TNI MUST BE FORCED TO USE LOCALLY-MADE ARMAMENTS: LEGISLATOR

Jakarta, Feb 6 (ANTARA) - The National Defense Forces (TNI) must be forced by a government regulation to use the products of Indonesia's defense industries, an Indonesian Democracy Party-Struggle (PDIP) legislator said.

Achmad Basarah, spokesman of the PDIP faction in the House of Representatives (DPR), was commenting on a Defense Ministry statement that it would soon draw up a Defense Industry Master Plan (RIIP).

He said a defense industry master plan would never be effective as long as there was no regulation requiring the TNI to use the products of the existing domestic defense industries.

"So far, our state-owned strategic industry companies have been like boarders in their own house because the TNI prefers to buy its military hardware from foreign manufacturers," he said.

Therefore, he said, as long as there was no legal obligation for the TNI to buy domestic industry products, it was meaningless to have a defense industry master plan.

"The existing legislation on procurement of armaments by the military, namely a Presidential Decree (Keppres), appears not to be explicit or binding enough with regard to the selection of suppliers," he said.

To make the TNI use domestic industry products, the government and the House must have sufficient good will and political will to that effect , and to develop domestic defense industries.
"In short, there must be a special law about domestic defense industries that provides for legal sanctions on any body obstructing their development," Basarah said.