Philosophical and Historical Dimensions of Public Interest Disclosure As Aright to Information

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

Philosophical and Historical Dimensions of Public Interest Disclosure As Aright to Information Quest Journals Journal of Research in Humanities and Social Science Volume 3 ~ Issue 7 (2015) pp:46-52 ISSN(Online) : 2321-9467 www.questjournals.org Research Paper Philosophical and Historical Dimensions of Public Interest Disclosure as aRight to Information Rahmat Bakri, Aminuddin Ilmar, H.M. Djafar Saidi, Achmad Ruslan1 Received 16July, 2015; Accepted 10August, 2015 © The author(s) 2015. Published with open access atwww.questjournals.org ABSTRACT: The aims of this research are to reviews thephilosophical and historical dimensions of public interest disclosure as a right to information in Indonesia. The type of this research was a normative research with legal, historical, and conceptual approach. Research is conducted qualitatively with library research within primary and secondary legal sources.The outcomes of the research indicate that the public interest disclosure has a close relationship with the values of Pancasila as basic norm. Despite having a strong philosophical foundation to be applied in the administration of state and government, but based on historical tracking of the constitution in force from time to time show that the assertion of the right to information in the constitution requires a long process to make it happen as a constitutional rights. Keywords:Constitutional Right,Good Governance,Human Rights, Public Interest,Right to Information I. INTRODUCTION Right to information or right to know as an autonomous rights stated in the United Nations (UN) General Assembly Resolution 59 (1), December 14, 1946:Freedom of information is a fundamental human rights and is the touchstones of all the freedoms to which the United Nations is consecrated.2Although some of the early laws guaranteeing a right to access information held by public bodies were called freedom of information laws, it is clear from the context that, as used in the Resolution, the term referred in general to the free fl ow of information in society rather than the more specifi c idea of a right to access information held by public bodies. However, until November 1989 only 13 countries have national laws and provide assurance to the citizens to access information held by government agencies. The country is Sweden in 1766, Colombia in 1888, Finland in 1951, USA in 1966, Denmark in 1970, Norway in 1970, France in 1978, the Netherlands in 1978, Australia in 1982, Canada in 1982, New Zealand in 1982, Greece in 1986, and Austria in 1987.3 The right to access information in its development has become a measure of democracy in a country. In the middle of 2008, recorded about 65 countries in the world that has had legislation that establishes a mechanism for the public request and receive information held by government.4 Recent data released by the Open Society Justice Initiative on September 25, 2013, shows a very significant development, in which about 95 countries have national laws on access to information. Some countries even put and guarantee the right to 1Lecturer at Faculty of Law, Tadulako University, Palu, Center Sulawesi, Indonesia; Obtained Bachelor of Law (2005) from Tadulako University; Master of Law (2010) from Airlangga University, Surabaya; and Currently completing the Doctoral Program of Legal Studies at Graduate School of Hasanuddin University, Makassar, Indonesia. E-mail:[email protected] 2Source: Kontras and Yayasan Tifa, Panduan Mengenal Hak Atas Informasi Publik dan Pemolisian, Jakarta, 2011, page. 15. 3Sandra Coliver, The Right to Information and the Increasing Scope of Bodies Covered by National Laws Since 1989, Available at:www.right2info.org. Accessed January 4, 2015. 4Helen Darbishire and Thomas Carson, Transparency & Silence: Sebuah Survei Undang-Undang Akses Informasi dan Prakteknya di 14 Negara, (Translated in Indonesian by Marianus Kleden and Mohammad Hamid), Yayasan Tifa, Jakarta, 2008, page. xxi. *CorrespondingAuthor: Rahmat Bakri 46 | Page Philosophical and Historical Dimensions of Public Interest Disclosure as aRight to Information information explicitly in the constitution. Here is an excerpt articles of the Constitution a number of countries which regulates the right to information:5 South Africa Article 32(1) of the South African Constitution provides, in part: Everyone has the right of access to: 1) any information held by the State; and 2) any information that is held by another person and that is required for the exercise or protection of any rights. Norway Article 100 of the Constitution of Norway provides, in part: Everyone has a right of access to the documents of the State and of the municipal administration and a right to be present at sittings of the courts and elected assemblies … It is a duty of the State authorities to facilitate an open and enlightened public dialogue. Bulgaria Article 41 (2) of the Constitution of Bulgaria provides: Citizens shall be entitled to obtain information from State bodies and agencies on any matter of legitimate interest to them which is not a State or official secret and