An expert in criminal law told the Constitutional Court on Thursday that a regulation stipulating that ex-convicts cannot run for office is unjust and discriminative.

"A person must not be labeled as a bad person forever even though they were once convicted of a criminal act, especially when they have already served time in prison for their crime," said Chairul Huda, a lecturer at Muhammadiyah University, during a Constitutional Court plenary session.

The court is currently reviewing Article 58 (f) of the 2004 Regional Administration Law in response to a request by Muhlis Matu, a member of the Takalar legislature in South Sulawesi, that the law be readdressed. The article states that a person who has been imprisoned for five years or more cannot become a candidate in a local election.

Muhlis claimed that the article infringed on his right to run for deputy regent in the local election because he was imprisoned for nine years from 1982 for attempted murder stemming from his adherence to the Makassarese tradition of Siri (pride). He was released on good behavior in 1987 after serving only five years.

"Article 58 (f) of the 2004 law does not cover all kinds of criminal acts because it only states that one can be a regional leader if he or she has never been sentenced for five years or more," Chairul said.

He charged that the article is clearly discriminative. "How about people who get sentenced to less than five years, but they commit the same crime and are convicted several times?" he asked.

"The article should be changed to read that all people who have faced criminal penalties or been imprisoned are forbidden to run in a regional election," he said.

Akil Mochtar, a lawmaker from the House of Representatives Commission for legal affairs, said the article was included to guarantee that regional administrations are led by people able to create good and clean governance.

"We want a person that can be a role model for other people," he said. Chairul disagreed, insisting that many of the country's leaders had been imprisoned several times but still made good leaders.

"Take former president Soekarno or House of Representatives deputy head A.M. Fatwa for example, both were imprisoned several times but nobody doubts their credibility," he said.

Muhlis's lawyer, Januardi Haribowo, said his client's election to the local legislature had never been questioned. It was not until he decided to run for the post of deputy regent that his status as an ex-convict became an issue.

The court session will remain adjourned until the House and the government decide on whether to summon more law experts to testify.