November 23, 2025 | 09:07 am
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - A coalition of civil society has criticized the statement of the Indonesian Minister of Human Rights and Justice Natalius Pigai for expressing readiness to facilitate the wave of public dissatisfaction over the newly amended Criminal Procedure Code or KUHAP. The Head of the Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI), Muhamad Isnur, evaluates Pigai's statement as misguided and suggests that the Ministry of Human Rights and Justice has not fulfilled its role as a guardian of human rights standards in the legislative process.
Isnur states that the Ministry should not merely provide space for the expression of public aspirations after the law is enacted. He believes that the ministry should actively oversee the substance of the bill since the early stages of its deliberation, particularly because many articles in the new KUHAP have the potential to contradict international conventions ratified by Indonesia. "This is not the time to accommodate public dissatisfaction," he said at the YLBHI office in Central Jakarta on Saturday, November 22, 2025.
Isnur emphasizes that the Ministry of Human Rights and Justice has a direct responsibility in the eyes of international human rights agencies, including in the mechanism of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) and the session of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). He reminds that the issues highlighted in these international forums are not just quotes by officials, but rather each article that contradicts human rights standards.
"The Ministry of Human Rights and Justice should be questioned: were they involved or not? Because the Ministry will be held accountable internationally," says Isnur. "So, Minister Pigai, be prepared to be mocked and heavily criticized by the UN forum."
According to him, the new KUHAP actually has the potential to worsen Indonesia's image in international forums. One of these relates to provisions regarding torture and the validity of evidence. Isnur points out that under the Convention against Torture (CAT), evidence obtained through torture must be declared invalid. However, in the new KUHAP, he believes there is no clear mechanism regarding when and how this assessment will be made.
"In the CAT, there is an obligation that all evidence must be obtained without torture. In the new KUHAP, this exists, but what about in cases of violence? When will the determination be made? It does not exist," he said.
Isnur also questions the absence of a judicial review mechanism in the pre-trial stage that allows judges to assess the validity of evidence from the outset. He states that ICCPR standards require suspects to be promptly brought before a judge, no later than two days after their arrest. However, the new KUHAP still allows layered detention for months. "In this KUHAP, it still uses regulations from the New Order era, where a person can be detained from arrest to trial for six to seven months. This is very outdated," he said.
In the field of legal aid, Isnur mentions that the new KUHAP also fails to address the issues that have long been experienced by the public. He states that the Legal Aid Institute (LBH) often receives reports that the police threaten suspects not to use legal assistance from LBH. "There are so many cases that we assist that are terminated because the police do not want the LBH to be involved. Legal aid does not adhere to human rights standards," he said.
Isnur urges Pigai not to stop at merely stating readiness to accommodate public complaints. He believes that the Ministry of Human Rights and Justice has the technical capacity and resources to conduct a comprehensive study of the KUHAP. Isnur also mentions that the previous statement by the Deputy Minister of Human Rights and Justice was never quoted in the DPR discussions, so he doubts the effectiveness of the ministry's role in the legislative process. He urges Pigai to directly convey his objections to President Prabowo Subianto.
Previously, Natalius Pigai stated that his ministry is ready to facilitate public dissatisfaction concerning the enactment of the new KUHAP. He mentioned that the public can pursue a substantive review if they believe there are articles that contradict human rights. "Whatever decision the DPR made, there is always an avenue for judicial review," Pigai said on Friday, November 21, 2025. However, Pigai emphasizes that his ministry's support only applies if the aspects of human rights are questioned.
The DPR ratified the revision of the KUHAP in a plenary session on Tuesday, November 18, 2025, after a year-long discussion. The revision process began in November 2024 when the Council of Experts of the House was asked to prepare an academic manuscript. The bill was then proposed by the DPR in February 2025 and began to be discussed with the government in March. The level I deliberation meeting between Commission III and the government reached a substantive agreement on November 13, before it was finally ratified in a level II meeting.
Vedro Imanuel Girsang contributed to this report.
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