Adisti Sukma Sawitri, Jakarta – Following pressure from pro-democracy groups, failed independent candidates and student groups, the Constitutional Court has decided to allow independent candidates to contest local elections, annulling some points in the Regional Autonomy Law.
The verdict will not affect Jakarta's gubernatorial elections, for which only two candidates have been officially registered.
Six of nine judges in the court agreed Monday to remove points in the 2004 law that stipulated only candidates endorsed by political parties could run for local election in the country. Presiding judge Jimly Asshidiqie said the removed points violated citizens' electoral rights.
Aceh's special law means it is the only province in the country where independent candidates can take part in local elections. Irwandi Yusuf won the Aceh gubernatorial election earlier this year.
"Similar opportunities must be opened in other regions in Indonesia to avoid legal dualisms that violate a citizen's rights," Jimly said while delivering the verdict. The judges did, however, leave in the law on the nomination process through political parties, saying they considered it to be a normal practice and not against the Constitution.
The court began reviewing the law following the request of Lombok councilor Lalu Ranggalawe, who failed to run in the West Nusa Tenggara governor election. As an independent with no party backers, Lalu was unable to accumulate the 25 percent electoral threshold regarded by law.
During the case the court summoned several other individuals who failed to run as independent candidates, including economist Faisal Basri and Abdul Radjak. Both were prevented from running in the Jakarta election and told the court that the political parties had treated them unfairly during the nomination process.
Jakarta Elections Commission head Juri Ardiantoro said it would not postpone the Jakarta poll simply because of the court's ruling. "It takes time before the ruling can take effect in a local election and we can't wait that long. I would not rule out the result unless there was a special order from the central government," he said.
Monday's verdict will have to go through a long process at the Home Ministry and the House of Representatives before taking effect and it may be months before it is fully implemented.
Separately, legislator Sarwono Kusumaatmadja, who also tried to run as a candidate in the Jakarta election, called the court's judges "cowards" and accused them of intentionally postponing the verdict until it was too late for independent candidates to run in the Jakarta election.
"They (the judges) just want to play safe in front of the elite politicians who have orchestrated a head-to-head battle for the election," he said. The court delayed its verdict several times, saying it did not want to increase political tension in the city.