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Constitutional Justice Arief Hidayat speaking at a webinar celebrating the 17^th anniversary of the Constitutional Court by the Law Faculty of Diponegoro University (UNDIP), Friday (11/9) from the Constitutional Court. Photo by Humas MK/Gani.

JAKARTA, Public Relations of the Constitutional Court—Constitutional Justice Arief Hidayat spoke at a webinar celebrating the 17^th anniversary of the Constitutional Court (MK), hosted by the Law Faculty of Diponegoro University (UNDIP) on Friday, September 11, 2020. He said that the constitutional justices have various perspective. He also said a quality decision is a gem for both constitutional justices and justice seekers, as it reflects the justices’ expertise and abilities as select legal experts in providing solutions to a constitutional issue. He added that the Constitutional Court strives to make quality decisions front and center.

“The Constitutional Court’s decisions don’t please everyone,” he said. Despite that, the Court and its decisions will continue to contribute in restructuring politics, law, and state administration as well as improving Indonesia’s constitutionalism. He added that quality decisions must provide sustainable legal certainty; be accountable morally, ideologically, juridically, and scientifically based on the 1945 Constitution and Pancasila; and completely resolve constitutionality issues and can be implemented. Such decisions will only come from sound legal opinions.

The justices’ legal opinions must be founded on legal knowledge on the constitution and state administration; be based on facts in the cases; be directed to maintaining constitutional values; explain the constitutionality issue of the legal norms being reviewed; guide how the decisions are implemented; and prove that the decisions are founded on legal and constitutional knowledge, not relying on discretion.

Justice Arief believes that quality decisions can only be achieved when the constitutional justices have outstanding legal knowledge and moral integrity, with the optimal support of the substantial and administrative units. The justices are presumed to have solutions to constitutional issues, or at least strive to analyze the cases. This means that they arrive at decisions after serious considerations, making it impervious to ambiguities. “Although presumed to have a good grasp of the constitution and state administration, constitutional justices are [learning] to continuously push fresh judgments worthy of landmark decisions, so that their decisions are not only reflective of legal craftsmanship but also legal mechanics, as well as actual and critical dimensions in changing the circumstances toward more justice,” he said.

He stressed that in order to produce quality decisions, the justices cannot work alone. They need a support system through which they can access all case-related data and information, but which doesn’t reduce or intervene with their authorities, independence, and accountability.

This has driven the Court to pay attention to improving its management and administration, especially in relation to cases. This can be done by improving integrity, transparency, and accountability, in order to keep the decisions in line with the 1945 Constitution and Pancasila. “I think that’s the best course of action. The Constitutional Court’s management and judicial administration in 17 years have met success, one of which is [by having] public trust. The public’s trust in the Constitutional Court is because of [its] quality decisions, although it doesn’t make the Court complacent,” he concluded.

When opening the webinar, Diponegoro University Law Faculty dean Retno Saraswati said that Indonesia as a law-based state must subject to the constitution. "The Constitutional Court’s decisions are final. [They] have permanent legal force. Because there are no more legal remedies [against them], the quality of the decisions must be good,” she said. She added that this finality must drive the Court to make decisions that seek justice and solutions. She also hoped that the decisions are implemented.

Writer: Utami Argawati
Editor: Lulu Anjarsari
Translator: Yuniar Widiastuti (NL)

Translation uploaded on 9/15/2020 11:11 WIB

Disclaimer: The original version of the news is in Indonesian. In case of any differences between the English and the Indonesian version, the Indonesian version will prevail.

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