Vision 2030 team bids new legal system

The Jakarta Post , Jakarta | Sat, 04/12/2008 11:17 AM | National

A national team for Indonesia Vision 2030 has proposed a legal system for the country that ensures legal certainty.

The team from the Indonesia Forum said Friday that under the system, called the continuous legal system, each law would have a long-term vision and be internally consistent, and would not contradict other laws.

The Indonesia Forum is a strategic think-tank comprised of businesspeople, academics and government officials. The members are developing the Indonesia Vision 2030 recommendations, with the aim of transforming Indonesia into a major global power in the next 20 years, ranking alongside China, India, the United States and the European Union.

The forum will submit its suggestions for economic, sociocultural and legal reform to the government.

"In many cases, laws can't ensure legal certainty because they fail to take into consideration future social conditions," said forum member Yuliandri, a state law expert from Andalas University in Padang, West Sumatra.

He said lawmakers often formulated laws that operated over short periods, causing chaos in society.

"The law on national elections, for example, changes every five years. This can create confusion and legal uncertainty," he said.

"In the end, the government will lose the public's trust."

According to Yuliandri, laws that adopt a long-term view have a long and stable application.

"If a law can predict society's behavior from period to period, it will stay strong, which will reinforce its certainty," he said.

Another team member, Satya Arinanto from the University of Indonesia (UI), said the continuous legal system would also encourage consistent laws.

"A consistent law has clear explanations that prevent multiple interpretations and stop the overlapping of laws," he said.

He said a law with multiple interpretations could lead to legal uncertainty as many people who were dissatisfied with it would request a judicial review, compromising the law's credibility.

"It often happens that people request a review of a law in the Constitutional Court just days after the House of Representatives passes it. This can disrupt our legal system," Satya said.

"Public participation in the formulation of laws must be encouraged in order to avoid this."

The team also said there must be compatibility between laws and their subordinate regulations to ensure legal certainty.

"We are also encouraging the government to issue the supporting regulations of a law no more than one year after its approval, to ensure its implementation," said Satya, who is one of the drafters of the garbage bill currently before the House.

Another team member, Bambang P.S. Brodjonegoro, also of UI, said laws must belong to all citizens, not just political elites.

"We've noticed a tendency for certain laws to be perceived as belonging to ministries. But a law should inspire a sense of public ownership, meaning it belongs to all citizens," he said.

The team will submit its recommendations for Indonesian Vision 2030 on May 20 during the centennial commemoration of the National Awakening movement. (dia)

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