Indonesia’s Megawati questions plan for regional military commands: ‘are we going to war?’

The former president has questioned the defence minister’s rationale to have one regional command in each province

Megawati said the military should strengthen its role in conflict prevention instead of focusing on organisational restructuring to advance personal interests

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Published: 7:00pm, 24 May 2023

Former Indonesian President Megawati Sukarnoputri has slammed the military’s plans to set up regional commands, asking if it was preparing for a war.

Megawati, head of the Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), which includes President Joko Widodo, also questioned the rationale behind the proposal announced by Defence Minister Prabowo Subianto, who described the initiative as a key security strategy.

“They say that there will be one command in one region. I say, cut it off,” Megawati told an event organised by a government-run think tank founded by her father and Indonesia’s first president Sukarno.

“We’re not at war with anybody, first of all. Secondly, are we going to war?”

Indonesian President Joko Widodo (R) talks to journalists accompanied by former Indonesian president Megawati Sukarnoputri (L) during a press conference in Jakarta in April 2019. Photo: EPA-EFE

Army chief General Dudung Abdurachman is seeking to establish one military command in each province, after Prabowo said the build-up was essential to help the force work closely with local governments.

But Megawati said the military should strengthen its role in conflict prevention instead of focusing on organisational restructuring to advance personal interests.