'Many laws not based on Constitution'

Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

In a move designed to reduce the potential demand for judicial reviews, the newly-established Constitutional Court (MK) has called on the government and the House of Representatives (DPR) to use the Constitution as the main reference in the drafting of legislation.

Court president Jimly Asshidiqqie said on Tuesday that many economic policies contained in various laws did not refer to the Constitution, but rather to the global trend of liberalization.

"This must receive our attention. The Constitution must not be ignored when drafting laws," Jimly said during a meeting with House Speaker Akbar Tandjung and his deputies Soetardjo Soerjogoeritno and AM Fatwa here on Tuesday.

Jimly and his fellow judges met House leaders on Tuesday to report on the court's readiness to perform its duties.

During the meeting, Jimly claimed that many government policies stated in various laws did not take the Constitution as the main reference and this had prompted public rejection.

"We must not forget that our Constitution is different from those of liberal countries," he said without elaboration.

According to Jimly, the tendency to not use the Constitution as the main reference in drafting laws made the laws vulnerable to judicial review.

Soetardjo concurred with Jimly, saying that Indonesia was not ready to enter the free-trade era.

Only recently, the government revised the money laundering law that was issued last year. In his acceptance speech, Minister of Justice and Human Rights Yusril Ihza Mahendra said that the new law was needed because the old one was deemed inadequate to combat by the Paris-based Financial Action Task Force (FATF) to combat money laundering.

The FATF is a global money-laundering watchdog set up by developed nations from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

The Constitutional Court was set up following the amendment of the 1945 Constitution. Based on the Constitution, the court has five duties. They are settling electoral disputes, settling disputes among state institutions, dissolving political parties, reviewing laws and verifying impeachment demands from the House.

The court has accepted 17 applications from various groups for judicial reviews since it was established in mid-August.

Jimly emphasized that the court was ready to perform its duties following the issuance of internal regulations and the appointment of Marcel Buchari as the court registrar.

Meanwhile, the secretary-general of the court is Janedjri M. Ghaffar, a former official of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR). Janedjri is still waiting for a presidential decree formally confirming his appointment.

Jimly emphasized that the court would be independent and impartial.

Although the nine members were appointed by different institutions (the presidency, the House, and the Supreme Court appoint three justices each), Jimly pledged that the court would maintain unity.

"We will adopt a consensual approach to the decision-making process. If there are dissenting opinions, we will make these public," he said.

Also present at the meeting were Justices Sudarsono, Achmad Roestandi, Laica Marzuki, Mukti Fadjar, HAS Natabaya and I Gede Palguna.