Supreme Court to take over judge supervisory role
Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The Supreme Court will soon take over the promotion and supervision of judges as lawmakers are close to completing amendments to both the public court and state administrative court laws.
Legislators said on Sunday that they had agreed on virtually all the revisions to Law No. 2/1986 on public court and Law No. 5/1986 on the state administrative court.
The revisions are necessary to bring the two laws in line with the newly amended 1945 Constitution, which gives the Supreme Court the mandate to supervise and promote judges in both the public and state administrative courts.
"We have completed the revisions of the two laws and started the revisions of the attorney law," legislator M. Sjaiful Rachman of the United Development Party (PPP) told The Jakarta Post on Sunday.
Currently, the supervision and promotion of judges in the public court and state administrative court are carried out by the justice ministry.
Fellow legislator M. Akil Mochtar of Golkar, however, said that House members and the government were still debating whether or not judges were part of the state apparatus.
"We will bring this issue to a meeting with the minister of justice and human rights scheduled for next week," Akil said without giving any details.
Both Sjaiful and Akil are members of the House working committee assigned to deliberate the revision of five judicial laws.
Revisions of Law No.14/1970 on the authority of judges and Law No. 14/1985 on the Supreme Court were completed last December and took effect last month.
They said the House would try its best to finish the revisions in this sitting period, expected to end on March 10.
Apart from shifting the management of judicial matters from the justice ministry to the Supreme Court, the bills also regulate the immunity of judges against legal charges.
Article 26 of the public court bill states that chairman, deputy chairman, and judges in public courts can be detained upon the instruction of the Attorney General following recommendation from the chief justice of the Supreme Court, except when caught red-handed, accused of committing a crime punishable by death or a crime against the state.
Revision of the laws were made in line with amendments to the Constitution.
The amendment mandates the nation shift the management of judicial affairs from the justice and human rights ministry to the Supreme Court.
Akil said that all laws related to this issue must be revised and adjusted to the constitutional amendments.
"Article 24 of the amended Constitution states that judicial authority is executed by the Supreme Court and other institutions under the Supreme Court," he told the Post.
The House will also discuss a bill on the establishment of the judicial commission. The formation of the judicial commission -- that will be responsible for the recruitment of judges -- is also mandated in the Constitution.
--------------------------------------------------------------- Some revisions to the Public Court Law Article 13: (1) Promotion and supervision of judges is to be carried
out by the Supreme Court.
(2) Promotion and supervision must not affect the
independence of judges. Article 26: Chairman, deputy chairman, and judges of the court can be detained upon the orders of the attorney general following recommendation from the chief justice of the Supreme Court, except: (1) when arrested red-handed, (2) when accused of committing a crime where the penalty is death, (3) when accused of committing a crime against the state.
Some revisions to the State Administrative Court Law Article 7: Technical, organizational and administrative promotion is carried out by
the Supreme Court. Article 26: Chairman, deputy chairman, and judges can be detained
with upon the order of the attorney general following
approval from the chief justice of the Supreme Court. ---------------------------------------------------------------