Jakarta’s Chief of Counter-terrorism is Thinker, Warrior

The Straits Times

21 March 2016

Indonesia’s new counter-terrorism boss Tito Karnavian is a warrior-philosopher who is not only good with a gun, but also able to look beyond the barrel of one to prevent a terror attack from taking place.

The general, sworn in last Wednesday as head of the Badan Nasional Penanggulangan Terorisme (BNPT), or national counter-terrorism agency, is known for dismantling the Jemaah Islamiah (JI) terrorist network, which had wreaked havoc across South-east Asia for almost a decade.

But the 51-year-old, earmarked to one day lead the national police force, also has a doctorate in terrorism and Islamic radicalisation.

… Ambassador Barry Desker, once Singapore’s envoy to Indonesia, said Gen Tito was the “critical factor” in the development of an effective Densus 88. “He has a strong background in the nature of the current terrorism threat, an awareness of the historical antecedents of Indonesian terrorist movements, and has spent considerable time developing appropriate counter-terrorism responses,” Mr Desker added.

… In 2013, he received his PhD from Singapore’s S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies. The highly educated police officer, however, is no armchair general.

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