Jakarta (Antara Bali) - Political observer Boni Hargens said the State Intelligence Agency (BIN) needs to be totaly reorganized to be ready to answer the global challenges competing against international agents.
"Total reorganization is needed to be competitive facing intelligence agents of other countries in meeting the real challenges globally and domestically," Boni Hargens said at a discussion on 'Why Sutiyoso becomes head of BIN'here on Monday.
The title of the discussion referred to former Jakarta Governor and retired army Lt. Gen Sutiyoso, who has been named by President Jokwo Widodo as the chief candidate of the strategic agency.
Boni said reorganization is necessary related to mastery of technology, skills of its agents and conceptual form whether the agents totally devoted to the state, the government or certain political interest devotion.
"This also has to be clear," he said.
He said the government has not been serious enough in seeking to strengthen the state intelligence which is one of the state instruments for defense.
There is lack of government's appreciation and no reward for the intelligence work to improve performance of the agency, he cited.
"It is obvious from the inadequate technology owned by BIN. Sometimes the state intelligence was politicized," he added.
He said currently military is no longer the only the strength of intelligence but control of information.
"Therefore, there is protection against foreign satellites that could find information about us and important information could leak out," he said.
"There is also the economic role . There should be priority in BIN as a powerful agency through training and education in intelligence," he said.
He said BIN agents should also needs to have strong ideology to keep them devoted only to the state , adding, neutrality of BIN should be maintained politically.
Meanwhile human right observer Robertus Robet said head of BIN is required to be aware of the threat to the security of the public globally.
Jokowi's choice of Sutiyoso has drawn criticism saying Sutiyoso is too old and had track record in human right tarnished by the bloody July attack of the office of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDIP) in Jakarta when he was Jakarta military chief under the dictatorial regime of President Suharto. (WDY)
