Constitutional Court Sets 3 Indicators for National Disaster Status, Victim Count Becomes Primary

The Constitutional Court (MK) has ruled that the government may declare a national disaster status based on a minimum of three out of five indicators.

The number of victims will serve as the primary indicator in determining national disaster status.

In ruling Number 261/PUU-XXIII/2025, read out during the pronouncement hearing, the Court partially granted the petition for judicial review of Law Number 24 of 2007 on Disaster Management.

“The ruling: grant the petitioners’ request in part,” said Chief Justice Suhartoyo on Friday, 28 August 2026.

In its ruling, the Court declared that Article 7 paragraph (2) of Law Number 24 of 2007 on Disaster Management is conditionally unconstitutional and has no binding legal force.

The Court interpreted the provision to mean that the determination of national and regional disaster status and levels must include indicators comprising the number of victims, property losses, damage to infrastructure and facilities, the extent of the affected area, and/or the socio-economic impact caused.

“In determining national disaster status and level, it shall be based on the fulfilment of at least three indicators, with the number of victims placed as the primary indicator that must be met,” he said.

The judicial review of the Disaster Management Law was filed by seven petitioners, most of whom are advocates. The review stemmed from the floods and landslides in Aceh, North Sumatra, and West Sumatra in 2025, which were not declared a national disaster by the central government.

The disaster resulted in 1,016 deaths and approximately 850,000 people displaced.

In their petition, the petitioners also noted that nearly all factions in the House of Representatives (DPR), as well as several regional heads, had proposed that the floods and landslides in Sumatra be declared a national disaster.

Several regional heads whose areas were affected by the disaster also reportedly admitted that they no longer had the capacity to handle the disaster’s impact in their respective regions.

The central government referred to the floods and landslides in Aceh, North Sumatra, and West Sumatra as a national priority. The petitioners questioned this term because Article 7 of the Disaster Management Law regulates the determination of national and regional disaster status.

According to the petitioners, the term ‘national priority’ is more closely related to development policy and does not directly address the issue of handling disaster victims.