Jakarta. The Indonesian government said it will continue its flagship Red and White Village Cooperative (KDMP) program despite the deaths of two trainee managers during military-style training, while promising a comprehensive review of the program's basic military instruction component.

Deputy State Secretary Juri Ardiantoro said the deaths should be separated from the continuation of the government's village cooperative initiative, which is one of President Prabowo Subianto's flagship programs.

"The Red and White Cooperative program will continue," Juri told reporters at the Presidential Palace on Wednesday.

The government, however, will evaluate the implementation of basic military training under the Indonesian Development Pioneer Scholars (SPPI) program, which prepares prospective managers for village and fishing village cooperatives.

Authorities also pledged to introduce mitigation measures to prevent similar incidents from recurring.

The controversy emerged after two SPPI participants, Anisa Muyassaroh and Yonanda Muhammad Taufiq, died while undergoing military training conducted by the Defense Ministry.

Anisa was participating in training at the Army Education Center in Balikpapan, East Kalimantan, while Yonanda attended training at the Army Combat Training Center in Baturaja, South Sumatra.

Defense Ministry officials said Anisa experienced health problems on June 18 and later died from heat stroke after receiving treatment at military medical facilities and a hospital referral. Yonanda suffered a deterioration in his health condition on June 17 and also received medical treatment before his death.

Calls Grow for Training Overhaul
The deaths have intensified scrutiny of the government's decision to require military-style training for prospective cooperative managers.

The Defense Ministry has launched a comprehensive evaluation of the 2026 SPPI program, including the basic military training curriculum.

Lawmakers have also called for changes. TB Hasanuddin, a member of the House of Representatives' Commission I overseeing defense affairs, urged the ministry to strengthen medical screening procedures before training begins.

"Participants must undergo proper health examinations to ensure they are physically prepared for activities, including those conducted in hot conditions," he said.

Hasanuddin also called for reducing military-oriented activities such as weapons training and marching drills, arguing that cooperative managers would benefit more from instruction in business and cooperative management.

"It would be better to provide training on managing a cooperative," he said.

Achmad Nur Hidayat, an economist and public policy expert at UPN Veteran Jakarta, questioned whether military-style training is appropriate for civilian cooperative managers.

"The problem with cooperatives is not a lack of marching drills," Achmad said. "The real challenges are weak institutions, poor managerial capacity, inadequate oversight, and governance problems."

He argued that prospective managers would benefit more from training in accounting, supply chains, cooperative governance, logistics, agricultural marketing, and anti-corruption practices than from military exercises.

"TNI has a defense function, while cooperatives have an economic function. When the two are combined in a single program, the government must clearly explain the objectives, risks, and accountability," he said.

The Red and White Village Cooperative program is among the government's most ambitious rural development initiatives. Authorities aim to establish 80,081 cooperatives nationwide by 2029, with approximately 11,000 units already established and about 1,000 currently operating.

The cooperatives are intended to shorten food supply chains, lower prices, improve access to financing, and stimulate economic activity in rural areas.

Under the current system, prospective managers undergo 45 days of training, including 30 days of basic military instruction conducted under the Defense Ministry's reserve component program, followed by 15 days of managerial and technical training.

About 30,000 prospective village cooperative managers and another 5,476 candidates for fishing village cooperatives are participating in training programs at 67 military facilities nationwide.

The government estimates the initiative could eventually create more than 1.4 million jobs across rural Indonesia.