Reconceptualizing ANKUM’s Role in Military Discipline: A Normative and Comparative Reassessment of Command Authority and Justice

Destri Prasetyoandi, Lies Sulistiani, Elis Rusmiati, Karem Sayed Aboelazm

Abstract


The enforcement of military discipline is essential to operational readiness; however, the normative and ethical foundations of disciplinary authority within the Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI) remain insufficiently examined. Existing scholarship largely treats ANKUM (Superior Officers Authorized to Impose Punishment) as a procedural or administrative mechanism, leaving a significant gap concerning its ethical legitimacy, normative coherence, and institutional accountability as a command-based disciplinary authority. This article addresses that gap by critically reassessing ANKUM’s role beyond its formal legal mandate. By employing a normative juridical method combined with conceptual and comparative approaches, this study examines Indonesian military disciplinary law alongside selected models from the United Kingdom, Australia, and the United States. The analysis demonstrates that the concentration of discretionary power in ANKUM generates normative vulnerabilities, including inconsistent enforcement, limited procedural safeguards, and ethical tension in balancing command loyalty with justice. The article’s original contribution lies in reconceptualizing military discipline not merely as an instrument of hierarchical control, but as an ethical institution inherent in command responsibility, operationalized through three analytical dimensions: ethical proportionality in sanctioning, institutional accountability mechanisms, and the alignment of disciplinary enforcement with unit cohesion and operational readiness. Grounded in comparative military justice and moral philosophy, the article proposes a reform-oriented framework that enhances legal legitimacy and strengthens ethical command within democratic civil–military relations

Keywords


Military Discipline Enforcement; Unit Operational Readiness; Military Justice Reform; Ethical Command Responsibility

Full Text:

PDF

References


Aldy Mirozul, Aprilian Nurahsan, M. Reza Saputra, and Irwan Triadi. “Peran Ankum Dalam Pemberian Sanksi Pelanggaran Disiplin Militer Dari Perspektif Keadilan Dan Pembinaan Prajurit.” Birokrasi: JURNAL ILMU HUKUM DAN TATA NEGARA 2, no. 4 (2024): 145–55. https://doi.org/10.55606/birokrasi.v2i4.1582.

Amiruddin, and Zainal Asikin. Pengantar Metode Penelitian Hukum. Rajawali Pers, 2012.

Anthony Pfaff, C. “Virtue and Applied Military Ethics: Understanding Character-Based Approaches to Professional Military Ethics.” Journal of Military Ethics 22, nos. 3–4 (2023): 168–84. https://doi.org/10.1080/15027570.2023.2200064.

Asencio, Hugo, Theodore Byrne, and Edin Mujkic. “Ethics Training for U.S. Military Leaders: Challenging the Conventional Approach.” Public Integrity 19, no. 5 (2017): 415–28. https://doi.org/10.1080/10999922.2016.1272153.

Aulia Jihan Rifani, Auliajr, and Satria Unggul Wicaksana Prakasa. “Independensi Peradilan Militer Terhadap Prajurit TNI Sebagai Pelaku Tindak Pidana Narkotika.” Audito Comparative Law Journal (ACLJ) 2, no. 3 (2021): 131–42. https://doi.org/10.22219/aclj.v2i3.16756.

Berlian, Hangrengga, Hibnu Nugroho, Kuat Puji Prayitno, Budiyono, and Bagas Heradhyaksa. “The Role of Military and Public Prosecutors in Joinder of Parties to Enhance Law Enforcement in Indonesia.” Jurnal IUS Kajian Hukum Dan Keadilan 13, no. 1 (2025): 128–52. https://doi.org/10.29303/ius.v13i1.1579.

Bessa, Ana Carla Coelho, and Nestor Eduardo Araruna Santiago. “Uma Interface Entre a Teoria Da Justiça De John Rawls E a Justiça Restaurativa Como Política Criminal.” Seqüência Estudos Jurídicos e Políticos 43, no. 92 (2023): 1–20. https://doi.org/10.5007/2177-7055.2022.e70556.

Buehler, Antje, Gavin E. Oxburgh, Peter Zimmermann, Gerd-Dieter Willmund, and Ulrich Wesemann. “Challenges for Research into Military Investigations.” Psychiatry, Psychology and Law 26, no. 1 (2019): 50–64. https://doi.org/10.1080/13218719.2018.1482575.

