At MK Hearing, UGM Expert Reveals Issues with Military Judiciary Law

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com - Constitutional law expert Zainal Arifin Mochtar stated that Law No. 31 of 1997 on Military Judiciary causes numerous fundamental problems in the military justice system. Providing testimony as an expert witness at the material examination hearing for the Military Judiciary Law, Zainal noted that this law is a product of the New Order era, saturated with regime interests, leaving behind various issues. “Many problems have emerged, ranging from jurisdictional dualism, lack of synchronisation with the spirit of reform, absence of detailed regulations on connexity, to issues of independence and accountability of the military judiciary that are often discussed as a form of legal exceptionalism,” Zainal said at the Constitutional Court building in Jakarta on Wednesday (15/4/2026). Zainal also assessed that the examination of Articles 9, 43, and 127 of the Military Judiciary Law, which form the core of the case, has a constitutional basis. According to him, these provisions potentially grant excessively broad jurisdiction to military courts, including in handling general criminal offences. He emphasised that these norms do not clearly distinguish between military offences and general criminal offences, thus potentially conflicting with the principle of equality before the law and the rule of law principle in the 1945 Constitution. Furthermore, he urged the Constitutional Court not only to interpret the challenged norms but also to encourage the President and the DPR to promptly enact a new law on military judiciary. In his view, such a step is crucial to resolve long-pending issues that could lead to repeated injustices. “This is a major challenge for the Constitutional Court to push for the completion of unfinished homework that has not been addressed for more than 20 years and has repeatedly reproduced injustice,” he asserted. The lawsuit against Law No. 31 of 1997 was filed by Lenny Damanik and Eva Meliani Br Pasaribu. They are challenging Article 9 paragraph 1, Article 43 paragraph (3), and Article 127 of Law No. 31 of 1997 on Military Judiciary. Lenny is the mother of Michael Hitson Sitanggang (15), a victim who was assaulted to death by Sergeant Reza Pahlivi in May 2024. Eva Pasaribu is the daughter of Rico Sempurna Pasaribu, a journalist who died along with his wife, child, and grandchild when their home was burned after reporting on a gambling business allegedly managed by a TNI soldier with initials Koptu HB.