Chief Justice of the Constitutional Court of Indonesia

Last updated
Chief Justice of the Constitutional Court of Indonesia
Ketua Mahkamah Konstitusi
National emblem of Indonesia Garuda Pancasila.svg
Incumbent
Suhartoyo
since 9 November 2023
Constitutional Court of Indonesia
Seat Jakarta
Formation22 August 2003
First holder Jimly Asshiddiqie
Deputy Deputy Chief Justice of the Constitutional Court of Indonesia (Wakil Ketua Mahkamah Konstitusi)

The chief justice of the Constitutional Court of Indonesia (Indonesian : Ketua Mahkamah Konstitusi) is the head of the Constitutional Court of Indonesia.

Contents

List of chief justices

NameTermTerm length
(days)
Jimly Asshiddiqie 22 August 200319 August 20081,824
Mahfud MD 19 August 20083 April 20131,688
Akil Mochtar 3 April 20135 October 2013185
Hamdan Zoelva 6 November 20137 January 2015427
Arief Hidayat 14 January 20152 April 20181,174
Anwar Usman 2 April 20187 November 20232,045
Suhartoyo 9 November 2023

First chief justice. The first chief justice was Jimly Asshiddiqie. He was well known as law professor of the University of Indonesia, and actively involved in the process of Indonesian constitutional reform and the political transformation to democracy. During the crisis in the transitional era under the presidency of Habibie (1998–1999), he chaired the Reformation Committee for law reform. As scholar, he often makes media appearances and offers comments on a range of public policy issues, until he was elected Chief Justice of the Court. As a scholar he has published more than 40 books on various legal and constitutional issues and some textbooks used in the universities all over Indonesia.

Second chief justice. The second chief justice, Mahfud MD, first elected in 2008, was re-elected in mid-2011 for a second term. Mahfud won the votes of five of the nine court judges, ahead of two other candidates. Mahfud MD was noted for his media and public comment. He was popular as a politician and member of parliament before being elected judge for the Constitutional Court. His comments and media appearances were sometimes controversial. Following his re-election, The Jakarta Post noted that "He is down to earth and his courage is well known" but also suggested that "As chief judge of the Constitutional Court, he should rather talk less and in contexts of the Constitution." [1] His name is sometimes mentioned in the media as a possible presidential candidate in the 2014 elections. [2] His term as chief justice ended on 1 April 2013.

Third chief justice. On 3 April 2013, Akil Mochtar was elected the third chief justice. [3] Akil was supported with seven of the nine votes cast. Akil, a former politician from the Golkar party, had been a justice of the Constitutional Court since 2008 and has a reportedly conservative approach in legal matters. He has said that in contrast to his predecessor, Machmud MD, he "would not talk to reporters much about politics." [4] On 2 October 2013, Mochtar was arrested by anti-corruption officials for allegedly accepting at least $250,000 in bribes, relating to a disputed election in Kalimantan. [5] Several days later, president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono announced that Akil was temporarily suspended from his position as chief justice of the court and that new and stricter procedures for the appointment of justices to the court would be introduced. [6] Shortly after, the independent ethics council declared that Akil had been removed from his position and that the post of chief justice was vacant. [7] In the subsequent legal process, numerous instances of allegedly corrupt payments that Akil had received as a justice were presented by prosecutors. [8]

Fourth chief justice. On 1 November 2013, Justice Hamdan Zoelva was elected as the fourth chief justice for the period 2013-2016. Hamdan, a former member of parliament from the Muslim-based Crescent Star Party (Partai Bulan Bintang or PBB), was elected by his colleagues after two rounds of voting. Hamdan spoke of the need to reform faith in the court and said he would create a permanent ethics council to oversee the conduct of justices. Some observers, however, doubted that it would be easy for Hamdan to introduce such changes. [9]

Fifth chief justice. On 14 January 2015, Justice Arief Hidayat was elected as the fifth chief justice. In December 2017, he denied committing an ethics violation by lobbying the House of Representatives for an extension of his term in office. He admitted to meeting legislators at a Jakarta hotel but denied doing any lobbying. He came under criticism over alleged backroom deals regarding the House’s inquiry into the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) under the 2014 Legislative Institutions Law (MD3), which was under review by the Constitutional Court. [10] Academicians in February 2018 demanded he step down for alleged ethical violations. [11] He was re-elected to serve a second and final term until 2023 but he was replaced in April 2018. [12]