Cartagena, Nathan L. “Military Ethics and the Situationist Critique.” Journal of Military Ethics 16, nos. 3–4 (2017): 157–72. https://doi.org/10.1080/15027570.2017.1409924.

Connor, James, Dia Jade Andrews, Kyja Noack-Lundberg, and Ben Wadham. “Military Loyalty as a Moral Emotion.” Armed Forces & Society 47, no. 3 (2021): 530–50. https://doi.org/10.1177/0095327X19880248.

Donohue, Conor. “The ‘Soul of an Army’: A Defence of Military Court Trials for Violations of the Law of Armed Conflict.” Israel Law Review 54, no. 1 (2021): 24–56. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0021223720000205.

Duxbury, Alison, and Matthew Groves, eds. Military Justice in the Modern Age. 1st ed. Cambridge University Press, 2016. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9781107326330.

Eko, Bambang Slamet. “Hukum Disiplin Prajurit Tentara Nasional Indonesia/Militer Pada Komando Distrik Militer 0807/ Tulungagung.” Yustitiabelen 3, no. 1 (2017): 39–60. https://doi.org/10.36563/yustitiabelen.v3i1.130.

Farah Syah Rezah, Nurul Qamar. Metode Penelitian Hukum Doktrinal Dan Non-Doktrinal. Social Politik Genius, 2020.

Farissa, Amelia, and Megawati Barthos. “Indonesian National Army Involvement in Action of Community Organizationsthreating the Ideology of the State.” Paper presented at Proceedings of the 1st International Conference on Law, Social Science, Economics, and Education, ICLSSEE 2021, March 6th 2021, Jakarta, Indonesia, Salatiga, Indonesia. Proceedings of the 1st International Conference on Law, Social Science, Economics, and Education, ICLSSEE 2021, March 6th 2021, Jakarta, Indonesia, EAI, 2021. https://doi.org/10.4108/eai.6-3-2021.2306455.

Groves, Matthew, and Alison Duxbury. “The Reform of Military Justice.” In Military Justice in the Modern Age, 1st ed., edited by Alison Duxbury and Matthew Groves. Cambridge University Press, 2016. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9781107326330.002.

“Harmonizing Prosecution Agencies in Indonesia: Implementing the Dominus Litis Principle Policy.” Pakistan Journal of Criminology, January 16, 2024, 47–57. https://doi.org/10.62271/pjc.16.1.47.57.

Hooft, Francesca Baukje. “Legal Framework Versus Moral Framework: Military Physicians and Nurses Coping with Practical and Ethical Dilemmas.” Journal of the Royal Army Medical Corps 165, no. 4 (2019): 279–81. https://doi.org/10.1136/jramc-2018-001137.

Irwansyah, Irwansyah. Penelitian Hukum: Pilihan Metode & Praktik Penulisan Artikel. Mirra Buana Media, 2020.

Jamnik, Anton. “Rawls’ Theory of Justice as Fairness: Philosophical-Theological Interpretation of John Rawl’s Theory of Justice as Fairness.” Bogoslovska Smotra 91, no. 5 (2022): 1037–58. https://doi.org/10.53745/bs.91.5.3.

Joshua, Norman. “Counterinsurgency, Emergency, and Civil-Military Relations in Indonesia.” Journal of Advanced Military Studies 13, no. 1 (2022): 57–78. https://doi.org/10.21140/mcuj.20221301003.

Kelly, Mark. “What’s in a Norm? Foucault’s Conceptualisation and Genealogy of the Norm.” Foucault Studies 1, no. 27 (2019): 1–22. https://doi.org/10.22439/fs.v27i27.5889.

Kusbianto, Kusbianto, Ariman Sitompul, Adiputra Adiputra, and Miftahuddin Miftahuddin. “The Impact of Criminal Policy on Money Laundering Against the Resilience of the Law.” Substantive Justice International Journal of Law 5, no. 2 (2022): 158. https://doi.org/10.56087/substantivejustice.v5i2.192.

Lorenz, Philip. “Indonesia.” In The Routledge Handbook of Civil-Military Relations, 2nd ed., by Florina Cristiana Matei, Carolyn Halladay, and Thomas C. Bruneau. Routledge, 2021. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003084228-15.

