Panel chairman Constitutional Justice Wahiduddin Adams at the preliminary judicial review hearing of Law No. 38 of 2009 on Postal Services virtually, Wednesday (30/9) in the Courtroom of the Constitutional Court. Photo by Humas MK/Ifa.

JAKARTA, Public Relations of the Constitutional Court—The Constitutional Court (MK) held a preliminary judicial review hearing of Law No. 38 of 2009 on Postal Services on Wednesday, September 30, 2020 in the Panel Courtroom. The case No. 78/PUU-XVII/2020 was filed by PT Pos Indonesia and Harry Setya Putra (Petitioners I and II). They are arguing that Article 1 number 2, Article 1 number 8, Article 15, Article 27 paragraph (2), Article 29 paragraph (2), Article 30, Article 46, Article 51 of the Postal Service Law are in violation of Article 33 paragraphs (2), Article 33 paragraph (4), and Article 34 paragraph (3) of the 1945 Constitution.

The Petitioners’ attorney Tegar Yusuf A. N. said Petitioner I is one of the state-owned enterprises that play an important role in the country’s development. Petitioner I organizes the mail, and deliver goods, and offers other postal services for the public. Based on Law No. 19 of 2003 on State-Owned Enterprises (BUMN), Petitioner I aims to contribute to the development of the national economy in general and state revenue in particular, and to pursue and generate profits.

Petitioner I argued that Article 1 number 2 of the Postal Service Law that reads, “The Postal Service is a business entity that manages postal services,” has disrupted its performance. The article means that postal services can be offered by any business entity that meets requirements. This has led to Petitioner I losing its exclusive rights as the state’s postal company and that is is now on par with other non-state postal companies. The enactment of the article has also led to Petitioner I having difficulties in competing with private postal companies.

Petitioner II, who is an individual citizen, feels harmed by the enactment of Article 1 number 8, Article 27 paragraph (2), Article 29 paragraph (2), Article 30, and Article 46 of the Postal Service Law due to letters receiving equal treatment with other postal goods. He believes letters require the protection of the right to privacy, making it stand out compared to other postal goods. Letters contain private information between the sender and the recipient, which constitutes a human right that is expressly guaranteed in Article 28G paragraph (1) of the 1945 Constitution. However, in practice, any letter could be opened and checked by the postal company before being delivered, which violates the right to privacy.

“Therefore, we request that the Court examine and grant the judicial review petition [and] declare Law No. 38 of 2009 on Postal Services unconstitutional and not legally binding,” said attorney Tegar Yusuf vritually before Constitutional Justices Wahiduddin Adams (panel chairman), Suhartoyo, and Daniel Yusmic P. Foekh.

According to the procedural law, the justices were supposed to offer advice for the revision of the petition. However, an internet connection issue went beyond a suspension period, so the hearing would resume on Thursday, October 1, 2020 at 13:00 WIB.

Writer: Sri Pujianti
Editor: Lulu Anjarsari
PR: Annisa Lestari
Translator: Yuniar Widiastuti (NL)

Translation uploaded on 10/03/2020 14:53 WIB

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