Pro-Government Militias
Hansip/Linmas (Indonesia)
Basic Group Information
| Name assigned by coder: | no |
| PGM ID Number: | 589 |
| Country: | Indonesia |
| Date formed: | Jan. 1, 1961 |
| Accuracy of date formed: | year |
| Details of Formation: | The PGM was established in 1961 by then-Minister of Defence General Nasution based on a presidential decree for internal and external defence. The Ministry of Home Affairs took over the maintenance of the group from the military in 1972 based on another presidential decree. |
| Date dissolved: | Unknown |
| Accuracy of date dissolved: | day |
| Details of Termination: | The PGM is still active. |
| Termination Type(s): | not terminated |
Former and Successor Group Information
| Predecessor group(s): | none |
| Successor group(s): | none |
| Private Military Company? | no |
| Former Group? | no |
| Former Armed Group? | no |
| Former Rebel Group? | no |
| Former Rebel Group UCDP ID: | none |
| PGM Becomes Rebel Group? | no |
| Successor Rebel Group UCDP ID: | none |
Government Relation, Support, and Training
| Government Relation: | semi-official (type 2) |
| Created by the Government?: | yes | Main Creating Government Institution: | military |
| Government Link(s): | state (institution); sub-national government; military (institution) |
| If link to party, name of party: | None |
| Training and Equipment: | yes |
| Shared Information and Joint Operations: | yes |
| Shared Personnel: | no |
| Type(s) of Material Support: | domestic government; military |
| State Sponsor(s): | none |
| Other Connection(s): |
Group Characteristics
| Membership: | village/rural; unemployed; criminals; peasants |
| Primary Membership: | local |
| Alternative Primary Membership: | no information |
| Location: | Nationwide |
| Force Strength: | [1200000, 5000000] |
| Target(s): | criminals; unarmed political opposition, government critics; rebels, insurgents, or other armed group |
| Purpose(s): | self-defense and security; anti crime; fight insurgents |
Ethnic Characteristics
| Ethnic Target(s): | none |
| Quality of Information for Ethnic Targeting: | not applicable |
| Ethnic Membership: | none |
| Quality of Information for Ethnic Membership: | not applicable |
| Ethnic Purpose: | none |
| Quality of Information for Ethnic Purpose: | not applicable |
Other Information
| Other Information: | The group is a local civil defence force that is part of Indonesia’s “total people’s defense and security” and is mainly responsible for the safety of communities. Not all members receive training and are armed as the individual groups carry out other community services. Apparently Hansip’s name was changed to Linmas (community protection groups) in 2002. However, the group is otherwise identical and it seems like the names are used interchangeably. |
New Variables from Meta-Analysis
Purpose
| Purpose: | The group was formed due to a shortage of police personnel to fulfil their duty of protecting the population. It is based on the right to defence of the state of every citizen and a shared responsibility of the armed forces and citizens to protect the state. The militia is intended to maintain public order (e.g. patrolling streets, guarding civilians), provide security and assist in local emergencies. Other functions were to prevent outbreaks of violence, generally support police and military, and fight rebels and criminality. Later the focus began to include community protection (including tasks such as organizing neighborhood watches and enforcing arrests but also surveilling and threatening political opponents). |
| Relative Benefit(s) of PGM Use | faster mobilization |
Treatment of Civilians
| Treatment of Civilians: | The group was intended to protect civilians and provide public security with a variety of tasks. One source also reports that it threatened political opponents and suppressed locals with one incident of killing and executions. |
| Type(s) of Violence against Civilians: | killing |
Reasons for Membership
| PGM Members Coerced? | no |
| PGM Members Paid? | yes |
| Reasons for Membership: | Locals’ desire to protect their own community may have been an incentive to join the group. Regarding payment, some groups received money depending on their location, but this may not have been true for all of them. |
| PGM Members Killed? | no information |
PGM Size
| Size: |
Weapons and Training
| Weapons and Training: | There are contradictory accounts on whether the PGM was armed or trained by the military, the police or not at all, which may be accounted for by the fact that there were many smaller sub-groups in different villages. However, most groups apparently received training (three months in total) and weapons from the military. Some arms included knives or clubs. |
Organisation
| Organisation: | The group is controlled by the Department of Home Affairs and supervised by the district head and the province governor. It also reports to the armed forces and cooperates with the local district military command. Its chain of command reaches down to the village/sub-district/county level with one sub-group being responsible for each village. |
Reference(s) for Meta-Analysis
Evidence
- Examine the evidence for this coding.