On Wednesday (21/12), the Faculty of Law, Universitas Gadjah Mada (FH UGM), held its second open doctoral examination of the day. The examination took place in Room 3.1.1, with Prof. Dr. Sigit Riyanto, S.H., LL.M., serving as chair, Prof. Dr. Marsudi Triatmodjo, S.H., LL.M., as promotor, Prof. Sudjito, S.H., M.Si., as co-promotor, and Dr. I Gusti Ayu Ketut Rachmi H., S.H., M.M., from Universitas Sebelas Maret (UNS), as an external examiner. Fajar Winarni, S.H., M.Hum., was the promovenda.
The FH UGM Environmental Law lecturer presented her dissertation entitled “A Juridical Study of the Legal Standing of Environmental Organizations in Indonesia.” “The legal standing of environmental organizations in Indonesia has been legally recognized since 1997. However, relatively few environmental organizations have exercised their right to sue. One reason is that several requirements under Law No. 32 of 2009 on Environmental Protection and Management are quite burdensome, including the requirement to have legal-entity status. In practice, many organizations that actively advocate for environmental protection do not have legal-entity status. In my view, this requirement is important because it demonstrates an organization’s full legal capacity,” the promovenda explained regarding one of the issues that prompted her research.
The 147th prospective doctoral graduate of FH UGM used three theories to address her three research questions. Christopher D. Stone’s theory was used to examine why the legal standing of environmental organizations is necessary for environmental protection. The theory of legal standing (right to sue) was then used to examine its development in Indonesia, covering individuals, groups, environmental organizations, the government, and citizen lawsuits. Finally, the theory of law and development was used to determine what form of legal standing reform should be developed as ius constituendum.
The dissertation of the mother of three concluded, first, that the legal standing of environmental organizations has been implicitly recognized as a legal right. However, this recognition cannot yet be considered a realization of Christopher D. Stone’s theory, as there is still no clear provision recognizing environmental rights in Indonesia. Second, legal standing has been regulated across various fields, including consumer protection, forestry, waste management, water resources, the Constitutional Court, and environmental organizations. The legal standing of environmental organizations is regulated under Article 92 of Law No. 32 of 2009, followed by Supreme Court Decree No. 36 of 2013 concerning Guidelines for Handling Environmental Cases. Third, the recognition and regulation of the legal standing of environmental organizations in Indonesia remain anthropocentric. (Nurirzi Irdiyan)
