Constitutional Courtâs Chief Justice Moh. Mahfud M.K., the Peopleâs Consultative Assembly speaker Taufiq Kiemas, Constitutional Forum chairman Harun Kamil, and Constitutional Court secretary general Janedjri M. Gaffar attended the launching of Comprehensive Documents of the Amendments to the 1945 Constitution, Jakarta, (11/11).
Jakarta, MKOnline - The launching of the revised edition of Comprehensive Documents of the Amendments to the 1945 Constitution took place on Thursday afternoon (Nov. 11) in the auditorium of the Constitutional Court’s building in Jakarta. The attendee list included Constitutional Court justices; Constitutional Court Secretary General Janedjri M. Gaffar; the People’s Consultative Assembly Speaker Taufiq Kiemas; House of Representatives speaker Marzuki Alie, Judicial Commission chairman Busyro Muqqodas; the Supreme Audit Board Chairman Hadi Purnomo; Constitutional Forum Chairman Harun Kamil; Constitutional Court officers; and other invitees.
The Constitutional Court’s Chief Justice Moh. Mahfud M.D. expected that the Comprehensive Documents of the Amendments to the 1945 Constitution would become a book of main reference used for any constitutional studies in Indonesia at the moment. In the past, Prof. Moh. Yamin wrote a similar book entitled Preparatory Documents of 1945 Constitution, and apart from its controversies, Mahfud quoted Sukarno’s remakes in the introduction, “For young people of Indonesia who want to dive into the ocean of the history of national struggle and the Indonesian constitution, you should read the book written by Yamin because it reflects the debate over political decisions that shaped this nation”
“And for those who want to dive into the ocean of the history of national reform which gave birth to the current constitution, they can read Comprehensive Documents of the Amendments to the 1945 Constitution,” Mahfud said.
Mahfud also congratulated the Constitutional Forum that had assumed the duties given by the People’s Consultative Assembly and the Constitutional Court and made the launching of the book possible. “I would like to thank in particular the People’s Consultative Assembly, which had already facilitated cooperation and made the revision of this book possible,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Assembly speaker Taufiq Kiemas said the book was monumental, as it was possible due to cooperation between the Assembly and the Constitutional Court that followed up a memorandum of understanding, which was aimed at promoting the 1945 Constitution and developing a culture of awareness about the Constitution.
“Devotion to the nation and the state is a mandate and the responsibility of all citizens in the hope of realizing a better future for Indonesia. The dynamics of life taking into account the importance of state and nation, as well as the realization of a supreme constitution is very important,” Taufik said.
Therefore, efforts and concrete steps to realize the rule of law are required. And this, among others, can be done by providing full and comprehensive understanding of the 1945 Constitution for citizens, as well as increasing the awareness about the importance of the Constitution for all of the components of this nation, Taufiq continues.
In addition, Constitutional Court’s Secretary General Janedjri M. Gaffar said the book was expected to help justices, who in this case were required to have full understanding of the items and provisions contained in the 1945 Constitution, in terms of using it as a method of constitutional interpretation. “The preparation of Comprehensive Documents of 1945 Constitutional Amendments was desired and served as the embodiment of the Constitutional Court’s responsibility to meet the needs of history, especially in terms of documenting the history of constitutional development in Indonesia,” Janedjri added.
On the same occasion, the publishers, in this case the Constitutional Court Secretariat General, the Court’s Secretariat, and the Constitutional Forum, also symbolically submitted the book to the People’s Consultative Assembly’s Speaker and the Constitutional Court’s Chief Justice. The book, which is arranged in a thematic and chronological fashion, is expected to provide readers with easier understanding of information regarding the constitutional amendments taking place between 1999 and 2002. The book consists of 17 parts of treatise that are not easy to read.
Moreover, the book, which is published by the Constitutional Court’s Secretariat General and Registrar’s Office , also consists of 10 volumes of specific subjects: Volume 1—Background, Process, and Amendment Results of the 1945 Constitution; Volume II—Pillars and the Fundamentals of the State; Volume III—Deliberative Institutions and Representatives (Part I and Part II); Volume IV—Powers of State Government (two parts); Volume V—General Elections; Part VI—Judicial Powers; Part VII—Finance, National Economy, and Social Welfare; Part VIII—Citizens and Population, Human Rights, and Religions; Volume IX—Education and Culture; Volume X—Transitional and Supplementary Rules. (Nano Tresna A./mh)
Thursday, November 11, 2010 | 15:13 WIB 226