• Home
  • About RSIS
    • Introduction
    • Building the Foundations
    • Welcome Message
    • Board of Governors
    • Staff Profiles
      • Executive Deputy Chairman’s Office
      • Dean’s Office
      • Management
      • Distinguished Fellows
      • Faculty and Research
      • Associate Research Fellows, Senior Analysts and Research Analysts
      • Visiting Fellows
      • Adjunct Fellows
      • Administrative Staff
    • Honours and Awards for RSIS Staff and Students
    • RSIS Endowment Fund
    • Endowed Professorships
    • Career Opportunities
    • Getting to RSIS
  • Research
    • Research Centres
      • Centre for Multilateralism Studies (CMS)
      • Centre for Non-Traditional Security Studies (NTS Centre)
      • Centre of Excellence for National Security (CENS)
      • Institute of Defence and Strategic Studies (IDSS)
      • International Centre for Political Violence and Terrorism Research (ICPVTR)
    • Research Programmes
      • National Security Studies Programme (NSSP)
      • Studies in Inter-Religious Relations in Plural Societies (SRP) Programme
    • Research @ RSIS
    • Other Programmes
      • Science and Technology Studies Programme (STSP)
  • Graduate Education
    • Graduate Programmes Office
    • Overview
    • MSc (Asian Studies)
    • MSc (International Political Economy)
    • MSc (International Relations)
    • MSc (Strategic Studies)
    • NTU-Warwick Double Masters Programme
    • PhD Programme
    • Exchange Partners and Programmes
    • How to Apply
    • Financial Assistance
    • Information Sessions
    • RSIS Alumni
  • Alumni & Networks
    • Alumni
    • Asia-Pacific Programme for Senior Military Officers (APPSMO)
    • Asia-Pacific Programme for Senior National Security Officers (APPSNO)
    • SRP Executive Programme
    • Terrorism Analyst Training Course (TATC)
  • Publications
    • RSIS Publications
      • Annual Reviews
      • Books
      • Bulletins and Newsletters
      • Commentaries
      • Counter Terrorist Trends and Analyses
      • Commemorative / Event Reports
      • IDSS Paper
      • Interreligious Relations
      • Monographs
      • NTS Insight
      • Policy Reports
      • Working Papers
      • RSIS Publications for the Year
    • Glossary of Abbreviations
    • External Publications
      • Authored Books
      • Journal Articles
      • Edited Books
      • Chapters in Edited Books
      • Policy Reports
      • Working Papers
      • Op-Eds
      • External Publications for the Year
    • Policy-relevant Articles Given RSIS Award
  • Media
    • COVID-19 Resources
    • Cohesive Societies
    • Great Powers
    • Sustainable Security
    • Other Resource Pages
    • Media Highlights
    • News Releases
    • Speeches
    • Vidcast Channel
    • Audio/Video Forums
  • Events
  • Giving
  • Contact Us
Facebook
Twitter
YouTube
RSISVideoCast RSISVideoCast rsis.sg
Linkedin
instagram instagram rsis.sg
RSS
  • Home
  • About RSIS
      • Introduction
      • Building the Foundations
      • Welcome Message
      • Board of Governors
      • Staff Profiles
        • Executive Deputy Chairman’s Office
        • Dean’s Office
        • Management
        • Distinguished Fellows
        • Faculty and Research
        • Associate Research Fellows, Senior Analysts and Research Analysts
        • Visiting Fellows
        • Adjunct Fellows
        • Administrative Staff
      • Honours and Awards for RSIS Staff and Students
      • RSIS Endowment Fund
      • Endowed Professorships
      • Career Opportunities
      • Getting to RSIS
  • Research
      • Research Centres
        • Centre for Multilateralism Studies (CMS)
        • Centre for Non-Traditional Security Studies (NTS Centre)
        • Centre of Excellence for National Security (CENS)
        • Institute of Defence and Strategic Studies (IDSS)
        • International Centre for Political Violence and Terrorism Research (ICPVTR)
      • Research Programmes
        • National Security Studies Programme (NSSP)
        • Studies in Inter-Religious Relations in Plural Societies (SRP) Programme
      • Research @ RSIS
      • Other Programmes
        • Science and Technology Studies Programme (STSP)
  • Graduate Education
      • Graduate Programmes Office
      • Overview
      • MSc (Asian Studies)
      • MSc (International Political Economy)
      • MSc (International Relations)
      • MSc (Strategic Studies)
      • NTU-Warwick Double Masters Programme
      • PhD Programme
      • Exchange Partners and Programmes
      • How to Apply
      • Financial Assistance
      • Information Sessions
      • RSIS Alumni
  • Alumni & Networks
      • Alumni
      • Asia-Pacific Programme for Senior Military Officers (APPSMO)
      • Asia-Pacific Programme for Senior National Security Officers (APPSNO)
      • SRP Executive Programme
      • Terrorism Analyst Training Course (TATC)
  • Publications
      • RSIS Publications
        • Annual Reviews
        • Books
        • Bulletins and Newsletters
        • Commentaries
        • Counter Terrorist Trends and Analyses
        • Commemorative / Event Reports
        • IDSS Paper
        • Interreligious Relations
        • Monographs
        • NTS Insight
        • Policy Reports
        • Working Papers
        • RSIS Publications for the Year
      • Glossary of Abbreviations
      • External Publications
        • Authored Books
        • Journal Articles
        • Edited Books
        • Chapters in Edited Books
        • Policy Reports
        • Working Papers
        • Op-Eds
        • External Publications for the Year
      • Policy-relevant Articles Given RSIS Award
  • Media
      • COVID-19 Resources
      • Cohesive Societies
      • Great Powers
      • Sustainable Security
      • Other Resource Pages
      • Media Highlights
      • News Releases
      • Speeches
      • Vidcast Channel
      • Audio/Video Forums
  • Events
  • Giving
  • Contact Us
  • instagram instagram rsis.sg
Connect

