Head of the Legal Bureau of the Ministry of Agriculture Eddy Purnomo speaking at the PPHKWN at the Pancasila and Constitution Education Center, Wednesday (11/30/2022). Photo by MKRI/R. Widjaya.

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Wednesday, November 30, 2022 | 19:32 WIB

(MKRI) — The constitution awareness program for the citizens (PPHKWN) for constitution village apparatuses and figures concluded on Wednesday, November 30, 2022 at the Pancasila and Constitutional Education Center, Bogor. Acting head of the center, Imam Margono, said in his remarks that discussions on customary rights continued to surface along with strengthening the status of indigenous people’s organizations as legal subjects in Indonesia. However, massive violations of customary rights, such as land grabbing, can still largely be free from monitoring, investigation, and victim rehabilitation.

Imam said the Constitutional Court, which was formed based on Article 24C of the 1945 Constitution, has a very important role in guarding the Constitution and democracy. It holds the last line of defense to prevent the enactment of laws that undermine customary rights. Upholding the law and the Constitution requires that all citizens have a good level of constitutional awareness.

“Therefore, so that citizens can play an optimal role, everyone needs to understand their constitutional rights and the avenues to defend them,” he said.

Imam also said that the protection and recognition of the citizens’ constitutional rights must be in accordance with the conditions of citizens. The reality shows that many Indonesians are unable to access the protection and recognition of the rights granted by the state. This is not of their own volition but due to social structure that leads to marginalization.

Representative of Bangbang constitution village, I Wayan Swastika, conveyed his impression and message. He appreciated the high level of discipline during the program. “The discipline was extraordinary. [Everyone] were really efficient with time. We were motivated to follow all the rules in this center. Discipline is physical and spiritual obedience to statutory law,” he said.

Wayan said this can be spread to the participant’s constitution villages. He also expressed gratitude for the invitation to the program, which gave the participants some insight and was extraordinary.

Also read: Court Holds PPHKWN for Constitution Village Apparatuses and Figures

Drafting Petition

On the third day of the program, Substitute registrar Syukri Asy’ari delivered a presentation on drafting a judicial review petition. He said a judicial review case concerns legislative norms and there are only petitioners, no respondents or opposing parties.

He then explained the parties in such a case: a petitioner(s), testifiers, and the relevant part(ies). All of them can be represented by a legal counsel based on a special power of attorney and/or assisted by an assistant with a request letter submitted to the Court. He explained that a petitioner is a person who believes that their constitutional rights and/or authorities are harmed by the enactment of a law. They could be individual citizens or a group with a common interest, customary law communities that live according to the principles of the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia, private and public legal entities, as well as state institutions.

The Court may request the People’s Consultative Assembly (MPR), House of Representatives (DPR), Regional Representatives Council (DPD), and/or president’s testimony and/or transcript of meetings related to the petition. The testifiers’ testimonies should at least contain elaboration of the facts of the discussion of the law or government regulation in lieu of law being petitioned and/or the transcript thereof, including other matters the Court deems necessary.

Syukri then explained the requirements to file the petition. The petition can be filed online or onsite. The original copy of the petition should be written in Indonesian and signed by the petitioner/their legal counsel, consist of at least a photocopy of the identity of the petitioner/their legal counsel’s identity card, a power of attorney, and a statute/bylaw. It must also at least contain the petitioner’s profile, the Court’s authority, the petitioner’s legal standing, the background of the petition (posita), and the petitum.

Also read: Constitution Village Apparatuses and Figures Learn Pancasila and Constitutional Values

Empowerment of Villagers

Next, expert staff of development and people empowerment from the Ministry of Village, Development of Disadvantaged Regions, and Transmigration Bito Wikantosa explained that the village is a legal community unit that has territorial boundaries and are authorized to regulate and manage government affairs, local community interests based on community initiatives, origin rights, and/or traditional rights that are recognized and respected in the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia.

He explained that the basis for organizing a village is contained in Article 2 of the Village Law, which covers village administration, village development, village community development, and empowerment of village communities based on Pancasila, the 1945 Constitution, the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia, and Bhinneka Tunggal Ika (unity in diversity).

He said every village governance action and legal products in the village including (village regulations, village head regulations, and join village head regulations) must be based on law and the mandate of the 1945 Constitution. The Village is also obligated to recognize the constitutional rights of villagers in accordance with the village’s authority. This is because village regulations and village head regulations must be in accordance with the public interest and/or higher statutory provisions. He also emphasized that legal products in the village must be drafted democratically by involving the community.

Empowerment of Farmers

Meanwhile, the head of the Legal Bureau of the Ministry of Agriculture Eddy Purnomo delivered a presentation on the policy and role of the Ministry of Agriculture in empowering farmers. He said protection and empowerment of farmers is stipulated in Law No. 16 of 2013. Such protection assists farmers in facing difficulty obtaining infrastructure and production facilities, business uncertainty, price risk, crop failure, high-cost economic practices, and climate change. Farmers are empowered through education and training; counseling and assistance; development of systems and facilities for marketing agricultural products; consultation and guarantee of agricultural land area; ease of access to knowledge, technology, and information, and institutional reinforcement, so that they are able to practice better farming.

The participants will be visiting the Constitutional Court in Jakarta on Thursday, December 12, before returning to their respective regions. The PPHKWN program took place on Monday to Thursday, November 28 to December 12, 2022 at the Pancasila and Constitution Education Center in Cisarua, Bogor. Thirty-five participants—apparatuses of five constitution villages—followed presentations on the implementation of Pancasila values, the Constitution and constitutionalism, and many more.

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

Translation uploaded on 12/7/2022 12:06 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.

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