The 2019 General Election marked a gateway to a new chapter in Indonesia’s democratic development. It represented a decisive political moment: if successful, Indonesia would be able to smoothly consolidate its democracy; if unsuccessful or delayed, the country would continue to struggle with an endless democratic transition.
This political momentum was shaped by three factors. First, since the amendments to the 1945 Constitution, Indonesia has held three legislative elections, three presidential elections, and three waves of local elections, providing sufficient time and material for a comprehensive evaluation of elections as the fundamental pillar of democracy. Second, the Constitutional Court mandated that legislative and presidential elections be conducted simultaneously in 2019. Third, the preparation and implementation of simultaneous local elections had consumed considerable national resources and energy, while the expected outcomes—namely, the local governments produced—had yet to inspire confidence in meaningful progress.
We, the civil society organizations united in the Joint Secretariat for Election Law Codification, have prepared ourselves to embrace this decisive political momentum. First, since mid-2014, we have worked to realize the idea of codifying election laws through a series of studies and simulations aimed at integrating several election-related laws into a single legal framework. The codification of election laws is a necessity, as it is illogical for simultaneous elections to be governed by separate and fragmented election laws.
The result of this codification initiative was the document Study on Election Law Codification: Integrating Law No. 32/2004, Law No. 12/2008, Law No. 42/2008, Law No. 15/2011, and Law No. 8/2012, along with Selected Constitutional Court Decisions into a Single Legal Text, which can be downloaded from www.rumahpemilu.or.id. We are grateful that this document received positive responses from election stakeholders—including the House of Representatives (DPR), the government, political parties, election management bodies, academics, and election observers—encouraging us to continue the work that had only reached its halfway point.
Second, since mid-2015, we have expanded the election law codification program in a more comprehensive manner. While the first phase merely simulated the integration of five election laws into a single document without altering their substantive provisions, the second phase involved a series of studies, discussions, and simulations aimed at revising, improving, and refining the regulatory framework in order to better achieve the objectives of elections.
The objectives of elections have in fact been clearly stated in the explanatory sections of every election law enacted after the amendments to the 1945 Constitution. These objectives are: improving the quality of voter participation, strengthening political representation, simplifying the party system, and enhancing the effectiveness of the presidential system of government. However, legislative elections, presidential elections, and local elections over the past fifteen years have not successfully achieved these objectives. It is therefore necessary to identify the root causes of these shortcomings and formulate solutions. These efforts are reflected in this Academic Paper for the Draft Law on General Elections.
This academic paper is essentially a more concise version of a series of focused studies on ten key electoral issues: (1) electoral systems, (2) women’s representation, (3) accessibility, (4) voter registration, (5) election campaigns, (6) campaign finance, (7) electoral technology, (8) law enforcement, (9) public participation, and (10) election management institutions. The complete studies on these ten issues will soon be published to contribute to public discourse surrounding the Election Bill, which will serve as the legal foundation for the 2019 General Election and future elections.
We encourage the DPR and the government, as lawmakers, to begin deliberations on the Election Bill as soon as possible in 2016, with the goal of enacting it by early—or at the latest, mid—2017. Achieving this timeline would provide election management bodies, political parties, candidates, and other stakeholders with approximately 24 months to prepare for Election Day in 2019. This would represent the most ideal condition for organizing the 2019 General Election. Lawmakers should recognize the importance of this timeline, given that the 2019 election would be Indonesia’s first experience conducting legislative and presidential elections simultaneously. One can only imagine the challenges involved, considering that legislative elections alone have historically been accompanied by numerous problems, let alone when combined with a presidential election.
We hope that this academic paper will serve as a valuable resource for the DPR and the government in drafting the Election Bill, and subsequently as an important reference in the deliberation and debate of the bill during the 2016 parliamentary session.
Joint Secretariat for Election Law Codification
