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Former justices accuse lawmakers of violating Constitution
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A hearing session at the Constitutional Court. (JP/Seto Wardhana)
F
ormer Constitutional Court justices have accused the House of Representatives of violating the Constitution by removing the court’s deputy chief justice Aswanto before his term ends.
Former Constitutional Court chief justice Jimly Asshiddique said the House did not have the authority to dismiss a sitting justice.
“[The House] has violated the Constitution. This is an arbitrary act. If left unchecked, this could destroy the independence of the judiciary,” Jimly told reporters after several former court justices met with lawmakers on Saturday.
Jimly explained that according to prevailing law on the Constitutional Court, the dismissal of a Constitutional Court justice should be decided through a presidential decree upon request from the court chief.
“If there’s no letter [of request] from the Constitutional Court, a justice cannot be dismissed,” he said.
Aswanto is a 58-year-old House-appointed justice who was elected deputy chief justice in 2018. Prevailing law states that three of the nine Constitutional Court justices — including Aswanto — are nominated by the House, another three by the president and the other three by the Supreme Court with presidential approval required for all of the appointments.
On Thursday, the coalition-led House agreed in a plenary session to dismiss him. This came following a recent Constitutional Court ruling that rejected a challenge to repeal a passage of the latest Constitutional Court Law revision in 2020, which allows justices to serve a maximum 15-year term between the ages of 55 and 70.
