Bioterrorism: Are the Indonesian state defense components ready to face it? (Implementation analysis of ministry of defense regulation number 19 year 2015)

Background: Indonesian contextual circumstances pose various potential threats to the safety of the country. These threats are the primary cause for developing a good defense system in the country that is able to tackle real and potential threats. Defense Ministry Regulation Number 19 year 2015 classifies threats into three based on the type and duration, including hybrid threats, which one possibility is the use of biological agents as weapons in bioterrorism. Currently, bioterrorism does not receive adequate attention, owing to the fact that it has not occurred in Indonesia. Therefore, there is no defined law or programs with regards to bioterrorism. Method: This is a qualitative analytic study. Informants were chosen using a purposive approach. It was done under the consideration that detailed information regarding readiness of the National Defense Component of Republic of Indonesia in the face of bioterrorism threats is crucial. Data collected from informants is supported by expert judgment for triangulation purpose. Result: The results show that there are many obstacles in the implementation of the Ministry of Defense Regulations in the environment of the primary and supporting state defense components. These include no direct socialization of the primary policies which leads to poor coordination and integration between defense components. Hence, the primary aim of integrating the entire primary and supporting strength components are not well achieved. Conclusion: Coordination between the primary and supporting state defense components overcoming the threat of bioterrorism have yet to be defined in a clear roadmap as there are obstacles in communication, coordination, and synchronization between sectors. The next step is to determine the urgency of bioterrorism, to form a consideration across sectors regarding the importance of forming regulations to encompass overcoming bioterrorism in Indonesia.