Sixth chief justice. On 2 April 2018, Justice Anwar Usman was elected as the sixth chief justice. He is due to serve to 2020. [13]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Democratic Party (Indonesia)</span> Political party in Indonesia

The Democratic Party is a constitutional populist political party in Indonesia. It was founded on 9 September 2001. It states its ideology to be based on Pancasila.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ratu Atut Chosiyah</span> Indonesian politician (born 1962)

Ratu Atut Chosiyah is a former governor of the province of Banten, Indonesia. She was suspended from office in 2014 because of a corruption case. She held office for several terms. Before her election as governor in 2006, she was the deputy governor under Djoko Munandar starting from 11 January 2002. Djoko was involved in a corruption case and was suspended from office in October 2005. President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono appointed Ratu Atut as the acting governor to take over Djoko's administrative duties and she later became governor. She thus became the first female governor in Indonesia. In May 2014, she was formally charged by the Indonesian Corruption Eradication Commission for alleged corruption. In early September 2014, she was sentenced to a four-year term of imprisonment on the charges brought by the Commission against her. In September 2022, Ratu Atut was released on parole.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Constitutional Court of Indonesia</span>

The Constitutional Court of the Republic of Indonesia is one of the apex courts in Indonesia along with the Indonesian Supreme Court. Its primary role is reviewing the constitutionality of Acts (undang-undang). It also has other functions, including resolving disputes over the powers of state institutions, settling disputes over the results of general elections, deciding on the dissolution of political parties, and supervising impeachment. The last two functions have never been exercised by the Court.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mahfud MD</span> Indonesian politician

Mohammad Mahfud Mahmodin, commonly known as Mahfud MD, is an Indonesian politician and lawyer, who is currently serving as the Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs of Indonesia and Acting Minister of Communication and Information Technology. He is the first civilian to hold the office; with all of his predecessors coming from military – mostly Army – retirees. He also previously served as the chief justice of the Constitutional Court of Indonesia, member of the People's Representative Council, Minister of Defense, and Minister of Law and Human Rights.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Patrialis Akbar</span> Indonesian lawyer and politician

Patrialis Akbar is an advocate and politician who was member of the Constitutional Court Justice of the Indonesian Constitutional Court for the period 2013–2017 from Padang, West Sumatra. He has a complete career in three branches of state, legislative, executive and judicial power. He had served as a member of the House of Representatives for two periods.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Akil Mochtar</span>

Akil Mochtar is a convicted former-Chief Justice of the Constitutional Court of Indonesia that was indicted for his acceptance of bribery for an election dispute case, prompting President of Indonesia Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who appointed him, to sign legislation creating a permanent ethics body to supervise the Constitutional Court of Indonesia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hamdan Zoelva</span>

Hamdan Zoelva is an Indonesian politician and lawyer. He was the chief justice of the Indonesian Constitutional Court from 2013 to 2015, replacing Akil Mochtar whose appointment was terminated on bribery case during election dispute in Lebak Regency, Banten. He also has served as former leaders of the Crescent Star Party.

Arief Hidayat was the fifth Chief Justice of the Constitutional Court of Indonesia. Previously, he was a professor of law at his alma mater, Diponegoro University.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anwar Usman</span> Indonesian judge and jurist

Anwar Usman is an Indonesian judge and jurist, who was the sixth Chief Justice of the Constitutional Court of Indonesia. He was elected to the position on 2 April 2018, replacing Arief Hidayat. He previously served as the fifth Deputy Chief Justice of the Constitutional Court of Indonesia. Usman served on the Constitutional Court for four years prior to his confirmation as Deputy Chief Justice. Before replacing Arsyad Sanusi as a sitting justice on the court in April 2011, Usman was a high court judge in Jakarta as well as the manager of human resources at the Supreme Court of Indonesia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Suhartoyo</span> Indonesian chief justice (born 1959)

Suhartoyo is currently a justice of the Constitutional Court of Indonesia who has elected as Chief Justice of the Constitutional Court of Indonesia since November 2023. Alongside I Dewa Gede Palguna, Suhartoyo was chosen by President Joko Widodo to replace outgoing Justice Ahmad Fadlil Sumadi in January 2015. A former judge from the Denpasar High Court, Suhartoyo's appointment caused controversy due to criticism from the Judicial Commission of Indonesia over his lenience on a Bank Indonesia liquidity scandal when he was serving on the South Jakarta District Court.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">I Dewa Gede Palguna</span>