Getting to RSIS

Map

Address

Nanyang Technological University
Block S4, Level B3,
50 Nanyang Avenue,
Singapore 639798

View location on Google maps Click here for directions to RSIS

Get in Touch

    Connect with Us

      rsis.ntu
      rsis_ntu
      rsisntu
    RSISVideoCast RSISVideoCast rsisvideocast
      school/rsis-ntu
    instagram instagram rsis.sg
      RSS
    Subscribe to RSIS Publications
    Subscribe to RSIS Events

    RSIS Intranet

    S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies Think Tank and Graduate School Ponder The Improbable Since 1966
    Nanyang Technological University Nanyang Technological University

    Skip to content

     
    • RSIS
    • Publication
    • RSIS Publications
    • Indonesia’s National Mobilisation Strategy: Growing Deeper Roots?
    • Annual Reviews
    • Books
    • Bulletins and Newsletters
    • Commentaries
    • Counter Terrorist Trends and Analyses
    • Commemorative / Event Reports
    • IDSS Paper
    • Interreligious Relations
    • Monographs
    • NTS Insight
    • Policy Reports
    • Working Papers
    • RSIS Publications for the Year

    CO21023 | Indonesia’s National Mobilisation Strategy: Growing Deeper Roots?
    Jefferson Ng Jin Chuan, Sheila Jasmine

    09 February 2021

    download pdf
    RSIS Commentary is a platform to provide timely and, where appropriate, policy-relevant commentary and analysis of topical and contemporary issues. The authors’ views are their own and do not represent the official position of the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, NTU. These commentaries may be reproduced with prior permission from RSIS and due recognition to the author(s) and RSIS. Please email to Mr Yang Razali Kassim, Editor RSIS Commentary at [email protected]

    SYNOPSIS

    Indonesia’s latest efforts to build up a national reserve system and cultivate awareness of the state ideology at the societal level has defence implications, but they are actually more about responding to internal security concerns than the needs of external defence.


