DIFFERENT KINDS

OF COURT SYSTEM
IN INDONESIA
 Stella

THE SUPREME COURT

The Supreme Court has exclusive jurisdiction in disputes between courts of the different court
systems and between courts located in different regions. It can annul decisions of high
(appellate) courts on points of law, not fact. On request, it can give advisory opinions to the
government and guidance to lower courts. However, its powers of judicial review are limited to
decisions on whether administrative regulations and local regulations conform to the laws as
passed by the DPR. Another reform to strengthen the system of checks and balances was the
2004 shift of administrative and financial control over the lower courts from the Department of
Justice (now called the Department of Justice and Human Rights) to the Supreme Court.
[Source: Library of Congress *]
 Saarah

 FOUR DIFFERENT COURT SYSTEMS

OPERATE BELOW THE SUPREME COURT:
First, there are courts of general civil and criminal jurisdiction. District courts are the courts of
first instance. High courts (at the provincial level) are appellate courts. Following the Dutch
legal system, cases are decided by panels of judges rather than juries. Sources of law on which
parties to a dispute may base their claims include: international law (to date rarely used);
modern Indonesian civil law, which has replaced but is often rooted in colonial-era Roman-
Dutch civil law; and adat (customary) law, which differs widely among ethnic groups. The court
system remains highly corrupt, with verdicts in both civil and criminal cases influenced by
bribery by both plaintiffs and defendants. Although judicial reform is key to consolidating
democracy and establishing a more favorable investment climate, efforts at judicial reform have
so far been half-hearted and largely ineffective. *
 Shafa

RELIGIOUS COURTS
Second, religious courts exist throughout Indonesia to resolve disputes between Muslims in
matters of marriage, divorce, inheritance, and gifts. These district-level courts base their
decisions on Islamic law. As in the secular court system, religious high courts are appellate
courts at the provincial level. One of the persistent tensions between Muslims and the state
arises from efforts to expand the jurisdiction of the religious courts.
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THE STATE ADMINISTRATIVE

COURT
Third, the state administrative court system resolves matters pertaining to the decisions of
government officials. In addition, the Taxation Review Board adjudicates taxation disputes.
Other administrative courts were eliminated as part of the government’s effort to simplify and
standardize the court system. *
 Syahrazad

MILITARY COURTS
Fourth, military courts have jurisdiction over TNI members. After the 1965 coup attempt,
temporary special military courts were given authority to try military personnel and civilians
alleged to be involved in the abortive coup. Hundreds of sentences ranging from 20 years’
imprisonment to death were meted out by the special military courts, with executions occurring
more than two decades after the event. The DPR has included a provision in a draft military law
that would require all military personnel accused of nonmilitary crimes to be investigated by
civilian prosecutors and tried by the civil court system. The military leadership opposed this
provision, and it is still being debated. *
 Shafa

TIPIKOR COURT
Another court, the Corruption Crimes Court (Tipikor Court), was established in 2003 to
confront widespread corruption in Indonesia, especially in cases of financial loss to the state and
as a deterrent to future corruption. In 2006, however, the Constitutional Court ruled that the
Tipikor had no legal basis and gave the DPR and the government until December 2009 to pass a
law to justify the court’s continued existence. Tipikor was allowed to continue to function
during this period, and in September 2009 the DPR complied with appropriate enabling
legislation, thus ensuring the court’s constitutionality. *