does not affect the rights of others. Philippines Article 3 (7) of the Constitution of the Philippines provides: The right of the people to information on matters of public concern shall be recognized. Access to official records, and to documents and papers pertaining to official acts, transactions, or decisions, as well as to government research data used as basis for policy development, shall be afforded the citizen, subject to such limitations as may be provided by law. Brazil Article 33 of the Constitution of Brazil provides: All persons are entitled to receive from government agencies information of private interest to such persons or of collective or general interest which shall be provided within the period established by law, subject to liability, with the exception of information whose secrecy is vital to the security of society and of the state. The importance of the right to information or the right to know is an increasingly constant refrain in the mouths of development practitioners, civil society, academics, the media and even governments. The guarantee of right to information in Indonesia has been mentioned in Article 28F of the Constitution of the Republic of Indonesia which stated that: Everyone shall be entitled to communicate and obtain information to develop their personality and social setting, and to find, obtain, have, keep, process, and give information with any means of channel available. This constitutional guarantee is further elaborated in Law No. 14 of 2008 concerning Public Interest Disclosure. The birth of Freedom of Information Law to be the beginning of the presence of a climate of openness in the governance process. Applicability of Freedom of Information Law imposes a duty on the government and other public bodies to open access to public information. The freedom of Information Law as a legal product born through a long process that involves the struggle of a group of civil society who are members of the Civil Society Coalition for Freedom of Information. Regime and the bureaucratic culture that during the new order is closed into its own obstacles to deliver a product legislation that would reverse the opacity is a disclosure practices. As a result, the draft law submitted to the parliament since August 2000 requires a long time to be ratified and enforced. Related how far the Freedom of Information Law to be effective in its application, can not be separated from the philosophical-historical dimensions approach. A philosophical dimension, as affirmed Hans Kelsen and Hans Nawiasky that on every country there is always a basic values or the values of the highest philosophical believed to be the source of all sources of noble values in the respective state life.6From a 5Source: Usaid, Internews, and AMDEP, Media Law and Policy Program, Center for Global Communications Studies Annenberg University of Pennsylvania, 2012, page. 31-32. 6Anshori Ilyas, Berbagai Konsep tentang Hukum sebagai Suatu Sistem, Jurnal Ilmu Hukum Amanna Gappa, 18(2), June 2010, page. 213 *CorrespondingAuthor: Rahmat Bakri 47 | Page Philosophical and Historical Dimensions of Public Interest Disclosure as aRight to Information historical dimension, according to Himawan Estu Bagijo7 to understand the intent and purpose of various laws, which can not be released in the history of its formation. Based on Bagijo’s view, a comprehensive and fundamental understanding of the freedom of information as a constitutional rights. II. IDENTIFICATION OF THE ISSUE The issue to be discussed in this paper is “How does the philosophical and historical dimensions of public interest disclosure find its legitimacy within the law enforcement concept as a right to information?” III. METHOD OF RESEARCH The type of research used in this paper is normative research, reviewing the public interest disclosure from the philosophical and historical dimensions, with the aim of constructing a new concept which is ideal to be applied in Indonesia. According to Peter Mahmud Marzuki8 legal research (normative) is a process to find the rule of law, principles of law, and the legal doctrines in order to answer the legal issues. The data being used include secondary data consisting of primary law materials in the form of laws and regulations, tertiary law materials in the form of reference books, opinion of experts, and the outcomes of previous research, as well as tertiary law materials in the form of language dictionaries, scientific law dictionary, and Black’s Law Dictionary. The analysis method applied in this paper starts with the abstraction of primary law materials, secondary law materials and tertiary law materials, leading to an understanding of the essence of the right to information as well as human rightsapproach, followed by systematization and synchronization, and finally, drawing conclusions based on the deductive syllogism reasoning method to construct a new concept. IV. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION The Philosophical Dimension of Public Interest Disclosure Like a tree, the history of the development of a healthy nation can’t be uprooted from the land and its historical roots, socio-cultural ecosystem, a system of meaning (signification), and its own world view.
