Leonardo Petersen Agustinus Turnip and Jovan Gregorius Naibaho during the follow-up hearing of the judicial review of the elucidation of Article 66 of Law Number 32 of 2009 concerning Environmental Protection and Management (the Environmental Law).
JAKARTA (MKRI) – The Constitutional Court (the Court) held another hearing for the judicial review of the Elucidation of Article 66 of Law Number 32 of 2009 on Environmental Protection and Management (Environmental Law), as amended by the Job Creation Law, on Wednesday (08/13/2025) at the Court’s Plenary Courtroom. Case Number 119/PUU-XXIII/2025 was filed by Leonardo Petersen Agustinus Turnip and Jovan Gregorius Naibaho. The two students argued that the provision in the elucidation limits the meaning of the phrase every person as stated in Article 66 of the Environmental Law, because it is interpreted only as referring to reporters and/or victims who pursue legal remedies.
During the hearing, which was scheduled for the revision of their petition, Leonardo Petersen stated that they had adjusted their petition in line with the advice of the panel of justices. One such adjustment was the inclusion of Constitutional Court Regulation Number 2 of 2021 on Procedures in Constitutional Review Cases (PMK 2/2021). The number of constitutional benchmarks originally proposed was reduced from five to three.
“With regard to legal standing, we have elaborated it in accordance with PMK 2 of 2021, particularly on potential losses, to make it clearer conceptually, both in terms of intent and phrasing,” Leonardo explained.
The other petitioner, Jovan Gregorius Naibaho, added that they were reviewing the Elucidation of Article 66 in relation to Article 28D paragraph (1) of the 1945 Constitution of the Republic of Indonesia. “We have also included regulations below the level of law, such as Supreme Court Regulation Number 1 of 2023, Prosecutor’s Office Guidelines Number 2 of 2022, and Minister of Environment and Forestry Regulation Number 10 of 2024,” he said.
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Students Question Protection for Activists Against Criminalization
Previously, the two students from the Faculty of Law, University of North Sumatra (FH USU), Leonardo Petersen Agustinus Turnip and Jovan Gregorius Naibaho, filed a petition for judicial review of the Elucidation of Article 66 of the Environmental Law, as amended by the Job Creation Law, with the Court. The petitioners claimed that the provision in the elucidation restricts the definition of every person referred to in Article 66 of the Environmental Law, by limiting it to reporters and/or victims who take legal action.
In their petitum, the petitioners requested the Court to declare that the phrase “This provision is intended to protect victims and/or reporters who take legal action as a result of environmental pollution and/or destruction” in the Elucidation of Article 66 of the Environmental Law is contrary to the 1945 Constitution and has no binding legal force. They further requested that the elucidation be amended to read: “Every person in this provision, as referred to in the general provisions, who defends the right to a good and healthy environment shall not be subject to criminal prosecution and/or civil lawsuit, whether inside or outside the court.”
They also requested the Court to interpret Article 66 of the Environmental Law as providing legal protection not only against criminal prosecution or civil lawsuits, but also obligating the government to protect every person who advocates for the right to a good and healthy environment, both before and during acts of silencing such as intimidation or threats. The petitioners further asked the Court to order the government to issue a Government Regulation, as part of the statutory hierarchy, to comprehensively regulate legal protection for environmental activists.
Author : Utami Argawati.
Editor : Nur R.
PR : Andhini S.F.
Translator : Agusweka Poltak Siregar
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 prevails.
Wednesday, August 13, 2025 | 19:36 WIB 326