Marquet, L. David. “Lessons from a Nuclear Submarine Mishap.” In How Could This Happen?, edited by Jan U. Hagen. Springer International Publishing, 2018. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-76403-0_16.

Newton, Michael A., and Dru Brenner-Beck. “Military Justice.” In Understanding the U.S. Military, 1st ed., by Katherine Carroll and William B. Hickman. Routledge, 2022. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003154877-17.

Olsthoorn, Peter. “Dual Loyalty in Military Medical Ethics: A Moral Dilemma or a Test of Integrity?” Journal of the Royal Army Medical Corps 165, no. 4 (2019): 282–83. https://doi.org/10.1136/jramc-2018-001131.

Park, Francis J. H. “Command Relationships.” In Understanding the U.S. Military, 1st ed., by Katherine Carroll and William B. Hickman. Routledge, 2022. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003154877-13.

R Mares, David. Civil-Military Relations: Building Democracy and Regional Security in Latin America, Southern Asia, and Central Europe. 1st ed. Edited by David R. Mares. Routledge, 2018. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780429501579.

R Mares, David. Civil-Military Relations: Building Democracy and Regional Security in Latin America, Southern Asia, and Central Europe. 1st ed. Edited by David R. Mares. Routledge, 2018. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780429501579.

Rachman, Arief, Amarulla Octavian, Ahmad Irdham, Yusuf Ali Putra I. N., and A.K. Susilo. “Revolution in Military Affairs (Rma) by Indonesian Armed Forces Towards Competitive Advantage.” Decision Science Letters 12, no. 2 (2023): 413–30. https://doi.org/10.5267/j.dsl.2022.12.002.

Ramos, Paolo Roberto Barbosa, and Filipe Sousa Santana. “The Dynamics of State Military Justice: The Military Audit of Maranhão in the Years 2022 and 2023.” Revista Juridica, ahead of print, 2024. https://doi.org/10.26668/revistajur.2316-753X.v1i77.6822.

Ryberg, Jesper. “Retributivism and the (Lack of) Justification of Proportionality.” Criminal Law and Philosophy 15, no. 3 (2021): 447–62. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11572-021-09579-4.

Schilling, Stefan. “Visualizing the Ties That Bind Us: A Cross-Sectional Thematic and Visual Analysis of Cohesion Across Three British Military Formations.” Armed Forces & Society 50, no. 3 (2024): 628–55. https://doi.org/10.1177/0095327X221134644.

Stypa, Ondřej. “The Influence of the Case Law of the European Court of Human Rights on the Military Justice System of United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.” Časopis pro Právní Vědu a Praxi 29, no. 3 (2021): 573–94. https://doi.org/10.5817/CPVP2021-3-5.

Sutherland, K. “Detention: Legal Aspects of Detention in Military Detention.” In Encyclopedia of Forensic and Legal Medicine. Elsevier, 2015. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-800034-2.00144-0.

Tarrant, John. “Human Rights and Australia’s Military Justice System.” In Military Justice in the Modern Age, 1st ed., edited by Alison Duxbury and Matthew Groves. Cambridge University Press, 2016. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9781107326330.015.

Taşkin, Ferhat. “Rawls’ ‘Justice as Fairness’: Not Only Political but Also Metaphysical.” Hitit İlahiyat Dergisi, December 30, 2023, 953–65. https://doi.org/10.14395/hid.1343310.

Wadham, Ben. “The Minister, the Commandant and the Cadets: Scandal and the Mediation of Australian Civil–Military Relations.” Journal of Sociology 52, no. 3 (2016): 551–68. https://doi.org/10.1177/1440783316655637.




DOI: https://doi.org/10.33756/jlr.v1i1.33722

Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.


Copyright (c) 2026 Destri Prasetyoandi, Lies Sulistiani, Elis Rusmiati, Karem Sayed Aboelazm

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Editorial Office of Jambura Law Review:
2nd Floor Pancasila building, Faculty of Law, Universitas Negeri Gorontalo
Jenderal Sudirman Street No.6, Gorontalo City, Gorontalo Province, 96128, Indonesia
Tel. +62-812-1356-9044;  +62-822-9329-6045  (SMS/WA)

This work is licensed under a  Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. Powered by  Public Knowledge Project OJS.

 

Jambura Law Rev. has been indexed by:

SCOPUS SCOPUS GS GARUDA
Crossref Base Index Dimension