Indonesia's political and governmental structures underwent sweeping reforms in the late 1990s. After decades of authoritarian rule, a key aspect of the transition to constitutional democracy during this period was the amendment of the 1945 Indonesian Constitution - an important legal text governing the world's third largest democracy. The amended Constitution introduced profound changes to the legal and political system, including an emphasis on judicial independence, a bill of rights, and the establishment of a Constitutional Court.
This volume, with chapters written by leading experts, explores the ongoing debates over the meaning, implementation, and practice of constitutional democracy in Indonesia. This includes debates over the powers of the legislature, the role of the military, the scope of decentralisation, the protection of rights and permissible limits on rights, the regulation of elections, the watchdog role of accountability agencies, and the leading role of the Constitutional Court. These legal issues are analysed in light of the contemporary social, political, and economic environment that has seen a decline in tolerance, freedom, and respect for minorities. Contributions to this volume review the past two decades of reform in Indonesia and assess the challenges to the future of constitutional democracy amidst the wide-spread consensus on the decline of democracy in Indonesia. Demands for amendments to the Constitution and calls to revert to its initial form would be a reversal of Indonesia's democratic gains.
List of Indonesian Abbreviations List of Contributors 1: The Limits of Transformational Authoritarian Constitutions: The Indonesian Experience Melissa Crouch PART 1. LEGAL AND POLITICAL FOUNDATIONS AND INSTITUTIONS 2: The Consequences of Halfway Constitutional Reform: Problems of Lawmaking in Indonesia's Parliament Stephen Sherlock 3: Defending the Constitution, But Which One? The Indonesian Military, Constitutional Change, and Political Contestation, 1945-2020 Marcus Mietzner 4: Between Upholding the Rule of Law and Maintaining Security: Criminal Justice Actors in Indonesia's Constitution Fachrizal Afandi and Adriaan Bedner 5: Striking the Right Balance: Winding Back Indonesia's 'Big Bang' Decentralization Rachael Diprose 6: Building Walls Rather than Bridges: The Judicial Commission vs the Supreme Court in Indonesia Dian Rositawati 7: The Constitutional and Legislative Foundations of Indonesia's Electoral Regime Adhy Aman and Dirk Tomsa 8: Election Supervision in Indonesia: Options for Reforming the General Election Supervisory Agency Fritz Siregar PART 2. THE CONSTITUTIONAL COURT AND RIGHTS 9: Making Social Rights Real? The 1945 Constitution and Social Rights Litigation in Indonesia Andrew Rosser 10: Indigeneity in the Indonesian Constitution Yance Arizona 11: The Indonesian Constitutional Court and Informal Constitutional Change Stefanus Hendrianto 12: The Constitutionalization of 'Religious Values' in Indonesia Ahmad Rofii and Nadirsyah Hosen 13: LGBT Rights and the Constitutional Court: Protecting Rights without Recognizing them? Abdurrachman Satrio 14: Legal Certainty in the Indonesian Constitutional Court: A Critique and Friendly Suggestion Mark Cammack Index
Melissa Crouch is Professor at the Faculty of Law & Justice at the University of New South Wales, Australia. Her research is in the areas of comparative constitutional law, law and society, and law and religion. She is the author of two books: The Constitution of Myanmar: A Contextual Analysis (2019) and Law and Religion in Indonesia: Conflict and the Courts in West Java (2014). Her current research focuses on constitutional change in authoritarian regimes.
Reviews for Constitutional Democracy in Indonesia
This outstanding book shines much-needed light on the precarious state of democracy in Indonesia. Featuring a remarkable roster experts, it rings the alarm on the rising threats to rights and the rule of law in the world's third-largest democratic nation. A must-read for all who believe in democracy and constitutionalism. * Professor Richard Albert, University of Texas * Indonesia's experiment with constitutional democracy is now two decades old. As the country enters a challenging period, there is no better guide to understand developments than this volume of superb essays by an array of keen observers. The project will also inform broader debates in the field of comparative constitutional law. Highly recommended! * Professor Tom Ginsburg, University of Chicago, USA *