the maintenance of global security.
This is what is meant by living in an era of “warm peace”, in which the world is not yet completely safe and at peace and, if not properly managed, subjects mankind to a renewed threat of total war.
With more than 7 billion people and counting, the world is densely populated but its natural resources remain finite and are in fact depleting. This means that shortages will occur and the world’s nations will have to compete for the food, water and energy sources they require, not only to survive but also to achieve their long-term ambitions.
Acute competition cannot be avoided in this scenario, and it could potentially lead to military conflict.
At this very moment, on our frontier with the South China Sea, at least six countries are competing for access and control of the substantial oil and gas resources that are estimated to exist beneath the seabed.
Spillover effects arising from any conflict in these contested waters are highly likely and would be directly or indirectly detrimental to Indonesia.
As a great nation, we do not wish to see Indonesia fall on the losing side of these trends. We want Indonesia to grow stronger so we can compete on a global scale and defend ourselves from threats wherever they may arise.
We must rise to this challenge and together protect the pillars of our stability so that we may continue to progress and prosper.
It is to be appreciated that while the world economy in 2008 was in recession, Indonesia’s economy grew. Gross domestic product (GDP) continues to expand, recording 6.5 percent growth in the second quarter of 2012 (the second-fastest in the G-20, only behind China), and rising three spots to become the world’s 15th-largest economy.
This increasing strength of our economy has given greater fiscal space for the government to allocate a larger budget for the modernization of the Indonesian Military (TNI). Notwithstanding its commitment to fulfill other development priorities, the government is keen on expanding economic gains to develop the necessary hard power to safeguard our sovereignty and territorial integrity.
It must also be appreciated that Indonesia’s democratization has led to improvements in national security. The face of Indonesia today is vastly different from how it looked 10 to 15 years ago, when peace in Aceh was just a vision and communal conflicts erupted across various parts of the archipelago.
Such conditions allowed the TNI to consolidate and transform itself into a professional, modern and decisive institution, ending violence where it occurred but also facilitating civilian initiatives to successfully broker peace.
The TNI’s past under the New Order regime is now a distant memory, receding as its soldiers continue to conduct humanitarian missions at home and overseas, including the deployment of Garuda troops into conflict areas in accordance with our Constitution and the United Nations Charter to uphold world peace. In times of peace, the TNI can increase its capacity for operations other than war, including natural disaster management and peacekeeping.
As a regional and increasingly global player, Indonesia is assuming a greater share of responsibility relative to other nations. Aside from our own security, prosperity and progress, we should work to leave the world a better place than the one we inherited. Part of this task is directly related to upholding global peace and security.
This requires the recognition of non-traditional fault lines, including the heightened destructive power of bigotry, and acting on the moral imperative to minimize any ensuing frictions. ●
Citing the blasphemies leveled against Islam as portrayed in the film Innocence of Muslims, he proclaimed that freedom of speech and freedom of expression were not absolute, or unbounded by context or civility.
Notwithstanding the place of these freedoms in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, if we refuse to be sensitive to the values and beliefs of followers of the world’s religions, then the prospects for a peaceful and promising world become rather bleak.
The War on Terror, which followed the tragic events of 9/11, has been indelicately executed and appears to have spawned a clash of civilizations, pitting the West against the Islamic world.
Indonesia is the world’s largest Muslim-majority nation and, as such, should play a key role in resolving the issue, marshaling other nations to contribute constructively toward a feasible solution.
The end of the Cold War did not make the world more secure, peaceful or stable. Globalization and the information-technology revolution characterizing the 21st century have presented many opportunities; yet, they have also brought significant challenges. The world is vulnerable and filled with uncertainty because countries and peoples are increasingly interconnected and integrated. The implications for defense and security, therefore, have risen in complexity.
We can simply turn on our televisions to observe the prolonged political and security crises in various regions of the world, especially in the Middle East and Africa. Traditional conflicts, such as the strife in the Korean Peninsula, Israel-Palestine and between India and Pakistan, still capture headlines.
However, the threats of global terrorism and other non-traditional security issues including piracy, human trafficking and the narcotics trade, have further complicated the maintenance of global security.
This is what is meant by living in an era of “warm peace”, in which the world is not yet completely safe and at peace and, if not properly managed, subjects mankind to a renewed threat of total war.
With more than 7 billion people and counting, the world is densely populated but its natural resources remain finite and are in fact depleting. This means that shortages will occur and the world’s nations will have to compete for the food, water and energy sources they require, not only to survive but also to achieve their long-term ambitions.
Acute competition cannot be avoided in this scenario, and it could potentially lead to military conflict.
At this very moment, on our frontier with the South China Sea, at least six countries are competing for access and control of the substantial oil and gas resources that are estimated to exist beneath the seabed.
Spillover effects arising from any conflict in these contested waters are highly likely and would be directly or indirectly detrimental to Indonesia.
As a great nation, we do not wish to see Indonesia fall on the losing side of these trends. We want Indonesia to grow stronger so we can compete on a global scale and defend ourselves from threats wherever they may arise.
We must rise to this challenge and together protect the pillars of our stability so that we may continue to progress and prosper.
It is to be appreciated that while the world economy in 2008 was in recession, Indonesia’s economy grew. Gross domestic product (GDP) continues to expand, recording 6.5 percent growth in the second quarter of 2012 (the second-fastest in the G-20, only behind China), and rising three spots to become the world’s 15th-largest economy.
This increasing strength of our economy has given greater fiscal space for the government to allocate a larger budget for the modernization of the Indonesian Military (TNI). Notwithstanding its commitment to fulfill other development priorities, the government is keen on expanding economic gains to develop the necessary hard power to safeguard our sovereignty and territorial integrity.
It must also be appreciated that Indonesia’s democratization has led to improvements in national security. The face of Indonesia today is vastly different from how it looked 10 to 15 years ago, when peace in Aceh was just a vision and communal conflicts erupted across various parts of the archipelago.
Such conditions allowed the TNI to consolidate and transform itself into a professional, modern and decisive institution, ending violence where it occurred but also facilitating civilian initiatives to successfully broker peace.
The TNI’s past under the New Order regime is now a distant memory, receding as its soldiers continue to conduct humanitarian missions at home and overseas, including the deployment of Garuda troops into conflict areas in accordance with our Constitution and the United Nations Charter to uphold world peace. In times of peace, the TNI can increase its capacity for operations other than war, including natural disaster management and peacekeeping.
As a regional and increasingly global player, Indonesia is assuming a greater share of responsibility relative to other nations. Aside from our own security, prosperity and progress, we should work to leave the world a better place than the one we inherited. Part of this task is directly related to upholding global peace and security.
This requires the recognition of non-traditional fault lines, including the heightened destructive power of bigotry, and acting on the moral imperative to minimize any ensuing frictions. ●