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View all search resultsGovernment pushes police civilian posts rule despite court ruling
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A police officer stands guard in front of the Constitutional Court building on Feb. 4, 2025, in Jakarta.
(Antara/Bayu Pratama S)
T
he government is preparing a legal framework to allow police officers to serve in certain civilian ministries and state agencies, a move that analysts say runs counter to Constitutional Court rulings barring such appointments unless they are directly related to policing and stipulated by law.
Last November, the Constitutional Court struck down an ambiguous provision in the National Police Law that had allowed police officers to assume civilian posts in ministries and state bodies, ruling that they must resign or retire before taking up roles “outside the police force”.
Rights and pro-democracy groups hailed the ruling as a key step in police reform, arguing that restricting officers from holding dual posts in civilian government would help keep the force professional and focused on its core law enforcement duties.
However, Coordinating Law, Human Rights, Immigration and Correctional Services Minister Yusril Ihza Mahendra said on Wednesday the placement of police officers in certain government roles remained legally “valid”, adding that a government regulation was being drafted to specify which civilian posts officers may hold.
“The government regulation is necessary to provide legal certainty,” Yusril said, noting that the draft was being prepared by the Administrative and Bureaucratic Reform Ministry and the State Secretariat under his ministry’s supervision.
Read also: House postpones plan to scrap direct regional elections
While he did not specify which civilian roles would be covered, Yusril said the drafting process had made significant progress and that the regulation was expected to be finalized by the end of January.
