2) Indonesia pledges closer defence ties with Australia one day – military drills with China the next
4) Prabowo’s capitulation in Constitutional Court crisis only a partial victory
The incident came to light in March 2024 when a
video surfaced online depicting the torture of a civilian. The victim was subjected to waterboarding, beatings, and other forms of abuse. Several perpetrators, believed to be soldiers, were identified in the video.
Following the public outcry, the XVII/Cenderawasih Military Command detained eight soldiers suspected of involvement in the case. However, the subsequent investigation by Komnas HAM has been marked by slow progress.
Frits Ramandey, Head of the Komnas HAM Papua Representative Office, attributed the delays to internal issues within the commission. While he did not specify the exact nature of these issues, the slow pace of the investigation has drawn criticism from various quarters.
Ramandey acknowledged that the Komnas HAM team had not yet met with the victims of torture, citing difficulties in reaching them due to trauma and other factors. The team has also not obtained statements from the suspected soldiers involved in the case.
The slow progress in the investigation has raised concerns about the commission’s commitment to justice for the victims and their families. As the case continues to unfold, it remains to be seen whether Komnas HAM will be able to expedite its investigation and bring the perpetrators to justice.
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2) Indonesia pledges closer defence ties with Australia one day – military drills with China the next
RAHMAN YAACOB
Jakarta carries risks while seeking the rewards of its friends to all approach to defence diplomacy.
Indonesia is indeed a friend to all. Shortly after the Indonesian President-elect and Defence Minister Prabowo Subianto finalised a defence agreement with Australia, Indonesian Army Chief of Staff General Maruli Simanjuntak announced a plan over the weekend to conduct a bilateral military exercise with China in 2025.
Australia should not be alarmed. The drills with China might be seen to undermine the significance of the soon-to-be-signed defence agreement between Canberra and Jakarta, particularly given the hype surrounding Prabowo’s visit last week to Canberra. But it is essential to understand the grounds for Indonesia’s decision with China.
The move is reflective of Indonesia’s strategic culture, of emphasising non-alignment in dealings with major powers, maintaining defence engagements with various partners, and avoiding military alliances. Indonesia also welcomes deeper defence engagements with the Americans, shown by the 2024 Garuda Shield Exercise this year involving the United States, the largest ever held. Indonesia, as chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in 2023, also drove the first joint ASEAN military exercise, which did not involve any external party.
The timing of Simanjuntak’s announcement is significant, too, coming a few days after Prabowo visited Canberra. Perhaps it was Jakarta’s way of reassuring Beijing that the Australia-Indonesia defence agreement is just business-as-usual as far as Indonesia’s defence diplomacy goes.
But Indonesia must also be cautious in advancing defence ties with China. Such moves might be misunderstood. Here, two issues are critical – the nature and location of the exercise.
A high-level combat military exercise focusing on conventional security and interoperability – such as seizing of airfield or amphibious landing operations, the kind of activities featured in Garuda Shield – would do more than raise eyebrows across Southeast Asia and beyond. Yet most exercises with China by ASEAN members are small in scale and scope, focusing on non-traditional security areas. So the more likely question will be, who is the target of “interoperability” between Indonesia and China?
Exercises that focus on “interoperability” seek to establish a high level of convergence across military doctrine and via the integration of communication and weapon systems. Will the Americans be comfortable with the Indonesians using American weapon systems or platforms in the exercise with Chinese forces? Most likely not. Thailand’s experience is illustrative – the Thais could not deploy its American-made F-16s to participate in the Blue Strike air exercises series with China.
Suppose the Indonesians persist in deploying American-made weapon systems or platforms despite Washington’s reservation. In that case, Washington would likely hesitate to provide Jakarta with advanced weapon systems and technology transfers in the future. Other like-minded American allies, such as France, Germany and South Korea, may follow suit, thus impacting Prabowo’s ambitions to modernise the Indonesian armed forces.
The location of the proposed exercise will also be closely watched by Indonesia’s neighbours, with sensitivity over maritime boundary disputes the South China Sea. Equally, an exercise with Chinese troops close to Australia will raise concerns in Canberra.
