Constitutional Court welcoming journal managers of Sam Ratulangi University of Manado, Thursday (8/31/2023). Photo by MKRI//Ilham W.M.

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JAKARTA (MKRI) — Sam Ratulangi University of Manado, North Sulawesi Province had an audience with the Constitutional Court (MK) on Thursday, August 31, 2023. Head of the Center for Research, Case Review, and Library Management (Puslitka) Pan Mohamad Faiz, head of Puslitka’s Administration Division Nerpi Juita Sinurat, and the Court’s journal administrators welcomed the head of the Constitutional Law Division of Sam Ratulangi University Donna O. Setiabudhi and team members Josepus Pinori and Toar Palilingan.

During the meeting, Setiabudhi, Pinori, and Palilingan shared the purpose of their visit. Their division had just released a journal and was eager to learn journal management from the Court. They also intended to find out about the possibility of conducting joint activities in the future such as research, seminars, and international conferences.

“This is the third publication of our journal and it will be accredited later this year. So it’s very new to us. We hope to be enlightened regarding the difficulty of finding articles or papers that are really focused. Also, how to get reviewers and collaborators. We are on a deadline to publish,” Setiabudhi said.

Setiabudhi also said her team keeps trying to expand their network. “Maybe [the Center] can share materials with us. The Court has cooperated with Sam Ratulangi University before. We hope that our visit can re-energize the cooperation. In the past, we held seminars, public lectures, and many activities with the Court. Due to the pandemic, we need to reactivate [these events],” she said.

In response, head of Puslitka Pan Mohamad Faiz said that the first challenge in journal management is the lack of materials. “It’s difficult to find papers because most of them are student’s papers, which have not been accredited. So, the lecturers are reluctant too [to review them]. That must be the challenge,” he said.

Besides the lack of papers, another challenge is the lack of commitment from the leadership. However, many leaders of institutions now believe it is important for journals to receive accreditation.

“The next issue is the lack of partners funding for management,” Faiz explained. He believes this obstacle is not only experienced by Sam Ratulangi University. He urged them not to compare their journal with the Court’s because the Court’s journal’s Jurnal Konstitusi journey has spanned 20 years. It was initially journals in constitutional study centers, which the Court fostered.

Meanwhile, Abdul Basyid Fuadi, an expert assistant to constitutional justice and editor-in-chief of the Court’s Jurnal Konstitusi, said the challenge of managing the journal was about routine, which he admitted can sometimes be tiring.

“We publish four times a year. Every three months we have to publish. If we calculate the publication process, a month is spent on the production. The managers of Jurnal Konstitusi are very passionate,” he explained.

Fuad emphasized that the journal is 20 years old, or as old as the Court itself. Articles sent to the Court within that timeframe easily reach 200 a year.

“Our active articles are currently 90, but we can only publish nine out of eleven. There are still almost 70 left. Our challenge is not the actual articles, but choosing which ones are suitable in terms of actuality,” he stressed.

He stated that as long as journal management is consistent, it can run well. So far, the pressing issue is the length the papers stay with editors. In the past, articles could stay with the editors for two years.

“However, now we are committed that the papers stay with the editors for six months at months.  There is certainty [regarding reception or rejection] within six months. Papers are rejected not only because of the quality but also because there are no reviewers available. Even in three months we can get reviewers’ assurance,” he said.

Author       : Utami Argawati
Editor        : Nur R.
Translator  : Tahlitha Laela/Yuniar Widiastuti (NL)

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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