By Charles Simabura, Andalas University, Indonesia
The plan to train thousands of civil servants as National Reserve troops is drawing criticism over risks of militarising the bureaucracy.
Indonesia’s proposal to train 4,000 civil servants as members of the National Reserve has triggered renewed debate about the boundaries between civil and military roles in government.
The Ministry of Defence has also floated the possibility of designating all civil servants—around five million —as part of the national reserve. Critics have warned that such a move risks shifting the country’s civilian bureaucracy toward a more militarised posture.
The plan sits at the intersection…