1945 Constitution is amendable: Law expert<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) has
\ncome under fire for its reluctance to amend the 1945 Constitution
\nto accommodate 50 years of change.<\/p>\n
The National University's School of Law dean, Dahlan
\nRanuwihardjo, said Wednesday: \"The 1945 Constitution is not a
\nHoly Book which cannot be changed.\"<\/p>\n
He said the constitution was drafted and enacted during the
\n1945 revolutionary struggle for independence. \"It should be
\nsubject to amendment,\" he said.<\/p>\n
He said it was \"shocking\" that the MPR, despite having the
\nauthority, had refused to amend the constitution.<\/p>\n
The MPR decreed in 1978 that it has no intention of amending
\nthe constitution, and introduced rulings that make it virtually
\nimpossible to introduce amendments.<\/p>\n
\"This is a violation of the constitution,\" Dahlan said after
\npresenting a paper in a seminar on politics at the University of
\nAugust 17, where he is also a lecturer.<\/p>\n
Article 37 of the 1945 Constitution stipulates that the
\nconstitution can be amended if at least two-thirds of the 1,000-
\nstrong MPR agrees.<\/p>\n
In 1985, the government introduced a ruling that further
\nrestricted the possibility of amending the constitution. The 1985
\nlaw requires that any change must be done through referendum.<\/p>\n
Dahlan, who was sacked from the House of Representatives in
\n1968 for opposing a general election bill, said the United States
\nstarted amending its constitution four years after it was adopted
\nin 1787. \"This shows that the nation is dynamic,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Rebel politician Sri Bintang Pamungkas is now being
\ninterrogated on charges of subversion; one of his alleged
\noffenses was suggesting constitutional amendments.<\/p>\n
Dahlan cited presidential term limitations as one amendment
\nthat the MPR should make to the 1945 Constitution.<\/p>\n
The constitution does not limit the number of times a person
\ncan serve as president, which has allowed the incumbent Soeharto
\nto be elected six times as president since 1968. The 75-year-old
\npresident is likely to be reelected again in 1998.<\/p>\n
Harmoko, chairman of the dominant Golkar, said in a campaign
\nspeech this week that the party refused to consider limiting the
\nterms of the presidency.<\/p>\n
Dahlan said Indonesia had had only one presidential succession
\n-- from Sukarno to Soeharto in 1967, when the latter was first
\nelected as acting president.<\/p>\n
He described that succession as \"constitutional but slightly
\ndefective\" because Sukarno had relinquished power under strong
\npressure. (11)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/1945-constitution-is-amendable-law-expert-1447893297",
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