Recommended publications
  • Vice President's Power and Role in Indonesian Government Post Amendment 1945 Constitution
    Al WASATH Jurnal Ilmu Hukum Volume 1 No. 2 Oktober 2020: 61-78 VICE PRESIDENT'S POWER AND ROLE IN INDONESIAN GOVERNMENT POST AMENDMENT 1945 CONSTITUTION Roziqin Guanghua Law School, Zhejiang University, China Email: [email protected] Abstract Politicians are fighting over the position of Vice President. However, after becoming Vice President, they could not be active. The Vice President's role is only as a spare tire. Usually, he would only perform ceremonial acts. The exception was different when the Vice President was Mohammad Hata and Muhammad Jusuf Kalla. Therefore, this paper will question: What is the position of the President in the constitutional system? What is the position of the Vice President of Indonesia after the amendment of the 1945 Constitution? Furthermore, how is the role sharing between the President and Vice President of Indonesia? This research uses the library research method, using secondary data. This study uses qualitative data analysis methods in a prescriptive-analytical form. From the research, the writer found that the President is assisted by the Vice President and ministers in carrying out his duties. The President and the Vice President work in a team of a presidential institution. From time to time, the Indonesian Vice President's position has always been the same to assist the President. The Vice President will replace the President if the President is permanently unavailable or temporarily absent. With the Vice President's position who is directly elected by the people in a pair with the President, he/she is a partner, not subordinate to the President.
    [Show full text]
  • International Journal of Multicultural and Multireligious Understanding (IJMMU) Vol
    Comparative Study of Post-Marriage Nationality Of Women in Legal Systems of Different Countries http://ijmmu.com [email protected] International Journal of Multicultural ISSN 2364-5369 Volume 6, Issue 5 and Multireligious Understanding October, 2019 Pages: 301-313 The Authority of Honorary Committee of Notary in Obtaining the Copy of Original Deed Owned by Yasmine Citra Maulania Yasmine Citra Maulania; Sukanda Husin; Beatrix Benni Faculty of Law, Andalas University, Padang, Indonesia http://dx.doi.org/10.18415/ijmmu.v6i5.1079 Abstract Honorary Committee of Notary is an institution chosen by the Minister of Justice and Human Rights as the supervisor of Notary position working based on Law Number 2 of 2016 regarding Amendment on Law Number 30 of 2004 regarding Notary Position. In Article 66 of Law of Notary Position, Honorary Committee of Notary basically has authority to give approval on the request of original deed copy. The implementation of this authority is set in the Regulation of Justice and Human Rights Minister Number 7 of 2016 regarding Honorary Committee of Notary. The validity of this Honorary Committee of Notary automatically gets rejection from some parties if related to judicature. Therefore, the researcher makes research question on how the role of Honorary Committee of Notary in obtaining original deed copy and how the effect of Honorary Committee of Notary consideration towards obtaining copy of original deed. The research method used is judicial normative in which it is an approach done based on primary law material by reviewing theories, concepts, law principles, and regulations regarding to this research. When the copy obtaining is requested to the Honorary Committee of Notary, the members of committee will conduct a meeting.
