License to
kill and the sin of pride
Agus Purnomo ;
A Former Environment Activist,
A Special Expert for Climate
Change for the President
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JAKARTA
POST, 09 April 2013
It makes my heart sink to read about the
Army’s Special Forces (Kopassus) commandos who allegedly killed four
detainees in a prison last month. How could the pride of the Indonesian
Military (TNI) engage in such vigilante behavior?
As always,
there are many sides to the story.
First, my
heart goes out to the late First Sgt. Heru Santosa, a Kopassus soldier on
intelligence assignment at the Hugo Café in Yogyakarta, who was savagely
killed after being tortured by alleged thugs who were later detained by
the police for further investigation. Reports say that Heru was kicked, beaten
and stabbed to death before being dragged like a dead dog.
Next is the
story of the camaraderie or esprit de corps of his fellow soldiers,
especially those who served together with Heru in the past.
One
particular person is the Kopassus soldier identified as U, who was not
only once under the leadership of Heru, but was also saved by Heru in a
hostile military operation and thus owed him his life.
The Army
investigation team found that U executed the four thugs inside their cell
in Cebongan prison in Yogyakarta.
The human
side of these murder stories could consume pages of articles and hours of
talk shows. Both the late Heru and the four detainees had families.
In every
incident that takes life, our hearts take the side of the mourners,
whether the grieving pregnant wife of a decorated soldier or the innocent
parents and sisters of the slain men.
Lets focus on
the shooting inside the prison. The Army previously announced that 11
members of Kopassus Group 2 based in Kartasura, Central Java, carried out
the raid. The soldiers efficiently and quickly executed the men, as they
should have, being an elite force team.
The elephant
in the room is not only camaraderie, but also the value of the lives of
the slain detainees. It’s about the killing machine that went amok and
took the lives of four unarmed people.
Every country
has its own special forces like Kopassus, and they are the pride of their
nations. They are seriously trained and equipped to win in combat.
In fact, when
their marching orders come, they are licensed to kill the enemy. They
don’t have to worry about being persecuted for their actions, because
they are following the orders of their commanders.
Unlike
civilians in a brawl that results in casualties, a special forces unit
does not need to use the argument of self defense to take life.
The question
now is whether those soldiers took matters into their hands or were
acting on orders from their commanders. A military court will need to
reveal how the chain of command was followed or violated in the incident.
A Kopassus
soldier is undoubtedly intelligent, smart and patriotic. They can
differentiate enemies of the state from innocent bystanders. They know
when to kill or to take prisoners. But when Kopassus soldiers kill in an
act of revenge, they degrade themselves to a level of a hired gun or
gangster. Through their actions and if without the orders of a superior
officer, the 11 soldiers were actually guilty of dereliction of duty.
There is no argument to soften those who ignore their duty. The military
rules are clear.
Responsibility
for the soldiers’ license to kill rests with their commanders. Deployment
of Kopassus units can only be to eliminate the enemy during a war,
including the war against terrorists. Kopassus soldiers are trained to
endure torture and extreme pain, both physical and psychological. There
is no such thing as spontaneous for a special forces member.
The shooting
in Sleman prison should be the last breach of discipline in the ranks of
Kopassus.
To the
generals in charge, we ask for more than the replacement of the local
military district commander and to bring the guilty to justice. We ask
you to please bring back the Kopassus that we were once proud of. ●
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