President believes no power abuse in military`s involvement in counterterrorism

No abuse of power would occur if the Indonesian Defense Forces (TNI) were to be involved in combating terrorism since a control mechanism is already in place in the community, President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) stated. 

"Now, (we) enter an era of openness. There is a control mechanism in place anyway through which the community and NGOs could tackle them. Why should we fear the past?" President Jokowi noted in an interview with ANTARA News Agency, here, Thursday.

In future, the democratic process will be more open. The legal corridor should be clear and effective. 

"We should not continue to debate, when, in fact, terrorism is already staring us in the face in Marawi," he remarked.

Terrorism is not merely a crime but also a threat to the nation. Hence, TNIs role in countering terrorism must be stipulated in the Law on Terrorism Eradication currently being revised by the Parliament.

In May, Jokowi had attended an Arab Islamic American Summit organized by the Saudi Arabian government in Riyadh.

While addressing the Saudi King and other leaders for five minutes, Jokowi urged western nations, including the US, to not associate Islam with terrorism. 

More importantly, the summit must be able to intensify cooperation in combating terrorism and at the same time spread the message of peace across the world.

In the fight against radicalism, Indonesia has suggested to adopt religious and cultural approaches, as history has proven that weapons and military forces are inadequate to cope with terrorism.

The nation believes in the importance of balancing hard and soft power approaches that can be applied through religion and culture.

According to Jokowi, the two approaches will help to change the erroneous thought process for the better.

"For the de-radicalization program, for instance, Indonesian authorities involve communities and families, including the kin of former terror convicts, as well as community organizations," he noted.(*)

Source: ANTARA