Breaking Down Defense Minister Prabowo's Strategic Vision:
UNPRI Holds Defense Politics Book Review
Event documentation can be accessed at the following link
Universitas Prima Indonesia (UNPRI) successfully held the event "Book Review of Defense Politics: Exploring the Strategic Vision of Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto and the Transformation of the Republic of Indonesia's Defense" in collaboration with the Indonesian Ministry of Defense (Kemhan). The event took place on Monday, October 16, 2023, at the Main Hall of the UNPRI Main Campus, Jalan Sampul 3, Medan City.
The event was attended by a number of important figures, including Lieutenant General TNI (Ret.) Muhammad Herindra, MA, M.Sc. (Deputy Minister of Defense of the Republic of Indonesia) as Keynote Speaker, Chairperson of Commission 1 of the Indonesian House of Representatives, Meutia Viada Hafid, along with members of Commissions 1 and 8 of the Indonesian House of Representatives. The author of the book "Defense Politics: Digging into the Strategic Vision of Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto and the Transformation of Indonesian National Defense," Dr. Dahnil Anzar Simanjuntak, SE, ME, was also present as a resource person. Other speakers were Abdul Latief Siregar, ST (senior journalist) and Hariqo Wibawa Satria, M.HI., Executive Director of the Ministry of Law and Human Rights.
Meanwhile, from the ranks of the UNPRI Rectorate, the Chairperson of the Daily Executive Board (BPH), Dr. Tommy Leonard, SH., M.Kn, all vice rectors, representatives of Deans, Heads of Study Programs, Heads of Bureaus, and around 800 UNPRI Academicians.
In his remarks, Vice Rector 1 UNPRI, Abdi Dharma, S.Kom, M.Kom welcomed the speakers of UNPRI, a multi-ethnic campus in the middle of Medan. UNPRI is a rapidly developing campus with 8 faculties and 48 study programs, on the Medan campus and PSDKU in Pekanbaru, which provides various levels of education, ranging from Diploma, Bachelor, Applied Bachelor, Profession, Specialist, Masters, to Doctorate. WR 1 UNPRI hopes that this book review event will not only be a forum for discussion, but can also increase our insight regarding developments in the field of national defense.
Dahnil Anzar Simanjuntak, as the author of the book, expressed his gratitude to the guests of honor, especially the ranks of UNPRI as the future campus of North Sumatra and Medan City, "UNPRI, the best choice" he said. Next, Simanjuntak emphasized the importance of the concept of Indonesian defense as "total people's defense." He emphasized that this concept involves all elements of society, not only the military and defense aspects, but also cultural elements. According to him, national defense is a shared responsibility that includes understanding and respect for cultural values and active participation from all citizens. In this way, national defense is not only a military domain, but also an inseparable part of the identity and sustainability of the nation.
Furthermore, Meutia Viada Hafid expressed her admiration for the progress and achievements that have been achieved by this university, especially the international standard Main Campus infrastructure and UNPRI's achievements as an inspiration for other universities throughout Indonesia. The Chairperson of Commission 1 expressed the hope that the ongoing book review would provide valuable information related to national defense to the younger generation and millennials. He asked the younger generation to realize that the issue of defense is not something that is isolated or only relevant to experts. On the contrary, narratives related to defense are discourses that fill our daily lives.
The Chairperson of Commission 1 also highlighted the fact that books on defense written in Indonesian, especially by academics who are also part of the Ministry of Law and Human Rights, are still quite rare. Therefore, the hope is that this book review event will spark the interest of more writers and academics to explore and convey a deeper understanding of national defense in a language that is easily accessible to all Indonesian people.
In his keynote speech, the Deputy Minister of Defense of the Republic of Indonesia expressed his appreciation for the infrastructure available at the UNPRI Main Campus. He considered it an achievement that deserves to be appreciated and saluted. Furthermore, he highlighted that the book being discussed is an effort to bridge the ideas held by the Minister of Defense to the public.
The Deputy Minister of Defense of the Republic of Indonesia emphasized that the issue of defense is often only identified with military and army affairs. However, he emphasized that defense has a very broad aspect, which covers all levels of society and all aspects of life. In other words, defense is a shared responsibility and is relevant in various contexts, not only in the military framework.
The event ended with the presentation of an award plaque from the Ministry of Law and Human Rights to Universitas Prima Indonesia in recognition of his contribution in understanding and developing better insight into national defense through the successful Defense Politics book review event.