    [Show full text]
  • Judicial Preview Sebagai Mekanisme Verifikasi Konstitusionalitas Suatu Rancangan Undang-Undang
    Judicial Preview Sebagai Mekanisme Veri›kasi Konstitusionalitas Suatu Rancangan Undang-Undang Alek Karci Kurniawan Penstudi Ilmu Hukum di Fakultas Hukum Universitas Andalas, Aktivis Unit Kegiatan Mahasiswa Pengenalan Hukum dan Politik Universitas Andalas E-mail: [email protected] Naskah diterima: 4/11/2014 revisi: 18/11/2014 disetujui: 27/11/2014 Abstrak Banyaknya permohonan uji materiil terhadap undang-undang sebagai produk legislasi DPR dan Presiden di Mahkamah Konstitusi, menandakan pembuatan undang-undang sebagai salah satu produk hukum di Indonesia saat ini oleh banyak pihak dipandang belum berhasil memenuhi harapan masyarakat. Kontras, dengan konsekuensi sudah ratusan pasal yang dibatalkan oleh MK sejak berdirinya itu menandakan begitu buruknya pembuatan undang-undang selama ini. Salah satu penyebabnya adalah kelemahan untuk meneliti dengan cermat agar draf- draf undang-undang tersebut sesuai dengan konstitusi dan harapan masyarakat. Oleh karena itu, dalam penelitian ini ingin mengkaji dan mengembangkan suatu mekanisme check list guna memastikan bahwa tiap proses pembuatan undang- undang sesuai dengan konstitusi yang berlaku dan harapan masyarakat. Dalam penelitian ini, metode yang digunakan adalah yuridis normatif dengan memakai pendekatan perundang-undangan, konseptual dan historis. Dari hasil penelitian mengetengahkan sebuah mekanisme tambahan bagi MK untuk memverivikasi nilai konstitusionalitas suatu rancangan undang-undang. Kata kunci: Pengujian Undang-Undang, Konstitusinalitas Undang-Undang, Judicial Preview Judicial Preview Sebagai Mekanisme Verifikasi Konstitusionalitas Suatu Rancangan Undang-Undang Abstract The many the petition judicial review of legislation, as legislation product Parliament and the President, at the Constitutional Court, indicates law making as any of the products of law in Indonesia is currently seen by many parties have not succeeded meet the expectations ofsociety.
    [Show full text]
  • Obstruction of Justice in the Effort to Eradicate Corruption in Indonesia
    International Journal of Law, Crime and Justice 51 (2017) 72e83 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect International Journal of Law, Crime and Justice journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/ijlcj Obstruction of justice in the effort to eradicate corruption in Indonesia * Saldi Isra a, Yuliandri a, Feri Amsari b, Hilaire Tegnan b, a Department of Constitutional Law, Faculty of Law Andalas University, Padang, Indonesia b Center of Constitutional Studies (PusaKO), Faculty of Law Andalas University, Padang, Indonesia article info abstract Article history: Corruption is a reality in Indonesia and has a significant destructive force. Not only does Received 27 September 2016 it harm the wealth of the state, but it also takes away the legitimacy of law enforcement Received in revised form 4 June 2017 by destroying the public's trust in law. This can lead to the destruction of democracy and Accepted 3 July 2017 modernization in Indonesia. Aware of the situation, or perhaps for political correctness, Available online 17 July 2017 the post independence governments made the war on corruption a state of emergency. But it was not until the advent of the political era known to the Indonesians as Era Keywords: Reformasi in 2000 that the fight against corruption intensified with the enactment of Law Obstruction of justice Corruption No. 30/2002 creating the Corruption Eradication Commission or Komisi Pemberantasan Corruption Eradication Korupsi (hereafter referred to as KPK). Since its creation, the Commission has been hunting down corruptors like never before. But going after corrupt officials is not an easy task. As KPK gets tougher due to more legal backup and public's trust, corruptors find illegal ways to bend, or impede the law in order to get away with their heinous crime.
