Another judicial review hearing of the Eradication of Criminal Acts of Terrorism, Wednesday (2/7/2024). Photo by MKRI/Panji.

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JAKARTA (MKRI) — The Constitutional Court (MK) held another material judicial review hearing of Article 43L paragraph (4) of Law No. 5 of 2018 on the Amendment to Law No. 15 of 2003 on the Stipulation of Government Regulation in Lieu of Law No. 1 of 2022 on the Eradication of Criminal Acts of Terrorism into Law (Anti-Terrorism Law) on Wednesday, February 7, 2024. The fourth hearing for case No. 103/PUU-XXI/2023, filed by Peria Ronald Pidu, Mulyadi Taufik Hidayat, and Febri Bagus Kuncoro (Petitioners I-III), was supposed to hear the House of Representatives (DPR) and the President/Government, but the former requested a reschedule while the latter stated that advisor for the Attorney General in Politics, Security, and Law Enforcement Masyhudi should deliver a testimony but was out of reach until the hearing commenced at 10:33 WIB. Therefore, the Court decided to reschedule the hearing once more.

“The Court should be holding a plenary hearing next, so we will give [the litigating parties] another chance [to speak at the hearing] while we summons the House for asking for a reschedule. The Court will schedule another hearing on February 26, 2024,” said Chief Justice Suhartoyo to the parties present in the plenary hearing.

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House Absent, Govt Asks for Time to Prepare for Hearing on Anti-Terrorism Law

At the preliminary hearing, the Petitioners asserted that the article had taken away the victims’ right to rehabilitation. The Petitioners are survivors of terrorism acts that had occurred before the Anti-Terrorism Law entered into force. They have not received any compensation or financial aid while victims of terrorism acts are eligible for it if they file a petition to the Witness and Victim Protection Agency (LPSK) by submitting a letter that validates them as victims of criminal acts of terrorism issued by the National Counterterrorism Agency (BNPT).

The filing of such a petition is limited to three years since the Law entered into force, i.e. June 22, 2018. Any petition filed after this deadline cannot result in compensation. This impacts the LPSK and the BNPT’s time frame for providing information to victims all across Indonesia.

In 2020, the LPSK distributed compensation amounting to a total of Rp39,205,000,000 to 215 victims of criminal acts of terrorism. In 2021 and 2022, it gave 357 victims compensation with a total Rp59,720,000,000. However, not all victims have received compensation. The short time limit has led to injustice for the victims. In addition, disproportionate information to terrorism victims across Indonesia means that not all victims have received compensation for the rehabilitation. This provision regulating time limit to file a petition for compensation is against the spirit of legal protection for victims. Therefore, in their petitum, the Petitioners requested that the Court declare Article 43L paragraph (4) of the Anti-Terrorism Law unconstitutional and not legally binding.

Author       : Sri Pujianti
Editor        : Lulu Anjarsari P.
PR            : Andhini S.F.
Translator  : 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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