I Dewa Gede Palguna is a constitutional law academic who served two terms as a justice of the Constitutional Court of Indonesia. He holds the record for having been the youngest ever justice of the Indonesian Constitutional Court. In February 2020, he was appointed to the ethics council of Indonesia's Child Protection Commission.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ma'ruf Amin</span> Vice President of Indonesia

Ma'ruf Amin is an Indonesian politician, Islamic cleric, and lecturer who is the 13th and current vice president of Indonesia. Aged nearly 76 years old when inaugurated, he is the oldest Indonesian vice president to ever be sworn in.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Setya Novanto</span> Indonesian politician

Setya Novanto is a former Indonesian politician, presently serving a 15 year jail sentence for corruption. He was chairman of Golkar Party and speaker of the People's Representative Council until his arrest in 2017 for corruption. Born in Bandung, he entered politics in 1998 after a business career and became a member of the People's Representative Council following the 1999 general election. After he was re-elected for a third time in the 2014 general election, won by the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle, he was appointed DPR (Parliament) Speaker by the majority opposition coalition.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harnojoyo</span> Indonesian politician

Harnojoyo is an Indonesian politician of the Democratic Party who is the current mayor of Palembang, South Sumatra. He was elevated into office following the arrest of his predecessor Romi Herton for bribery. He was initially elected as deputy with Herton as his running mate during the city's 2013 local elections. He ran in the simultaneous local elections of 2018, and was reelected.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">I Wayan Koster</span> Indonesian politician (born 1962)

I Wayan Koster is an Indonesian politician who is the 10th governor of Bali. Before becoming governor, he was a member of the People's Representative Council representing the province.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Romi Herton</span> Indonesian politician and businessman

Romi Herton was an Indonesian politician and businessman who served as the mayor of Palembang. He served actively between 2013 and 2014, and remained formally a mayor until 2015 when he was removed from his post. Before becoming mayor, he had been the deputy mayor for five years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wahidin Halim</span>

Wahidin Halim is an Indonesian politician who is the formerly Governor of Banten, having held that position since 2017 to 2022. Before being elected to the office, Halim had spent two years as a legislator and ten years as the mayor of Tangerang.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ruhut Sitompul</span>

Ruhut Sitompul is an Indonesian lawyer, politician and actor. He was elected twice into the People's Representative Council, in 2009 and 2014. As a lawyer, he handled many cases of high-profile politicians, and maintained a high-profile status in media himself, having gained popularity through his acting role in television.

2023 (MMXXIII) is the current year, and is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar, the 2023rd year of the Common Era (CE) and Anno Domini (AD) designations, the 23rd year of the 3rd millennium and the 21st century, and the 4th year of the 2020s decade.

References

  1. 'Editorial: Focus on the Constitution', The Jakarta Post, 26 August 2011. This editorial provides useful commentary on the election of Mahfud MD to the position of chief judge and on his high profile role in Indonesia.
  2. ''Chances slim' for Mahfud M.D. to win presidency' Archived 9 January 2012 at the Wayback Machine , The Jakarta Post, 7 January 2012.
  3. Ina Parlina, 'Ex-Golkar-lawmaker to lead Constitutional Court', The Jakarta Post, 4 April 2013.
  4. Prodita Sabarini, 'Akil Mochtar Turning the Tide', The Jakarta Post, 2 May 2013.
  5. Indonesia arrests top judge on corruption charges, BBC News, 3 October 2013
  6. 'SBY temporary dismisses Akil Mochtar from chief justice position.', The Jakarta Post, 5 October 2013.
  7. Hans Nicholas Jong, 'Former PBB lawmaker elected Constitutional Court chief justice', The Jakarta Post, 2 November 2013.
  8. 'Court reveals Akil's bribery record', The Jakarta Post, 22 February 2014.
  9. Anselmus Bata & Ezra Sihite, 'Hamza Zoelva Takes Over Helm of Constitutional Court', The Jakarta Globe, 1 November 2013.
  10. Ramadhani, Nurul Fitri (6 December 2017). "Constitutional Court chief denies alleged ethics violation". The Jakarta Post. Retrieved 9 April 2018.
  11. Muryanto, Bambang (22 February 2018). "Yogyakarta academicians call on MK chief justice to step down". The Jakarta Post. Retrieved 9 April 2018.
  12. Sapiie, Marguerite Afra (2 April 2018). "Anwar Usman elected as new Constitutional Court chief justice". The Jakarta Post. Retrieved 9 April 2018.
  13. "Anwar Usman gantikan Arief Hidayat sebagai Ketua MK". Antara. 2 April 2018. Retrieved 9 April 2018.