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Constitutional Court researcher Nallom Kurniawan welcoming students of the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences of Pancasakti University, Tegal on Wednesday (9/10) on the 4^th floor of the Constitutional Court building. Photo by Humas MK/Ifa.

JAKARTA, Public Relations of the Constitutional Court—Constitutional Court researcher Nallom Kurniawan welcomed 91 students of the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences of Pancasakti University, Tegal on Wednesday afternoon (9/10/2019) on the 4^th floor of the Constitutional Court building.

Nallom discussed democracy during the visit. "Unbeknownst to us, democracy has weaknesses. In fact, I say that democracy has inherited defects. In a democracy, the most votes will win. Is the most votes absolutely right? Not necessarily. Can the many oppress the few? There can be a majority tyranny against the minority. This is common in many countries," he explained.

Therefore, Nallom added, nomocracy is now a counterweight. The Indonesian state is not only based on democracy, but also on nomocracy. That is why there is a need for an institution that oversees the concepts of democracy and nomocracy, namely the Constitutional Court. 

Nallom said that Indonesia is the most democratic country. "I could be wrong, when many people say that America is a reference for democracy. If the election in America had been a direct election, surely Donald Trump would not have become President, because Hillary Clinton had the popular votes," he said. 

Nallom said that the current one man, one vote, one value elections in Indonesia is where, "One citizen has the same rights as another. Therefore, I dare say that Indonesia is the largest democracy in the world."

Nallom added that the challenges of a democracy are heterogeneity, diversity, in terms of culture, ethnicity, religion, and so on, as is found in Indonesia, which has 17,000 islands and a population of around 250 million people. 

Nalom also explained that the Constitutional Court has four authorities and one obligation based on the 1945 Constitution. The main authority of the Constitutional Court is review the law against the 1945 Constitution. A citizen can file for a judicial review to the Constitutional Court and the Constitutional Court would assess if the law is unconstitutional or not. The Constitutional Court has nine justices who can cancel laws made by 560 members of the House and the President. 

The Constitutional Court also has the authority to decide on disputes over the authority of state institutions whose authorities are granted by the 1945 Constitution. Nallom explained this authority departed from the cancellation of the People’s Consultative Assembly (MPR) as the highest state institution, post-amendment to the 1945 Constitution.

"Currently there are only state institutions. Consequently, state institutions are equal. If there is a conflict, it is resolved at the Constitutional Court," said Nallom. 

In addition, the Constitutional Court has the authority to decide upon the dissolution of political parties and decide upon disputes over the results of general elections. The authority to dissolve political parties is a tribute to democracy. In a democracy, a political party cannot be dissolved by the executive. The dissolution must be carried out in a fair legal domain. This is role of the Constitutional Court. The obligation of the Constitutional Court, said Nallom, is to make a decision related to alleged violations committed by the President and/or Vice President. (Nano Tresna Arfana/NRA)

Translated by: Yuniar Widiastuti

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