    [Show full text]
  • Upaya Memulihkan Kewibawaan Mahkamah Konstitusi Pasca Tertangkapnya Akil Mochtar
    Tundjung HS. Upaya Memulihkan... 293 Upaya Memulihkan Kewibawaan Mahkamah Konstitusi Pasca Tertangkapnya Akil Mochtar Tundjung Herning Sitabuana Fakultas Hukum Universitas Semarang Jl. Arteri Soekarno-Hatta Semarang Fakultas Hukum Universitas Tarumanagara Jl. Letjen S. Parman No. 1 Jakarta Barat [email protected] Abstract This research was to study and find an attempt to recover the authority of Constitutional Court after the apprehension of Akil Mochtar. The method used in this research was normatif legal research which was descriptive qualitative with statute approach. The secondary data were primary and secondary legal materials which were collected by literature study and analyzed normatively and qualitatively. The research result showed that the recovery of the authority of Constitutional Court must be conducted in a correct way, namely by using 1945 Constitution of Republic Indonesia as the guideline in order to ensure the implementation of the norms contained in 1945 Constitution as the standard. This was in accordance with the principle of constitution supremacy applied in Indonesia. Key words : Constitutional Court. principle of constitution supremacy Abstrak Penelitian Penelitian yang bertujuan mengkaji dan menemukan upaya untuk memulihkan kewibawaan Mahkamah Konstitusi pasca tertangkapnya Akil Mochtar. Metode yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini adalah penelitian hukum normatif yang bersifat deskriptif kualitatif dengan pendekatan perundang- undangan. Data sekunder yang berupa bahan hukum primer dan sekunder dikumpulkan melalui studi pustaka, dan dianalisis secara normatif kualitatif. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa pemulihan kewibawaan Mahkamah Konstitusi harus dilakukan dengan cara yang tepat, yaitu dengan menggunakan UUD NRI Tahun 1945 sebagai panduannya, sehingga tolok ukur yang dipakai adalah norma-norma yang ada di dalam UUD NRI Tahun 1945.
    [Show full text]
  • Recusal at the Constitutional Court of Indonesia
    ISSN 2455-4782 RECUSAL AT THE CONSTITUTIONAL COURT OF INDONESIA Authored by: Syamsudin Noer* * PhD Candidate at Brawijaya University, Indonesia ______________________________________________________________________________ ACKNOWLEDGMENT This paper was supervised by Luthfi Widagdo Eddyono, researcher at Indonesian Constitutional Court. Author thanks Mr. Luthfi, who provided insight and expertise that greatly assisted the author in his research, although Mr. Luthfi may not agree with all of the conclusions of this paper. 182 | P a g e JOURNAL ON CONTEMPORARY ISSUES OF LAW [JCIL] VOLUME 4 ISSUE 7 ISSN 2455-4782 ABSTRACT This article will search about recusal regulations for judges in Indonesia. I found that there are no rules about the recusal at the Constitutional Court of Indonesia meanwhile in other courts there were clear regulations. However, in reality, there are some practices concerning recusal at the Constitutional Court. This paper provides a recommendation of how the recusal is able in due to the request of the constitutional justice seekers, or to be submitted by the constitutional judges who clearly have a direct or indirect conflict of interest in the case. Keyword: Recusal, Constitutional Judges, Indonesian Constitutional Court. 183 | P a g e JOURNAL ON CONTEMPORARY ISSUES OF LAW [JCIL] VOLUME 4 ISSUE 7 ISSN 2455-4782 INTRODUCTION The constitutional judges have a very important position in any democratic state based on law (constitutional democracy) or a democratic legal state (democratic rule of law, or democratische rechtsstaat).1 According to Article 24C 1945 Constitution, the Indonesian Constitutional Court has the authority to adjudicate at the first and final instance, the judgment of which is final, to review laws against the Constitution, to judge on authority disputes of state institutions whose authorities are granted by the Constitution, to judge on the dissolution of a political party, and to judge on discussions regarding the result of a general election.