    Source: Unsplash

    COMMENTARY

    THE INDONESIAN government recently released Government Regulation No. 3/2021 on the Management of National Resources for State Defence. The new implementing regulation provides the technical scope and executive guidance to the minister of defence to prepare for national mobilisation in a military emergency or a state of war.

    From a domestic security angle, the regulation seeks to bolster national resilience and build national character through citizenship education in schools, community, and the workplace. From an external defence angle, Indonesia intends to develop a national reserve system, composed of a volunteer military reserve force and a network of supporting elements, including expert personnel, logistic areas, and strategic material reserves, to deal with military and hybrid threats.

    The State Defence Programme

    The State Defence Programme is the centrepiece of Indonesia’s civilian defence mobilisation strategy. It seeks to cultivate core national values such as Pancasila, the importance of national unity, and the territorial integrity of Indonesia among students, workers, and society at large.

    At this stage, the activities covered under the State Defence Programme remain unclear. The Indonesian term State Defence (Bela Negara) originates from a total defence concept that all Indonesian citizens are required to serve in their varied capacities to defend the nation. Given the legacy of military rule under the New Order, younger Indonesians today are still uncomfortable with the use of militaristic terms and prefer a stricter separation of the civil and military sphere.

    Currently, there are compulsory citizenship classes that disseminate knowledge about the Pancasila, the 1945 Constitution, and the obligations of citizenship. At universities, there are also semi-military clubs that provide military training. The State Defence Programme will likely utilise seminars and workshops as well as printed and online material to be disseminated through the national education system.

    At the community level, the programme envisions a network of community leaders who will be at the forefront of the outreach effort to meet residents, conduct cultural activities, and disseminate printed materials. Overall, the programme appears to be about using formal institutions and informal networks to disseminate the state ideology and patriotic values.

    National Reserve and Mobilisation

    The formation of a national reserve system is intended to augment and supplement the Indonesian military. Volunteers for the national reserve go through a three-month basic military training, are inducted into the national reserve upon successful completion, and are required to attend periodic refresher training of between 12-90 days and serve until the age of 48.

    The Ministry of Defence plans to recruit two batches of 25,000 volunteers in 2021 and 2022, with a goal to size the national reserve at around 200,000 in 10 years across the three branches of the military.

    Recruitment is likely to be decentralised to the various military district commands at the city/regency level, estimated to cost 1 trillion rupiah (SGD 93 million) for 2021 or about 1% of the defence budget. If the plan is fully implemented, mobilisation could contribute an additional 50% to Indonesia’s current active personnel strength.

    Only the president can mobilise the national reserve with the agreement of Parliament in wartime or a military emergency. However, the regulation is worded such that the national reserve can be mobilised not only for external defence but also to deal with an internal military emergency, possibly including operations for counterterrorism, separatism, and disaster relief.

    Relevance to Indonesia’s Defence Policy

    Nonetheless, the bigger question is whether Indonesia is preparing for the wrong fight. On one hand, the desire for a national reserve system is part of Indonesia’s goal to develop military capabilities commensurate with its regional status and population size.

    With manpower costs constituting the largest portion of the defence budget, a national reserve system provides a cost-effective way to enlarge military manpower. In addition, efforts to build a strategic material reserve will likely help sustain warfighting in a state of war scenario.

    However, the problem of modernisation of the Indonesian military appears to be a more pressing concern considering the approaching 2024 deadline for the Minimum Essential Force, as well as the need for a stronger maritime presence throughout Indonesia’s archipelagic waters. With defence spending hovering at 1% of GDP, limited resources could be better spent to invest in key military technologies and equipment.

