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IN JAKARTA - JUST days after a controversy over Indonesians being recruited into the Malaysian military, officials in Jakarta are turning the spotlight on their citizens doing national service in Singapore.
In separate remarks to newsportal detikcom, top officials from the foreign and defence ministries warned Indonesian permanent residents of Singapore that they could lose their citizenship if they were enlisted.
'If they participate in national service, they will probably get into trouble with regard to their citizenship status,' the Foreign Ministry's Director for Protection of Indonesian Citizens and Corporate Bodies Overseas Teguh Wardoyo told detikcom on Tuesday.
He added: 'We can't stop Indonesian citizens, whether second or third generation, from taking up Singapore Permanent Resident status. We can only appeal to them to obey the law.'
Separately, Defence Ministry secretary-general Sjafrie Sjamsuddin told detikcom: 'Military service is only for citizens of the country. Just like enlistment into Malaysia's Askar Wataniah, foreign citizens with permanent resident status cannot be drafted for military service.'
The national service issue was raised amid a controversy over the alleged recruitment of Indonesian citizens into the Askar Wataniah, a paramilitary wing of the Malaysian army in Borneo where the two countries share a land border.
Parliament Speaker Agung Laksono called on the government to investigate, warning that border security could be at risk.
He referred to a report which said that Indonesians in the border areas in Borneo were offered between two million rupiah (S$310) and three million rupiah a month to join the Malaysian paramilitary force.
Both the Malaysian and Indonesian military have denied the report, and the focus of debate on the issue has now shifted to Singapore.
Legislator Djoko Susilo, a member of the parliamentary commission on defence and foreign affairs, told detikcom that second-generation Indonesians in Singapore had been asked to perform national service if they wanted to become permanent residents.
He warned: 'If Indonesian citizens perform national service, they will lose their citizenship.'
Now he wants Jakarta to deal with the issue, which he claims could jeopardise Indonesian security.
Meanwhile, Kompas daily yesterday quoted the First Secretary of the Indonesian Embassy in Singapore as saying that male Indonesians applying for permanent residency in the Republic were required to perform national service.
Mr Widya Rahmanto refused to comment on the question of Indonesians losing their citizenship if they did national service in Singapore.
But he told Kompas: 'In principle, it's best to avoid having to lose your Indonesian citizenship. You must hold on to your Indonesian citizenship until you are certain that you would get the foreign citizenship.'
salim@sph.com.sg
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