    [Show full text]
  • KL P]NG BERITA KORAN Hari / TANGGAL HALAMAN ------'-- - - =--=--=------L------+--__;;;:===::;;;.;~ KO MP AS,,______L __ RABU, 12 APRIL 2017 ___..______--I
    SEKRETARIAT DEWAN PERWAKILAN· RAKYAT DAERAH PROVINSI SUMATERA BARAT Jin. Khatib Sulaiman No. 87 Telp. 7057591 - 7057592 - 7057593 Fax. (0751) 7059328 Padang 25133 http://www.dprd-sumbarprov.go.id KL P]NG BERITA KORAN HARi / TANGGAL HALAMAN - --------- ---'-- - - =--=--=-----------L-- - - -----+--__;;;:===::;;;.;~ KO MP AS,,_ _____L_ __ RABU, 12 APRIL 2017 ___..__ _____--I Saldi Isra Siap Bekerja Total JAKARTA, KOMPAS - Guru Besar Hukum Tata Negara Uni­ versitas Andalas, Padang, Saldi Isra menyatakan siap bekerja fa­ tal sebagai hakim konstitusi. Se­ jalan dengan itu, Saldi telah me­ lepas jabatan dan kesibukannya di sejumlah lembaga berbeda. Komitmen itu disampaikan se­ usai mengucapkan sumpah. dan janji di Istana Negara, Kompleks Istana Kepresidenan, Jakarta, Se­ lasa (11/4). Seusai mengucapkan sumpah, Saldi langsung meng­ ikuti persidangan pertama di MK pukul 13.30. Saldi mengatakan, lima tahun ke depan merupakan masa yang membutuhkan perhatian total hakim konstitusi. Khusus tahun 2019, kata Saldi, merupakan pe­ riode krusial ketika pemilu le­ gislatif dan presiden berlangsung serentak. "Menuju tahun 2019, semua komponen Mahkamah Konstitu­ si, baik di sekretariat jenderal maupun kepaniteraan, harus me­ miliki komitmen yang sama. Jadi, menjelang 2019, tingkat keper­ cayaan publik dapat seperti sedia kala kepada MK," ujarnya seusai mengucapkan sumpah dan janji sebagai hakim konstitusi. Prosesi ini disaksikan Presiden Joko Widodo, Wakil Presiden Ju­ suf Kalla, pimpinan lembaga ne­ gara, dan sejurnlah menteri Ka­ binet Kerja. Saldi berjanji me­ menuhi kewajiban dan menja­ lankan aturan selurus-lurusnya sesuai Undang-Undang Dasar 1945. Saldi pun mengundurkan diri sebagai Komisaris PT Semen Padang (Persero) sejak Selasa Saldi juga cuti mengajar hukum tata negara Universitas Andalas KOMPAS/WISNU WlDIAN TORO dan sebagai Direktur Pusat Studi Konstitusi Universitas Andalas.
    [Show full text]
  • PUBLISHED by Theconstitutional Court of the Republic of Indonesia
    December 2017 ❏ Volume 3, Number 2 C ONSTITUTIONAL Constitutional Review Thank you very much to ❏ Advisers Relation between the Constitutional Court of the R Prof. Dr. AriefRepublic Hidayat, of Indonesia S.H., M.S. and the Legislators according Dr. Anwarto theUsman, 1945 S.H., Constitution M.H. of the Republic of Indonesia EVIEW Fajar Laksono, Sudarsono, Arief Hidayat, and Muchammad Prof. Dr. MariaAli Farida Safaat Indrati, S.H., M.H. Dr. H. Wahiduddin Adams, S.H., MA. ❏ Prof. Dr. Aswanto The Laws S.H., of M.Si. Ratification DFM. of an International Treaty in Indonesian Laws Hierarchy Dr. I Dewa Gede Palguna, S.H. , M. Hum Noor Sidharta Dr. Suhartoyo, S. H. , M. H. Dr. Manahan❏ M.The P. Sitompul, Indonesian S.H., Constitutional M. Hum Court and the Democratic Institutions in Judicial Review Prof. Dr. Saldi Isra, S.H., MPA. Andy Omara ❏ A Commentary: The Inadmissibility of Non-Indonesian December 2017 Citizens in Judicial Review before the Indonesian Constitutional Court Bayu Mahendra ❏ An Analysis of Subjectum Litis and Objectum Litis on Dispute about the Authority of State Institution from the Verdicts of the Constitutional Court ❏ Anna Triningsih and Nuzul Qur’aini Mardiya Volume 3, Number 2 Volume ❏ The Criticism on the Meaning of “Open Legal Policy” in Verdicts of Judicial Review at the Constitutional Court Mardian Wibowo, I Nyoman Nurjaya, Muchammad Ali Safaat, and Jazim Hamidi PUBLISHED BY The Constitutional Court of the Republic of Indonesia We Also Publish: “Jurnal Konstitusi” Accredited By LIPI (Indonesian Institute of Sciences) and DIKTI (Indonesian Directorate General of Higher Education) CONSTITUTIONAL COURT OF THE REPUBLIC OF INDONESIA TEH CONSTITUTIONAL COURT OF THE REPUBLIC OF INDONESIA THE CONSTITUTIONAL COURT OF THE REPUBLIC OF INDONESIA THE CONSTITUTIONALConstitutional Review COURT, December OF 2017,THE Volume REPUBLIC 3, Number 2 OF INDONESIA December 2017, Volume 3, Number 2 Board of Editors CONTENTS Officially Incharge : M.
