12 September 2023
Justice-on-Demand at the Indonesian Constitutional Court?
Indonesia will have the world’s biggest one-day election in 2024. More than 200 million voters will go to the ballots to choose the next president and legislative members on 14 February, opening a fresh chapter for the nation’s leadership after a decade of President Joko Widodo’s rule. In recent weeks, the Constitutional Court has been flooded with back-to-back filings for judicial review of Indonesia’s General Election Law. Against the backdrop of Indonesia’s declining levels of trust in public institution, the Court’s rulings might not only change the rules of Indonesia’s electoral game but also threaten to further impair its own independence and integrity. Continue reading >>
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16 January 2023
Judicial Impartiality in Indonesia Under Attack
The independence of judicial power in Indonesia is in a precarious situation. Lately, the parliament haphazardly dismissed Constitutional Judge Aswanto, a parliament-proposed Constitutional Judge. This situation was exacerbated through the inauguration of the parliament-proposed substitute, Constitutional Judge Guntur Hamzah, by President Widodo who could have refused to authorize this illegal act. Instead, President Widodo took part in the destruction of the Constitutional Court, putting judicial independence in Indonesia in jeopardy, particularly facing the upcoming 2024 election. Continue reading >>
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27 September 2022
Eroding Indonesian Local Democracy
Under the administration of President Joko Widodo (Jokowi), Indonesia undergoes a period of democratic decay and constitutional demise. In a recent example, there will be at least 170 interim regional heads leading their regions without any constitutional democratic legitimacy until the next General Elections in 2024, if the current malpractice by the Ministry of Home Affairs remains unchanged. Like the climate crisis, democratic backsliding is not some future grim prospect, but has already arrived and is well-underway. Continue reading >>
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