    Indeed, in late December 2020, an underwater drone was discovered near South Sulawesi which was likely conducting an underwater survey of Indonesia’s archipelagic waters. Indonesia’s coastguard agency admitted in a public interview that Indonesia currently lacks underwater monitoring capability to track the movement of submarines and other underwater objects.

    From an external defence perspective, the national reserve system is good to have but not urgent at this point. Nonetheless, the recently published General State Defence Policy for 2020-2024, a reference document outlining the state defence strategy, highlights that the national reserve system is second in priority only to the Indonesian military.

    Back to Domestic Security

    That said, the national mobilisation strategy makes sense as Indonesia’s main threat conception remains internal and domestic. Indeed, the Indonesian state was concerned about communal conflict, terrorism, radicalism, criminal activities, the weakening of the spirit of mutual aid (gotong royong), and growing apathy in society when formulating legislation on the issue.

    Thus, both the State Defence Programme and the national reserve system are part of the state’s national mobilisation efforts to extend deeper roots into society. This is to monitor and respond to what they perceive to be genuine law-and-order problems plus a marked weakening of national and social resilience that underpins the country.

    While part of the national mobilisation effort is about developing the manpower, expertise, and material needed for national defence, it also serves a nation-building role and as an early-warning system to monitor developments in society that the state views to be undesirable.

    About the Authors

    Jefferson Ng is a Senior Analyst at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS), Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore and Sheila Jasmine is a Project Assistant at CSIS Indonesia.

    Categories: Commentaries / Country and Region Studies / International Politics and Security / Singapore and Homeland Security

    Last updated on 11/02/2021

    RSIS Commentary is a platform to provide timely and, where appropriate, policy-relevant commentary and analysis of topical and contemporary issues. The authors’ views are their own and do not represent the official position of the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, NTU. These commentaries may be reproduced with prior permission from RSIS and due recognition to the author(s) and RSIS. Please email to Mr Yang Razali Kassim, Editor RSIS Commentary at [email protected]

    SYNOPSIS

    Indonesia’s latest efforts to build up a national reserve system and cultivate awareness of the state ideology at the societal level has defence implications, but they are actually more about responding to internal security concerns than the needs of external defence.


    Source: Unsplash

    COMMENTARY

    THE INDONESIAN government recently released Government Regulation No. 3/2021 on the Management of National Resources for State Defence. The new implementing regulation provides the technical scope and executive guidance to the minister of defence to prepare for national mobilisation in a military emergency or a state of war.

    From a domestic security angle, the regulation seeks to bolster national resilience and build national character through citizenship education in schools, community, and the workplace. From an external defence angle, Indonesia intends to develop a national reserve system, composed of a volunteer military reserve force and a network of supporting elements, including expert personnel, logistic areas, and strategic material reserves, to deal with military and hybrid threats.

    The State Defence Programme

    The State Defence Programme is the centrepiece of Indonesia’s civilian defence mobilisation strategy. It seeks to cultivate core national values such as Pancasila, the importance of national unity, and the territorial integrity of Indonesia among students, workers, and society at large.

    At this stage, the activities covered under the State Defence Programme remain unclear. The Indonesian term State Defence (Bela Negara) originates from a total defence concept that all Indonesian citizens are required to serve in their varied capacities to defend the nation. Given the legacy of military rule under the New Order, younger Indonesians today are still uncomfortable with the use of militaristic terms and prefer a stricter separation of the civil and military sphere.

    Currently, there are compulsory citizenship classes that disseminate knowledge about the Pancasila, the 1945 Constitution, and the obligations of citizenship. At universities, there are also semi-military clubs that provide military training. The State Defence Programme will likely utilise seminars and workshops as well as printed and online material to be disseminated through the national education system.

    At the community level, the programme envisions a network of community leaders who will be at the forefront of the outreach effort to meet residents, conduct cultural activities, and disseminate printed materials. Overall, the programme appears to be about using formal institutions and informal networks to disseminate the state ideology and patriotic values.

