Constitutional commission a big sham: Analysts

Muhammad Nafik, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The public was told on Monday not to expect substantial changes to the amended 1945 Constitution as the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) will likely not establish a constitutional commission as demanded by reformists across the country.

Constitutional advocates accused lawmakers of trying to foil the establishment of an independent constitutional commission despite the fact that it has been clearly stated in MPR Decree No. 1/2002.

Noted constitutional law expert Satya Arinanto from the University of Indonesia said he doubted the will of the MPR to carry out reform, as senior lawmakers had publicly expressed their rejection to an independent commission.

"What they want to form is not a constitutional commission as stipulated in the MPR decree. They will name it something else like a state committee," he said during a seminar here.

The MPR Decree No. 1/MPR/2002 authorizes the Assembly's working body to prepare the establishment of an independent constitutional commission within a period of six months to one year to "study comprehensively about changes already made to the 1945 Constitution."

The working body must report the results of its work about the establishment of the commission to the MPR Annual Session next year.

Jacob Tobing, a former chairman of the disbanded MPR ad hoc committee on constitutional amendments, confirmed on Monday that he and many other senior politicians from major parties had proposed that the body would not be called a constitutional commission.

"We will call it a committee tasked merely with synchronizing and improving the amended constitution," he told The Jakarta Post separately.

"The term of a constitutional commission mentioned in the decree is made generic. That's why we don't need to name it as such, because the term is associated with its role and function, namely creating a new constitution, which we don't want," he added.

Satya said the changing of its name could seriously affect the commission's role, function and independence in amending or changing the Constitution.

"Don't even bother hoping that the commission will be independent or not. If there is a commission set up at all, it would be a miracle," he told the Post after the seminar organized by the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) and Germany's Hanns Seidel Foundation in Jakarta.

Satya said that after the MPR decree was issued, lawmakers should have stopped questioning the need to establish a constitutional commission, and instead just execute the plan immediately as the legal basis for the move was "extremely strong".

Political analyst Arbi Sanit, along with chairman of the National Consortium for Legal Reforms (KRHN) Firmansyah Arifin, who were speaking at the same session, said whatever name it finally had, it must comprise non-partisan figures and experts from different backgrounds to ensure its independence.

"No legislators and party executives should be included on the commission, otherwise there will be a conflict of interest with their party's interests," Arbi said.

However, another constitutional law expert Jimly Asshiddiqie said it would be "unrealistic" to preclude MPR members.

"If no lawmakers are included as members of the commission, the MPR will likely reject it," he said.