M. Rizal Maslan, Jakarta – Army chief Ryamizard Ryacudu has again said that at least 60,000 foreign agents have entered Indonesia. According to Ryacudu, these foreign agents are linked with a modern war plan to weaken the role of the TNI (armed forces) and to play people off against each other.

This was revealed by Ryacudu to journalists at the Military Seaborne Command in Tanjung Priok, North Jakarta, on Thursday December 25, after seeing off three Raider Battalions which will leave for Aceh.

“This [infiltration of foreign parties – ed] is already significant. You know this don’t you? Sixty thousand foreign agents are already here”, said Ryacudu when asked about the suspicion that there are large foreign countries which according to Ryacudu are threatening the existence of Indonesia.

The army chief’s statement has been thrown up several times and on a number of occasions, the latest being when he was inspecting troops at the army’s commemoration of Kartika Struggle Day in Kemayoran, Central Jakarta, on Monday December 22 and at the graduation ceremony of 67 retiring army officers in Magelang, Central Java.

According to Ryacudu, the presence of foreign agents in Indonesia is a modern war which is being carried out by aggressor countries. Unfortunately, Ryacudu did not want to mention which countries were meant by this.

When asked about the source of the information on the foreign agents, Ryacudu explained that the information was obtained from intelligence reports which he has. As a result he said he certainly knows more about it than anyone else because of the strength of the intelligence data.

“There is not need to talk about where it came from. It is an intelligence report”, he explained while refusing to mention who [the agents are] or which countries he meant.

At this opportunity, Ryacudu also explained the number of foreign agents which have inflated [the country] was calculated from the total number [of foreigners] who are in Indonesia. And he added, they also used various methods to enter Indonesia. “But the context is clear, it represents a form of modern warfare”, he said.

He explained that the colonialism which is being carried out by large countries at the moment no longer priorities armed force. The concept which is being implemented at the moment is through the concept of pragmatic colonialism, forming resistance cells, along with playing people off against each other to cause dissent. He therefore asked all elements of the nation to be united. (zal)

[Translated by James Balowski.]