Thus, Indonesia under Prabowo must carefully consider the potential repercussions of closer defence relations with Beijing. Being a friend to all can risk been seen as a friend to none.
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Australia Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and US deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell following Australia’s Pacific Policing Initiative announcement. Photo: RNZ Pacific / Lydia Lewis
Details have emerged at the 53rd Pacific Islands Forum Leaders Meeting in Tonga that the US may be staying out of policing support and development in the Pacific for Australia to take the lead.
An RNZ Pacific journalist was filming cutaways of the Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and United States Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell after a press conference where Australia announced it would commit approximately AU$400 million over five years to ensure the Pacific Policing Initiative (PPI) delivers on the aspirations of Pacific countries.
While filming, the pair started discussing policing.
Albanese remarked that it had been a huge effort getting the Australian-led Pacific policing initiative over the line.
"We had a cracker today getting the Pacific policing Initiative through; it's so important, it'll make such a difference," Albanese said.
Melanesian Spearhead Group leaders hold final meeting ahead of leaders retreat in Vava’u. Photo: RNZ Pacific / Lydia Lewis
Kurt Campbell responded saying:
"That's fantastic…"
"I talked with Kevin about it and we were going to do something and he asked us not to, so we did not - we've given you the lane, so take the lane."
To which Albanese responded by joking, "we can go halfsies on the cost if you like".
Not all Melanesian leaders over the line
After a final Melanesian Spearhead Group meeting ahead of the leaders PIF retreat, which went on for around two hours, the MSG sent media who waited it out a statement by MSG chair/Vanuatu Prime Minister Charlot Salwai and remarks by the MSG Director-General Leonard Louma.
"The Pacific Policing Initiative (PPI) is another important initiative that is going to be discussed at the PIF meetings," Salwai's statement said.
"Ironically, though, this collective approach to policing is not a new concept to the MSG.
"I make these points to remind us that we need to make sure that this PPI is framed to fit our purposes and not developed to suit the geo-strategic interests and geo-strategic denial security postures of our big partners."
Deputy sheriff Aussie back in town?
Pacific geopolitics expert associate professor Dr Anna Powles told RNZ Pacific she found it quite "striking" that Campbell clearly indicates that the United States was thinking of doing something similar to the Pacific policing initiative announced today at the Forum.
She said Campbell saying he was giving Australia the lane, is effectively "giving Australia the lead".
Australia Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and US deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell following Australia’s Pacific Policing Initiative announcement. Photo: RNZ Pacific / Lydia Lewis
On the suggestion in general - that the United States was even looking at potential engagement in policing in the Pacific in the same way as the Australian proposed Pacific Policing Initiative - Dr Powles said:
"Obviously, Australia is in the region and is very much embedded within the regional architecture, which the United States isn't to the same degree at all."
She said it also shows that there is a sense or a perception that Washington will delegate to Canberra, and Canberra will manage the region from a security perspective.
"This really harks back to those old, old claims that Australia was the deputy sheriff to the United States and the Pacific," Powles said.
A Pacific historian and lecturer at the AUT Law School, Dr Marco de Jong, said the exchange showed "the effort Australia has gone to align the region with the United States' strategic interests".
"For New Zealand, an advocate for Pacific-led regionalism and its priorities, it remains to be seen whether such blokey imperialism sits comfortably," he said.
US deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell takes questions from the media in Tonga. Photo: RNZ Pacific / Lydia Lewis
Full transcript below:
Campbell: "We're making our way through the Pacific you know just a tour."
Albanese: "We had a cracker today getting the Pacific policing initiative through..."
Campbell: "That's fantastic…"
Albanese: "It's so important; it'll make such a difference."
Campbell: "I talked with Kevin about it and so you know we were going to do something and he asked us not to so we did not, we've given you the lane, so take the lane."
Albanese: "You can go us halfsies on the cost if you like....Only cost you a bit.”
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4) Prabowo’s capitulation in Constitutional Court crisis only a partial victory
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