The Petitioners’ witnesses taking oath before testifying at a judicial review hearing of Law No. 3 of 2024 on Villages for case No. 107/PUU-XXII/2024, Wednesday (12/4/2024). Photo by MKRI/Panji.

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JAKARTA (MKRI) — The Petitioners of case No. 107/PUU-XXII/2024 presented two witnesses on the judicial review of Article 118 letter e of Law No. 3 of 2024 on Villages at a hearing on Wednesday, December 4, 2024 in the Constitutional Court’s (MK) plenary courtroom. They were Irawadi, chief of Ulu Village, and Surta Wijaya, chairman of Apdesi (Indonesian Association of Village Administrations).

Irawadi explained that the phrase “until” relating to the extension of the terms of office of village chiefs is subject to multiple interpretations. As chairman of AKSI (Association of Indonesian Village Heads), he had presented the question to the House of Representatives (DPR) when he met with the House Vice Speaker Sufmi Dasco.

“As can be proven by voice notes, he stated that [the phrase] ‘until’ refers to November, December 2023, and January 2024. Why February 2024 [is mentioned but] March is not? It is because automatically February, March, April are included. And why does it start from November, December 2023, and January 2024? It is because that is when the moratorium on village head election applies,” Irawadi said.

He asserted that village heads whose terms of office had ended in November, December 2023, and January 2024 were in a limbo. There is no certainty when they will take office again. Acting village heads, who are administrators or civil servants (PNS) from the respective subdistricts, have taken office to replace them.

“No one knows when the village heads whose terms of office ended in November, December, and January will take office as the election of village heads is under the authority of the regent. Meanwhile, the new regent will be elected on November 27, 2024,” he said.

Meanwhile, Surta Wijaya explained that the amendment to Law No. 6 of 2016 on Villages into Law No. 3 of 2024 has raised new issues because village heads whose terms had ended in November, December 2023, and January 2024 did not get a two-year extension. In fact, at a meeting of representatives of village head organizations, the House, and ministries including the Ministry of Home Affairs in the legislative body chambers on May 8, 2024, it was agreed that village heads whose terms of office had ended in November, December 2023, and January 2024 were included in Law No. 3 of 2024 to get a two-year term extension.

However, after the meeting, he explained, the Minister of Home Affairs issued the Circular Letter No. 100.3.5/2625/SJ dated June 5, 2024 regarding the affirmation of the amendment to transitional provisions relating to village heads and village councils in Law No. 3 of 2024 on the Second Amendment to Law No. 6 of 2014 on Villages.” The circular letter does not accommodate the two-year term extension for village heads whose terms had ended in November, December 2023, and January 2024.

“The lack of regulation for the village heads whose terms of office ended in November, December 2023, and January 2024 has caused constitutional impairment for the Petitioners particularly and for 2,181 other village heads whose terms ended in November, December 2023, and January 2024,” Surta Wijaya explained.

At a session to hear the House and the President’s testimonies on Thursday, October 24, through their proxy, the President/Government had expressed their wish to waive their right to testify.

Before concluding the session, Chief Justice Suhartoyo said that today’s hearing was the last hearing because the Court had conducted six hearings for this case. Thus, it will immediately decide this case.

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The Petitioners of case No. 107/PUU-XXIV/2024—the Association of United Village Associations and three village heads (Petitioner I-IV)—feel aggrieved because Article 118 letter e of Law No. 3 of 2024 on the Second Amendment to Law No. 6 of 2014 on Villages does not mention that the terms of office of village ending in November 2023, December 2023, and January 2024 are also extended.

They believe the Village Law should accommodate a two-year extension for village heads whose terms of office end in November 2023, December 2023, and January 2024. However, the a quo norm only mentions that village heads whose term of office ends in February 2024 can be extended. Therefore, there is no legal certainty for the Petitioners.

The Petitioners allege that the problem occurred due to the Minister of Home Affairs interpretation of the a quo norm. The Minister, through Circular Letter No. 100.3.5.5/2625/SJ dated June 5, 2024, did not interpret the norm to include village heads whose terms of office ended in November 2023, December 2023, and January 2024.

As a result of this circular letter, the Petitioners stated that they felt constitutionally harmed because the village heads whose terms of office ended in November 2023, December 2023, and January 2024 did not receive a term extension. In fact, it was repeatedly emphasized by the speaker of the House of Representatives (DPR) that the a quo article refers to village heads whose terms of office ended in November 2023, December 2023, January 2024, and February 2024.

They argue that the House speaker had had a coordination meeting with by the Secretary-General of the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Director-General of Legislation of the Ministry of Law and Human Rights, the Deputy for Legislation and Legal Administration of the Ministry of State Secretariat, the head of the House’s Board of Expertise, and two village organizations, APDESI (Indonesian Association of Village Administrations) and AKSI (Association of Indonesian Village Heads). At the meeting, it was agreed that Article 118 letter e would accommodate village heads whose terms of office would end in November 2023, December 2023, and January 2024 while not being charged for any crime or resigning.

However, on January 14, 2023, the Minister of Home Affairs issued the Circular Letter No. 100.3.5.5/244/SJ on the implementation of village head elections during the simultaneous general and regional elections in 2024, which basically stated that village head elections could be held before November 1, 2023 or after the completion of the 2024 general and regional election stages. With the circular, village heads whose terms of office ended in November, December 2023, and January 2024 could not participate in the village head election, so Petitioner I requested that the Minister provide confirmation to regents and mayors so that village head elections be accelerated before November 2023 on the grounds that there were simultaneous election stages, but the Minister’s confirmation to the regents or mayors did not work out, so it was detrimental to Petitioners II, III, and IV and 2,181 village heads whose terms of office ended in November 2023, December 2023, and January 2024.

In their petitum, the Petitioners request the Court to declare Article 118 letter e of Law No. 3 of 2024 (“Village Heads whose term of office ends in February 2024 may be extended in accordance with the provisions of this Law”) unconstitutional. They wishe that the article be interpreted as, “Village Heads whose terms of office ended in November 2023, December 2023, January 2024, and February 2024 may be extended in accordance with the provisions of this Law.”

Author            : Mimi Kartika
Editor            : Nur R.
PR                 : Raisa Ayuditha Marsaulina
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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