Garuda Contingent

The Garuda Contingent was first deployed to Egypt and Israel in November 1956 as part of the United Nations Emergency Force. It was first under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Hartoyo, who was later replaced by Lieutenant Colonel Suhadi Suromihardjo.[1]

The next two contingents were sent to the Congo. The first contingent consisted of 1,074 troops and was led by Colonel Prijatna (later replaced by Lieutenant Colonel Solichin); this contingent served from September 1960 to May 1961. The second contingent to the Congo consisted of 3,457 troops and was led by Brigadier General Kemal Idris (later replaced by Colonel Sabirin Mochtar); this contingent served from 1962 to 1963 and saw one casualty.[1]

The Garuda Contingent's fourth and fifth deployments were to Vietnam in 1973 and 1974, towards the end of the Vietnam War. This was followed by a sixth deployment to Egypt after the Yom Kippur War under the command of Colonel Rudini. The Garuda Contingent later returned to Vietnam and Egypt for a seventh and eighth deployment, respectively.[1]

After an eight-year hiatus, the Garuda Contingent deployed as part of the United Nations Iran–Iraq Military Observer Group under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Endriartono Sutarto, then Lieutenant Colonel Fachrul Razi and Johny Lumintang.[1]

In 1992, five Garuda Contingent members participated in the United Nations Operation in Somalia I under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Bibit Santoso. This was later reduced to four soldiers, under the command of Major CZI Budiman.[1]

During the Bosnian War, the Garuda Contingent deployed medical officers and military observers in their fifteenth mission. This was not well received by the Indonesian populace, who wished that the soldiers took a more active, military role.[2] This was followed by a deployment to Georgia and a 15-man deployment to Mozambique in 1994. That same year they were also deployed to the Philippines under the command of Brigadier General Asmardi Arbi (later replaced by Brigadier General Kivlan Zein) to help deal with the conflict between the Moro National Liberation Front and the Philippine government.[1]

In 2003, the Garuda Contingent deployed on its twentieth mission, to the Democratic Republic of the Congo. A total of 171 troops deployed originally, including 32 medical staff and 28 marines. They were deployed with peacekeepers from Nepal, India, and Bangladesh with the peacekeeping mission being led by France.[3] As of 2009, the focus had shifted to infrastructure and a seventh contingent had been deployed.[4]

The Garuda Contingent was part of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon. In August 2010, two of its soldiers were criticized after they escaped from clashes between Israel and Lebanon by fleeing in a taxi.[5]

Footnotes

Bibliography

• Perwita, Anak Agung Banyu (2007). Indonesia and the Muslim World : Islam and Secularism in the Foreign Policy of Soeharto and Beyond. Copenhagen: Nias Press. ISBN 978-87-91114-92-2.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)