TEMPO Interactive, Jakarta:Defense Minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro has confirmed the National Security Draft will not grant National Intelligence Agency (BIN) officers the authority to arrest.

â??They will serve more as the eyes and ears,â? he added.

The government has prioritized the National Security Draft, which includes supervision of the national security system. The supervision will be conducted through a concentric supervisory mechanism. The last chapter of the draft mentions supervision conducted by a special authority granting them the right to wiretap, investigate, arrest as well as other forcible legal actions.

Deputy Defense Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin stressed the draft was not about gaining more power. â??Itâ??s merely a state instrument to gain information to be processed,â? he said.

The Commission for Missing Persons & Victims of Violence (Kontras) activist, Usman Hamid, urged the House of Representatives to reconsider the Intelligence Draft and the National Security Law. â??The law upsets the Indonesian Armed Forcesâ?? reforms and separates the political, justice and security functions,â? he said.