Seeking a balance between President, DPR<\/p>\n
The following are excerpts of an interview with constitutional
\nlaw expert Sri Soemantri regarding the current political crisis.<\/p>\n
Question: What does constitutional law have to say about the
\ncurrent conflict between the legislature and the President?<\/p>\n
Answer: We are in the middle of an attempt to find a new
\nbalance between the House of Representatives (DPR) and the
\nPresident. The first two amendments of the Constitution give the
\nHouse a much stronger position. For instance, the House must at
\nleast be notified (when the President) is appointing new
\nofficials. Regardless, the two must maintain consultation so that
\nthey understand each other's positions.<\/p>\n
With its new powers, the DPR seems to be asserting its
\nfunction as the monitor (of the executive) in addition to its
\nfunctions of drawing up legislation and budgets.<\/p>\n
This (new confidence) is what has caused problems between the
\nDPR and the President, whose political standing is now weak.<\/p>\n
Had we adhered to the actual election result, with only a few
\nseats gained at the DPR Gus Dur (President Abdurrahman Wahid)
\nwould never have become President. He was elected into office
\nbecause of the support of the central axis group (an alliance of
\nIslamic parties) and Golkar.<\/p>\n
Now that they have withdrawn their support his position is
\nindeed weak. But Gus Dur retaliates by calling on popular support
\ndespite the fact that any action should be taken through
\nrepresentation.<\/p>\n
The characteristics of a President usually influence the way
\nthey run their administration ... Indeed we have yet to see the
\npolitical (maturity) needed in a democracy.<\/p>\n
Could you elaborate on the above mentioned consultations?<\/p>\n
The President and the DPR should continuously be in
\nconsultation, because an administration's performance depends on
\nthe quality of the people. Those people in the legislature and
\nthe executive branches determine our state administration.<\/p>\n
Yet both the DPR and the President stick to their ground in
\nthis political rivalry.<\/p>\n
Which is why the situation has worsened. Neither respects the
\nother. There won't be any solution (to the tension) if they both
\ninsist on having their way.<\/p>\n
What is the constitutional legal assessment of the arguments
\nof each of the parties?<\/p>\n
The basis of their positions is political (logic), but
\npolitics should be in line with the law. So, with the DPR
\ndeciding on the memorandum, the President should adhere to it. If
\nhe believes he is not guilty (of the financial scandals) as
\ncharged by the memorandum, then he hasn't got any reason to
\nworry. Because (if he is innocent) there won't be any second
\nmemorandum or a special session of the People's Consultative
\nAssembly (MPR, to impeach him).<\/p>\n
How do we break the impasse?<\/p>\n
We have to refer back to the Constitution, according to which
\nthe MPR holds the final say (in state administration matters).
\nEveryone must be willingly accept with grace whatever decisions
\nare made by the MPR. This is something that most people have yet
\nto realize.<\/p>\n
In our system, the MPR represents the people's sovereignty, so
\nall relevant processes must be undertaken by the MPR, unless (the
\nnation) wanted to have a re-election. But we will have to wait
\nfor an election in 2004. Until we have another election, the MPR
\nis the ultimate sovereign so its decisions must be obeyed.<\/p>\n
That is the legal solution to the problem. Surely anyone
\ninvolved in the decision making process must be committed to
\nnational unity and the survival of this country.<\/p>\n
So the solution is a special assembly of the MPR?<\/p>\n
I am not saying it as such. But constitutionally, the MPR is
\nthe authority that must be obeyed by everyone. The question is
\nhow do we convene the special MPR assembly in ways that follow
\nthe rules of the game.<\/p>\n
Which are?<\/p>\n
The first was the memorandum. There is a period of three
\nmonths (before the issuance) of any second memorandum, and
\nanother month (before) a Working Committee (of the MPR) is given
\ntwo months to prepare for a special MPR assembly. This means a
\ntotal of six months after the issuance of the first memorandum.<\/p>\n
Although the MPR does have the authority to convene a special
\nsession now, doing so would create problems ... because the
\npolitical overtones of the motion would simply be overwhelming.<\/p>\n
The annual session of the MPR could actually be used to
\nprepare regulations on when the body, for instance, can call for
\na special assembly or regarding the procedures, in ways that are
\nclear and comprehensive so that they won't invite conflicting
\ninterpretations.<\/p>\n
With such clear guidelines there wouldn't be problems like we
\nare experiencing now, which stem from the fact that the National
\nAwakening Party (PKB, founded by Gus Dur) is a minority in the
\nMPR, and has to resort to demonstrations of mass support.<\/p>\n
Has such a conflict between a president and legislature
\noccurred in other countries?<\/p>\n
No, because no other country has an MPR. We have a different
\nsystem to many countries. We are a country with a mixture of
\nsystems ... between the presidential system first developed in
\nthe United States which is influential in Latin America, and the
\nparliamentary system of the European countries.<\/p>\n
Does that mean our administrative system is in a shambles?<\/p>\n
No, it's just that it is unfavorable for the development of a
\nmultiparty political system.<\/p>\n
The MPR must soon establish a state committee of experts on
\nconstitutional law, whose task is to set up the preparatory
\nstages for constitutional change. They should sit together and
\ncome up with alternatives. If the people want to have a direct
\npresidential election then we must have a real presidential
\nsystem. In that situation there wouldn't be any MPR and the
\npresident would be very powerful. However, to prevent violations
\nby a President, we must also have a law on impeachment.<\/p>\n
The team should be able to finish the task within two or three
\nyears. (Deka Kurniawan)<\/p>",
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