TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Indonesian activist Andrie Yunus, deputy coordinator of the Commission for the Disappeared and Victims of Violence (KontraS), has called on civil society groups to submit amicus curiae, or friend-of-the-court briefs, in the judicial review of Indonesia’s revised Military Law at the Constitutional Court.
Andrie made the appeal in an open letter addressed to both the public and the Constitutional Court.
The letter, dated April 5, 2026, was read out by Hussein Ahmad, deputy director of the rights group Imparsial, after attending a hearing on the judicial review outside the Constitutional Court building in Jakarta on Wednesday, April 8, 2026.
A coalition of civil society organizations filed the judicial review petition challenging several provisions of the revised Military Law on October 23, 2025. The case is registered at the Constitutional Court as Case Number 197/PUU-XXIII/2025.
The petition challenges several key provisions, including Article 7 paragraph (2) letter b number 9, Article 7 paragraph (2), Article 47 paragraph (1), and Article 53. These articles govern military operations other than war, the placement of active military personnel in civilian posts, and the extension of retirement ages for soldiers and officers.
In his letter, Andrie said KontraS, together with the Civil Society Coalition for Security Sector Reform, is seeking a constitutional review to prevent what it sees as an expansion of military influence into civilian, political, and economic spheres.
“Through this judicial review, we are also pushing for reform of the military justice system to ensure law enforcement and accountability for human rights violations,” Andrie said.
Andrie is also the victim of an acid attack allegedly carried out by four members of the Strategic Intelligence Agency (Bais) of the Indonesian Military (TNI) in Central Jakarta on the night of March 12, 2026.
He argued that since the Military Law was revised in 2025, several key principles governing civil-military relations have been undermined, including the principle of civilian supremacy. According to him, the revision also runs counter to People’s Consultative Assembly (MPR) Decrees No. 6 and No. 7 of 2000, as well as the 1945 Constitution.
“Therefore, I call on all elements of civil society to submit amicus curiae in our case, Number 197, to convince the constitutional justices to accept all the legal arguments we have presented,” Andrie said in the letter.
In a separate section of the letter addressed to the Constitutional Court, Andrie also stressed that the attempted murder case against him must be thoroughly investigated and prosecuted. He said the state has a duty to ensure such an attack is never repeated.
According to Andrie, the most important principle is that anyone accused in the case—regardless of whether they are civilians or members of the military—should be tried in a civilian court.
“I object and express my vote of no confidence if the legal process in this case is conducted through military courts,” he said.
Andrie argued that military courts have long served as a source of impunity for military personnel accused of human rights violations, despite the constitutional guarantee of equality before the law.
“Therefore, if this case is not tried in civilian courts, it would amount to a serious violation of the principle of equality before the law,” he said.
Read: How Indonesia's Military Justice Continues to Serve Political Ends
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