Indonesian Minister of Defense as a Food Developer

Food Resources Recognized as Directly Linked to National Security...Criticism Over Lack of Expertise

[Asia Economy Jakarta Correspondent Sujin Choi] Indonesian President Joko Widodo has abruptly appointed Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto as the developer of the national food asset program. The fact that a defense minister, rather than an agricultural expert, was assigned to this role is interpreted as reflecting the perception that food resources are directly linked to national security, although there are also criticisms regarding a lack of expertise.

According to local media such as The Jakarta Post on the 21st, President Jokowi recently held a press conference at the presidential palace, explaining the background of appointing the defense minister as the developer of the food program by stating, "The development of the food program is a preemptive measure to respond to a potential food crisis caused by the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19)." Along with this, he instructed the Minister of Public Housing to develop 166,000 hectares of land on Central Kalimantan Island into farmland to support the government's food asset program.

Local media have evaluated President Jokowi's decision as reflecting the view that "food security is national security." Securing food supply capacity and raw materials is considered an essential requirement for combat. In his speech that day, President Jokowi emphasized, "We must expand the concept of national security beyond the primary notion of weapon systems to include resilience in the food sector."

However, there are also many concerns. The Jakarta Post pointed out in an editorial that it is unlikely that the Ministry of Defense exercising command authority in areas other than national security will lead to successful outcomes, due to the ministry's lack of expertise in food issues. Particularly in Indonesia, there is a strong negative view of military power. Since the fall of Suharto's military regime 'New Order' in 1998, there has been a strong belief that the military should not exercise command authority over any citizen's domain other than national security. In fact, since the collapse of the Suharto regime, the Indonesian military has been limited to protecting the nation's security from foreign threats and functioning in a supplementary role in domestic security issues. This is why voices are emerging that the defense minister's priority should be managing the Indonesian military.

The Indonesian government responded by stating, "Minister Prabowo has already built appropriate trust in the field by serving as chairman of the Indonesian Agricultural Association," and "Agriculture Minister Syahrul Yasin Limpo will support Defense Minister Prabowo."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.