Slamet Sarwo Edy, S.H., M.H. successfully defended his dissertation on Monday (18/7). Before the panel of examiners and invited guests, he presented issues concerning the military judiciary. In relation to the independence of the military judiciary, he argued that problems exist both structurally and functionally. He further explained that, from a structural perspective, several non-judicial institutions remain involved in criminal law enforcement within the military justice system. Functionally, this situation affects judges in rendering decisions.
“There are several decisions that we examined, and the conclusion is that they were indeed influenced by institutions outside the judiciary,” he stated while presenting his dissertation entitled “The Independence of the Military Justice System in Indonesia (A Study on the Structure of the Military Judiciary)”.
The Military High Court judge proposed a new concept for the structure of the military judiciary. At the investigation stage, investigations should be conducted solely by the military police. Consequently, the ankum (superior officers authorized to impose disciplinary sanctions) and military prosecutors (oditur militer) would no longer participate in investigations. According to him, prosecutions should be handled exclusively by military prosecutors. “It is sufficient for the military prosecutor to submit the case and act as the prosecutor within the Indonesian National Armed Forces,” he explained. Furthermore, at the adjudication stage, there should no longer be distinctions based on military rank between captains and below and majors and above, as all cases should be handled by courts of first instance. “The court of first instance should have jurisdiction over all offenses committed by members of the armed forces, regardless of whether the accused is a private or a general. Appeals would proceed to the High Court, while cassation would be submitted to the Supreme Court,” he emphasized.
As a consequence, Law Number 31 of 1997 concerning Military Courts would need to be revised, a reform that has in fact already been mandated under several statutory regulations. The remaining issue, according to him, is the political will of the government to restructure the military judiciary, particularly to strengthen its independence. Another indication of the lack of independence within the military judiciary can be seen in its financial administration, which is not administered under a single integrated system. “Within the military judiciary, judges and court clerks still receive their salaries from the Headquarters of the Indonesian National Armed Forces, while their allowances are paid by the Supreme Court,” he explained.
The Kebumen-born scholar nevertheless remains optimistic that the military judiciary will improve in the future. At the conclusion of the Open Doctoral Promotion Session, Slamet Sarwo Edy, S.H., M.H. was awarded a doctoral degree with the distinction of Highly Satisfactory. (Lita)