    [Show full text]
  • Designing a Constitutional Presidential Democracy in Indonesia
    Journal of Politics and Law; Vol. 13, No. 2; 2020 ISSN 1913-9047 E-ISSN 1913-9055 Published by Canadian Center of Science and Education Designing a Constitutional Presidential Democracy in Indonesia Saldi Isra1, Fahmi Idris2 & Hilaire Tegnan1 1 Faculty of Law, Andalas University, Padang, Indonesia 2 Padang State University, Padang, Indonesia Correspondence: Fahmi Idris, Padang State University, Padang, Indonesia. E-mail: [email protected] Received: April 2, 2020 Accepted: May 3, 2020 Online Published: May 13, 2020 doi:10.5539/jpl.v13n2p22 URL: https://doi.org/10.5539/jpl.v13n2p22 Abstract The constitutional design of the Indonesian democracy has undergone several significant changes from President Sukarno’s regime known as Orde Lama or the Old Order (1945-1965) to Era Reformasi or Reformation Era (1998 to present). During the drafting of the 1945 Constitution, the desire to form a democratic system of government that is unique to Indonesia has led its founding fathers to adopt an ambivalent system of government resembling both a parliamentary and presidential systems of government. By investigating the Indonesian democracy and system of government through the analysis of relevant articles of the 1945 Constitution, the present study seeks to address the question how to design a constitutional presidential democracy in Indonesia. The research results show that with the election of president and vice president and their accountability to the People’s Consultative Assembly or Majelis Perwalikan Rakyat (MPR), the design of the Indonesian system of government better fits a parliamentary more than a presidential. However, the four amendments to the 1945 Constitution (from 1999 to 2002) were intended to pave the way for a presidential democracy capable of accommodating the characteristics of a true presidential system of government in Indonesia.
    [Show full text]
  • The Role of Civil Society Organisations (Csos) in Combating Corruption During Democratic Transition in Indonesia
    School of Social Sciences and Asian Languages Department of Social Sciences Making a New Democracy Work: the Role of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) in Combating Corruption during Democratic Transition in Indonesia Budi Setiyono This thesis is presented for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Curtin University of Technology July 2010 Declaration To the best of my knowledge and belief this thesis contains no material previously published by any other person except where due acknowledgment has been made. This thesis contains no material which has been accepted for the award of any other degree or diploma in any university. Budi Setiyono Date: ii Abstract Corruption has often stimulated the collapse of authoritarian regimes and was followed by democratisation in a number of developing countries. Many new democratic regimes, however, have also been failed to control corruption because during the transition to democracy, their institutional structure of governance has typically not functioned well. In Indonesia too, corruption has been a highly pertinent issue that has both stimulated and compromised the regime‘s transition to democracy. This has provided a platform for civil society organisations (CSOs) to take an active political role. Yet insufficient empirical examination exists on the role of CSOs in combating corruption during democratic transition and the implication for democratisation. This thesis documents and critically examines the contribution of CSOs (more specifically anti-corruption CSOs) in Indonesia, an examination essential to the study of democratisation and anti-corruption efforts. It investigates how and to what extent CSOs can fight corruption during democratic transition. Owing to the ineffectiveness and unwillingness of the state, civil associations have undertaken initiatives in fighting and underscoring corruption into the domain of public debate.
