Constitutional Justice Arief Hidayat visiting High Court of Hong Kong, Thursday afternoon (9/7/2023). Photo by MKRI.

HONGKONG, MKRI — As the guardian of the Constitution, democracy, and state ideology, the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Indonesia (MKRI) continues to strive to provide a sense of justice to society and become a modern judiciary, said Constitutional Justice Arief Hidayat during his visit to the Hight Court of Hong Kong on Thursday afternoon, September 9, 2023. The MKRI delegation was received by Chief Judge Jeremy Poon, Judge Au, and Judge Tony Poon. Justice Arief explained that modern judiciary must be able to provide the widest access to justice seekers, share its decisions to the public, and share its experiences with other courts abroad.

He added that based on the Indonesian Constitution, there are two judicial powers of equal standing with their respective competences and authority, i.e. the Constitutional Court and the Supreme Court. “The Court’s decisions are final and binding, so no other measures can be taken if the Court’s decisions have been read out at an open, public ruling hearing,” he said.

In response to the MKRI delegation, Chief Judge Poon said Hong Kong’s legal system remains unique as it differs from that of mainland China. “Our excellence and uniqueness are being a country with two [legal] systems,” he said.

He explained that Hong Kong adopts common law with several considerations, one being that the system has been widely recognized by the international community, so it will provide convenience and legal certainty for foreign businesses to work or invest in Hong Kong. He also stated that Hong Kong is a starting point for the investors to expand their business in the mainland.

In the follow-up discussion, the MKRI delegation explained the MKRI’s contribution in global forums, especially the World Conference on Constitutional Justice (WCCJ) and the Association of Asian Constitutional Courts and Equivalent Institutions (AACC). Justice Arief said WCCJ and AACC members had a lot of trust in the MKRI. In 2022, the MKRI was trusted with hosting the WCCJ’s fifth congress, which was attended by 98 member countries—the highest number of participants compared to previous congresses.

Justice Arief also discussed the MKRI’s achievements in Asia. In addition to serving as one of the AACC’s permanent secretariats, it has been entrusted with the longest AACC presidency for three years in 2014-2017. “At the time, Indonesia was considered successful and needed more achievements, so at the AACC congress in 2016, we were given an additional mandate of one year of presidency,” he said.

Concluding his statement, he stressed his desire to maintain the positive relations that the MKRI had recently developed with the High Court of Hong Kong. He also invited the High Court to learn about and participate in future AACC events.

Chief Justice Poon positively welcomed the MKRI’s wishes. He remarked that the High Court of Hong Kong is eager to collaborate with various international partners. He highlighted that, for example, the High Court is also active in various international forums, such as the Acia Pacific Justice Forum and the International Forum on Commercial Law.

“Exchange of experiences, expansion of connections, and communication with the international stage are all very important to us. We welcome a stronger relationship with the Constitutional Court of Indonesia,” he emphasized.

Concluding the meeting, Justice Tony Poon explained the application of e-court in the High Court. The visit to the High Court of Hong Kong was the first time for the MKRI. It was aimed to expand international cooperation and to introduce AACC to courts in Asia. Head of the International Affairs Division Immanuel Hutasoit as well as legal consul Raymond Ali and consul for protocol affairs Clemens Triaji of the Consulate General of Indonesia in Hong Kong were also present as part of the MKRI delegation at the meeting.

Visit to KJRI Hong Kong

Before the meeting with the High Court, the MKRI had also visited the Consulate General of the Republic of Indonesia in Hong Kong two days prior on September 7 at 10:00 a.m. local time. Acting Consul General Slamet Nugroho delivered a speech honoring the chair of the MKRI Delegation by presenting the duties, functions, composition, and work areas of the Consulate General. “The Indonesian Consulate General in Hong Kong is supported by 20 home staff and 50 local staff to handle our Indonesian citizens—approximately 160,000 people,” he added.

During the meeting, Constitutional Justice Arief Hidayat discussed the aim and objectives of the MKRI’s visit to Hong Kong and relayed important national legal developments through the MKRI decisions. He also thanked the Consulate General for its assistance in bridging communication between the MKRI and the High Court of Hong Kong.

“We received great help from our diplomats, particularly in providing inputs on how to read the gestures and responses of our partners,” he said.

Author       : NL
Editor        : Lulu Anjarsari P.
Translator  : Nyi Mas Laras Nur Inten Kemalasari/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.