The Police Reform Commission (Komisi Reformasi Kepolisian/KRK), which according to the Coordinating Minister for Law will be established by President Prabowo, must not stop at being a short-term symbolic response. Instead, it should be positioned as a strategic instrument to accelerate the transformation of the Indonesian National Police (Polri) and address the structural and cultural problems within the institution. Without such a vision, the Commission risks being perceived as merely a political gimmick aimed at defusing public criticism without producing substantive change.
The KRK should also be directed toward a broader vision of strengthening democracy in Indonesia. In recent years, Polri has not only faced a crisis of public trust but has also become one of the principal actors in Indonesia’s democratic regression. Without a progressive design for the Commission’s work, Polri risks continuing to be a source of democratic backsliding rather than a pillar of the rule of law, while also becoming a supporting force for the emergence of a new authoritarianism.
The idea of police reform is not entirely new. Civil society organizations, including SETARA Institute, have long advocated for police reform and transformation. In its Police Transformation Design (2024) study, SETARA Institute identified 130 current issues embedded within Polri that affect all of its core mandates, including law enforcement, community protection, public security and order, and public services, resulting in stagnation in the transformation of the institution.
These 130 issues were grouped into 12 thematic problem areas requiring systemic responses: (1) the position of Polri within the constitutional structure; (2) oversight of Polri; (3) accountability in law enforcement processes; (4) governance of detention facilities and protection of detainees’ rights; (5) criminal justice orientation and the misinterpretation of public security and order (kamtibmas); (6) accountability in the use of firearms; (7) community protection and public service performance; (8) counterterrorism performance; (9) accountability of public service functions; (10) governance of police education; (11) organizational governance and human resource management within Polri; and (12) inter-agency relations.
The need for a systemic response is further reinforced by the findings of a survey conducted among 167 experts as part of the study.
- Among the findings, 61.6 percent of experts assessed public trust in Polri’s performance of its duties and functions as poor, while only 16.8 percent rated it as good.
- A total of 49.7 percent of experts stated that Polri’s contribution to safeguarding Indonesian democracy was poor, while only 19.8 percent considered it good.
- Meanwhile, 51.2 percent of experts considered the implementation of democratic and humane policing to be poor, with only 19.9 percent assessing it as good.
- Regarding the integrity of Polri in law enforcement, 58.7 percent of experts rated it as poor, while only 16.6 percent considered it good.
- A total of 46.1 percent of experts assessed Polri’s institutional governance in terms of accountability and transparency as poor, while only 15.6 percent rated it positively.
- In terms of proactive policing that responds to community needs, 46.4 percent considered it fairly good, while 25.9 percent rated it poor and 27.7 percent considered it good.
- Meanwhile, 48.5 percent assessed modernization efforts, such as the digitalization of Police Clearance Certificate (SKCK) services, as good, while only 18 percent considered them poor.
First, the performance of the KRK must be supported by political legitimacy from the President, a strong legal framework that grants it real authority to formulate reform agendas and ensure their implementation, and membership that is independent, professional, and progressive. Without these prerequisites, both the Commission and its work will become little more than administrative records that can easily be ignored. SETARA Institute has identified recurring structural and cultural problems throughout previous police reform efforts, with many of the same issues persisting from the administration of President Abdurrahman Wahid (Gus Dur) to the present.
Second, based on the views of experts, SETARA Institute identified five priority areas for Polri over the next five years in support of Indonesia Vision 2045, namely: (1) accountability in law enforcement processes; (2) oversight of Polri; (3) community protection and public service performance; (4) accountability of public service functions; and (5) organizational governance and human resource management within Polri. The KRK should place these five issues at the center of its reform agenda.
Third, to support the broader agenda of police reform and transformation, SETARA Institute has developed a comprehensive transformation framework. This framework is built upon four pillars: a Democratic and Humane Police, a Police Institution with Integrity and Anti-Corruption Values, a Proactive and Modern Police, and a Precision-Oriented and Transformative Police.
