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https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/aug/28/indonesia-president-prabowo-subianto-military-civilian-affairs>
"“A big nation like us,” Indonesia’s President Prabowo Subianto told the rank
and file before him, “needs a strong military. No nation can be independent
without having a strong military.”
In a speech before inaugurating military troops in West Java this month,
Prabowo – the former special forces commandant – proclaimed that Indonesia must
strengthen its defences to protect the nation’s sovereignty and resources.
Prabowo kicked off his presidency with a militaristic boot camp for his cabinet
and now, just shy of a year in the job, the retired general is beefing up boots
on the ground. One hundred new battalions have been established – with plans
for 500 over the next five years – with new units also for the special forces
and marines.
The 100 new battalions have been established to assist in agriculture, animal
husbandry and food security, and will not receive combat training. A
spokesperson for the Indonesian defence ministry said he could not release
information about the size of the new battalions.
In the world’s third-largest democracy, the military’s expansion and its creep
into civilian domains has drawn criticism from observers who say the move
carries echoes of the country’s authoritarian past."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