    [Show full text]
  • INDO 81 0 1149868711 51 70.Pdf (404.9Kb)
    The U nfinished Privatization of Semen Padang: The Structure of the Political Economy in Post-Suharto Indonesia Wahyu Prasetyawan1 1. Introduction This paper analyzes the dispute over Semen Padang, a state-owned enterprise located in West Sumatra, using the Coase theorem to structure the analysis.2 The relevant part of the Coase theorem is the notion that, as long as property rights3 are T would like to thank Professor Takashi Shiraishi, Professor Takeshi Hamashita, Associate Professor Patricio Abinales, and Associate Professor Caroline Hau for their constructive criticisms on the draft. I benefited from the thoughtful comments of an anonymous reviewer at Indonesia. I thank Abdullah Kusairi, Saldi Isra, Nanda Utama, and Elwi Daniel for their help during my stay in Padang. I thank Nathan Badenoch, Arie Damayanti, and Dave Lumenta for their comments. I thank Deborah Homsher for her sensitive editing. 2 Coase theorem is named after Ronald Coase, one of the founders of the New Institutional School of thought. The Coase theorem was first used by George Stigler in his book, The Theory of Price. See Steven G. Medema, Ronald H. Coase (London: The Macmillan Press Ltd., 1994), p. 63. The standard Coase theorem says that when transaction costs are zero and rights fully specified, parties to a dispute will bargain to an efficient outcome, regardless of the initial assignment of rights. See Ronald Coase, The Firm, the Market, and the Law (Chicago, IL: Chicago University Press, 1988), p. 12. This book consists of reprints of Coase's works, including "The Problem of Social Cost" originally published by The Journal o f Law and Economics in volume III, 1960, in which the Coase theorem is rooted.
    [Show full text]
  • A Formal Mechanism in the Judicial Review on the of the 1945 Constitution of the Republic of Indonesia by Constitutional Court
    American International Journal of Social Science Vol. 4, No. 5; October 2015 A Formal Mechanism in the Judicial Review on the of the 1945 Constitution of the Republic of Indonesia by Constitutional Court Tunggul Anshari Setia Negara Phd. Candidate at Law Faculty Brawijaya University Malang Indonesia Prof. Dr. Sudarsono, SH., MS. Promotor Prof. A. Mukthie Fadjar, SH., MS. Co. Promotor Dr. Jazim Hamidi, SH., MH. Co. Promotor 2 Abstract The formal legislational testing of the 1945 Constitution is naturally an effort to assure the protection of the citizens’ constitutional rights from any absolute behaviors of the power holders because such absolute behaviors may result in the breaking of the fundamental rights of the citizens, and to avoid this, justice and benefits in terms of the proces of regulations in the forms of procedures, mechanism and the formation systems should be given as much as possible to the citizens. The formal legislational testing of the 1945Constitution is intended to establish better laws (leges condere legem melius mutato proposito) since in the legislational process, the principles of establishment are often ignored. Keyword : Constitution, A Formal mechanism. A. Background of the Study. The state of the Republic of Indonesia is a legal state1 with the principle of democracy2, as stated in the C1945 Constitution of the Republic of Indonesia.3. In this democratic country, it is the people who hold the power in determining the general direction and policies of the state by establishing a constitution and legislations as the rule of the game in serving the life of the nation and state.
    [Show full text]