Based on these four pillars, SETARA Institute formulated and recommended 12 thematic transformation agendas. Under the Democratic-Humane Pillar: (1) building a police institution that is humane and upholds human rights; (2) establishing strong, participatory, and multi-layered oversight mechanisms; and (3) creating an inclusive and gender-responsive police institution. Under the Integrity and Anti-Corruption Pillar: (1) ensuring fair and just law enforcement; (2) building a police institution free from corruption, collusion, and nepotism (KKN); and (3) strengthening the institutional independence of Polri.
The Proactive-Modern Pillar includes: (1) developing a professional and modern institution; (2) ensuring a sense of security for all members of society; and (3) building a transparent, accountable, and responsive institution that meets public needs. Meanwhile, the Precision-Transformative Pillar includes: (1) developing high-quality police personnel who are adaptive, prepared for future challenges, and trusted by the public; (2) reforming police education governance to produce qualified and professional officers; and (3) strengthening inter-agency synergy and collaboration.
To implement these 12 transformation agendas, SETARA Institute has also developed 24 implementation strategies accompanied by 50 detailed action plans. The complete action plans can be accessed through the link provided separately. One of the actions that must be accelerated to ensure successful police transformation is strengthening the external oversight body. In this regard, the authority of the National Police Commission (Kompolnas), as part of efforts to strengthen external oversight, should be expanded to oversee and accelerate the implementation of Polri’s transformation agenda.
Fourth, in implementing these four pillars, SETARA Institute has mapped the major challenges associated with each reform agenda. Under the Democratic-Humane Pillar, seven key challenges were identified: (1) the persistence of a culture of violence; (2) limited accountability in the use of firearms; (3) impunity for police officers involved in acts of violence; (4) the continued dominance of security-oriented approaches in maintaining public order; (5) limited understanding among police officers regarding human rights protection in practice; (6) criminalization resulting from Polri’s insufficient independence from political power; and (7) the handling of public demonstrations that is inconsistent with Police Regulation No. 8 of 2009.
Under the Integrity and Anti-Corruption Pillar, seven challenges were identified: (1) law enforcement driven by viral public attention; (2) weak implementation of anti-corruption commitments; (3) limited accountability and transparency in law enforcement; (4) persistent legal controversies involving senior police officials; (5) insufficient leadership by example within Polri; (6) significant vulnerability to political interference; and (7) limited transparency in the governance of police education institutions.
Under the Proactive-Modern Pillar, five challenges were identified: (1) uneven digitalization of public services across regions; (2) limited technological literacy among police personnel in regional areas; (3) illegal levies used to accelerate or prioritize responses to public complaints; (4) excessive bureaucracy in public service delivery; and (5) limited public service education and outreach for police officers serving local communities.
Meanwhile, under the Precision-Transformative Pillar, six challenges were identified: (1) weak oversight of police performance; (2) limited availability of qualified police personnel in regional areas; (3) weak implementation of anti-corruption commitments; (4) insufficient leadership by example; (5) limited recruitment of policewomen and inadequate implementation of gender-responsive policies; and (6) abuse of authority in carrying out police duties and functions.
Fifth, the establishment of the KRK represents a significant step toward the democratization of Indonesia’s security sector. However, its strategic value can only be measured if the Commission genuinely operates independently, transparently, and with a commitment to substantive reform. Furthermore, the establishment of the KRK must be accompanied by broader institutional reforms and performance improvements across other state institutions, including the legislature, ministries, and other government agencies.
Police reform must be recognized as one of the fundamental agendas for democratic consolidation in Indonesia. It should not become merely a cosmetic measure or a temporary response to the broader crisis of institutional legitimacy affecting state governance, including the security sector. Through the comprehensive transformation of Polri alongside broader institutional and governmental reforms, Indonesia can move closer toward achieving the vision of Golden Indonesia 2045.
Contact Persons:
- Ikhsan Yosarie, Human Rights and Security Sector Reform Researcher, SETARA Institute
- Merisa Dwi Juanita, Human Rights and Security Sector Reform Researcher, SETARA Institute
- Azeem Marhendra Amedi, Law and Constitutional Researcher, SETARA Institute
- Halili Hasan, Executive Director, SETARA Institute