Prabowo Urged to Promptly Implement Police Reform Recommendations
The Setara Institute assesses that the follow-up to the recommendations of the Commission for Accelerating Police Reform (KPRP) will serve as the genuine test of the government’s commitment to implementing police reform. The organisation urges President Prabowo Subianto to promptly execute the various recommendations submitted by the KPRP.
“The true test is whether the government will truly move from merely receiving reports to executing and accelerating the police reform agenda,” said Setara Institute researcher Ikhsan Yosarie in a press release, quoted on Thursday, 7 May 2026.
According to Ikhsan, the president’s current position is not only as a recipient of reports but also as the primary actor determining the direction of police reform policy. He believes that without strong political will, the reform agenda risks stagnating and becoming merely administrative discourse.
“As a result, the KPRP report will stop as a technocratic document that prolongs the non-reform agenda of the police, which is usually normative,” he stated.
The KPRP submitted its final report containing six recommendations to the President to improve the police institution. The 10-volume report was handed over at the Presidential Palace in Jakarta on Tuesday, 5 May 2026. Commission Chairman Jimly Asshiddiqie stated that the document contains various policy reform options for the government and the police.
The Setara Institute requests that the President immediately translate the KPRP recommendations into concrete policies. According to them, the government’s slow response could dissipate the momentum for police reform.
In addition, the organisation urges the strengthening of merit systems, transparency, and accountability in filling the position of National Police Chief as well as other strategic positions within the police force. Setara also calls for strengthening external oversight functions through the National Police Commission or Kompolnas.
Ikhsan stated that strengthening Kompolnas needs to be aligned with the mandate of MPR Decree Number VII of 2000 on the Role of the TNI and Polri, which regulates the establishment of a national police institution by the president through legislation.
Setara also highlights the placement of police members in civilian positions outside the police institution. They request that the government implement the Constitutional Court Decision Number 114/PUU-XXIII/2025, which limits the assignment of police members outside the police structure without external control.
In addition to the government, Ikhsan calls on civil society and the press to monitor the implementation of the KPRP recommendations. “Without consistent public pressure, the tendency to maintain the status quo within the police force will be far more dominant,” he said.
Furthermore, Setara also requests that regional police or Polda be more actively involved in the reform agenda, as they are considered closest to the public and can serve as the spearhead of accelerating police reform.