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Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has prompted governments in various countries to involve a wide range of actors, including intelligence. Since the beginning of 2020, the State Intelligence Agency (BIN) in Indonesia has been actively involved in dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic. The deployment of intelligence bodies in handling a pandemic is a common practice that many democratic countries do. However, intelligence must operate within the confines of its mandate, function, and democratic principles. This paper will examine the issues regarding the roles of BIN in dealing with the pandemic in Indonesia. Data sources for this study were obtained by applying a qualitative approach from literature studies and reviews from January 2020 to February 2021. This paper has identified four types of operations carried out by BIN on a national and local scale: investigations, security, mobilization, and countermeasures. Apart from the various contributions made by BIN to the pandemic response thus far, this paper identifies several issues, including the tendency for excessive involvement, proportionality issues, and accountability issues. As a recommendation, more efforts are needed to strengthen BIN’s position in general security sector governance, accelerate supervision, and reorient COVID-19 handling in Indonesia.

Bahasa Abstract

Pandemi COVID-19 yang melanda dunia telah mendorong pemerintahan di berbagai negara untuk melibatkan banyak aktor untuk meresponsnya, termasuk salah satunya intelijen. Di Indonesia, Badan Intelijen Negara (BIN) telah aktif terlibat dalam penanganan pandemi COVID-19 sejak awal tahun 2020. Pengerahan lembaga telik sandi dalam penanganan pandemi merupakan suatu praktik yang biasa dilakukan negara-negara demokrasi. Namun, intelijen perlu bekerja sesuai mandat, fungsi, dan di dalam koridor dan prinsip demokrasi. Tulisan ini akan meninjau problematika peran BIN dalam penanganan pandemi di Indonesia. Dengan pendekatan kualitatif, sumber data dari studi ini diperoleh dari studi pustaka dan tinjauan literatur dalam periode Januari 2020 sampai dengan Februari 2021. Tulisan ini berhasil mengidentifikasi empat jenis operasi yang dilakukan oleh BIN dalam skala nasional dan lokal, yaitu penyelidikan, pengamanan, penggalangan, dan penanggulangan. Terlepas dari berbagai kontribusi BIN terhadap penanganan pandemi selama ini, tulisan ini masih menemukan beberapa persoalan, seperti kecenderungan pelibatan yang cenderung berlebih, persoalan proporsionalitas, dan persoalan akuntabilitas. Sebagai rekomendasi, diperlukan upaya lebih lanjut untuk membenahi posisi BIN dalam tata kelola sektor keamanan secara umum, akselerasi pengawasan, serta reorientasi penanganan pandemi COVID-19 di Indonesia.

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