    National Reserve and Mobilisation

    The formation of a national reserve system is intended to augment and supplement the Indonesian military. Volunteers for the national reserve go through a three-month basic military training, are inducted into the national reserve upon successful completion, and are required to attend periodic refresher training of between 12-90 days and serve until the age of 48.

    The Ministry of Defence plans to recruit two batches of 25,000 volunteers in 2021 and 2022, with a goal to size the national reserve at around 200,000 in 10 years across the three branches of the military.

    Recruitment is likely to be decentralised to the various military district commands at the city/regency level, estimated to cost 1 trillion rupiah (SGD 93 million) for 2021 or about 1% of the defence budget. If the plan is fully implemented, mobilisation could contribute an additional 50% to Indonesia’s current active personnel strength.

    Only the president can mobilise the national reserve with the agreement of Parliament in wartime or a military emergency. However, the regulation is worded such that the national reserve can be mobilised not only for external defence but also to deal with an internal military emergency, possibly including operations for counterterrorism, separatism, and disaster relief.

    Relevance to Indonesia’s Defence Policy

    Nonetheless, the bigger question is whether Indonesia is preparing for the wrong fight. On one hand, the desire for a national reserve system is part of Indonesia’s goal to develop military capabilities commensurate with its regional status and population size.

    With manpower costs constituting the largest portion of the defence budget, a national reserve system provides a cost-effective way to enlarge military manpower. In addition, efforts to build a strategic material reserve will likely help sustain warfighting in a state of war scenario.

    However, the problem of modernisation of the Indonesian military appears to be a more pressing concern considering the approaching 2024 deadline for the Minimum Essential Force, as well as the need for a stronger maritime presence throughout Indonesia’s archipelagic waters. With defence spending hovering at 1% of GDP, limited resources could be better spent to invest in key military technologies and equipment.

    Indeed, in late December 2020, an underwater drone was discovered near South Sulawesi which was likely conducting an underwater survey of Indonesia’s archipelagic waters. Indonesia’s coastguard agency admitted in a public interview that Indonesia currently lacks underwater monitoring capability to track the movement of submarines and other underwater objects.

    From an external defence perspective, the national reserve system is good to have but not urgent at this point. Nonetheless, the recently published General State Defence Policy for 2020-2024, a reference document outlining the state defence strategy, highlights that the national reserve system is second in priority only to the Indonesian military.

    Back to Domestic Security

    That said, the national mobilisation strategy makes sense as Indonesia’s main threat conception remains internal and domestic. Indeed, the Indonesian state was concerned about communal conflict, terrorism, radicalism, criminal activities, the weakening of the spirit of mutual aid (gotong royong), and growing apathy in society when formulating legislation on the issue.

    Thus, both the State Defence Programme and the national reserve system are part of the state’s national mobilisation efforts to extend deeper roots into society. This is to monitor and respond to what they perceive to be genuine law-and-order problems plus a marked weakening of national and social resilience that underpins the country.

    While part of the national mobilisation effort is about developing the manpower, expertise, and material needed for national defence, it also serves a nation-building role and as an early-warning system to monitor developments in society that the state views to be undesirable.

    About the Authors

    Jefferson Ng is a Senior Analyst at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS), Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore and Sheila Jasmine is a Project Assistant at CSIS Indonesia.

    Categories: Commentaries / Country and Region Studies / International Politics and Security / Singapore and Homeland Security

    Last updated on 11/02/2021

    Back to top

    Terms of Use | Privacy Statement
    Copyright © S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies. All rights reserved.
    This site uses cookies to offer you a better browsing experience. By continuing, you are agreeing to the use of cookies on your device as described in our privacy policy. Learn more
    OK
    Book introduction of "Extremist Islam: Recognition and Response in Southeast Asia"
    Since the Bali terrorist attacks in 2002, law enforcement agencies have rigorously combatted terrorist networks in Southeast Asia, yet groups motivated by violent extremi ...
    more info