10 Years of the Constitutional Court: The Dynamics of Protecting Citizens’ Constitutional Rights (Indonesian)

This document is a research report published by the SETARA Institute to evaluate 10 Years of the Constitutional Court’s (MK) Performance in Protecting Citizens’ Rights (2003–2013). This report critically examines the extent to which the Constitutional Court has fulfilled one of its primary roles as “the protector of human rights” (the protector of human rights) and the protector of citizens’ constitutional rights.

The main focus of this report is on an analysis of judicial review decisions that directly concern civil liberties, minority rights, and freedom of religion or belief. This report criticizes the Constitutional Court’s tendency during its first decade, noting that in several of its crucial rulings—such as the rejection of the constitutional challenge to Law No. 1/PNPS/1965 on Blasphemy—it was deemed to have failed to protect minority groups. The Constitutional Court is often seen as catering to the will of the majority, getting bogged down in interpretive ambiguities, and hiding behind arguments of public order. Broadly speaking, this report concludes that although the Constitutional Court has succeeded in establishing itself as the guardian of the Constitution, it still frequently neglects the protection of its citizens’ fundamental rights.