Jakarta. President Prabowo Subianto has proposed amending the 2004 law on the Indonesian military to allow active-duty officers to serve in certain government positions that are currently reserved exclusively for civilians, an aide said on Tuesday.

According to Defense Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin, the president has identified 15 state agencies where active military personnel should be eligible to assume leadership roles without first retiring from service.

“[The proposal] covers 15 agencies, meaning that an active officer must resign or retire before joining agencies outside of this list,” Sjafrie said at the legislature compound in Jakarta.

The 15 agencies and positions proposed to be open to active military officers include:

1. Coordinating Ministry for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs
2. Defense Ministry
3. Military Secretary of the President
4. State Intelligence Agency (BIN)
5. National Cyber and Encryption Agency (BSSN)
6. National Resilience Institute (Lemhannas)
7. National Defense Agency (DPN)
8. National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas)
9. National Narcotics Agency (BNN)
10. Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries
11. National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB)
12. National Counter-Terrorism Agency (BNPT)
13. Maritime Security Agency (Bakamla)
14. Attorney General’s Office
15. Supreme Court

Although the proposed amendment has not yet been submitted to the House of Representatives, President Prabowo has already appointed two active military officers to key civilian positions:

• Lieutenant Colonel Teddy Indra Wijaya – Appointed as Cabinet Secretary
• Major General Novi Helmy Prasetya – Appointed as Head of the State Logistics Agency (Bulog)

When questioned about these appointments, Sjafrie did not provide a direct response.

“If they don’t belong to the 15 designated agencies, they must retire from the military first before continuing in civilian service,” he reiterated.

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