The House of Representatives had passed the Government Regulation in Lieu of Law (Perppu) No. 1/2020 into Law during the plenary session held on May 12, 2020. A day before, the President issued Government Regulation (PP) No. 23/2020, which is one of the implementing regulations of the mentioned Perppu. PP 23 outlines the implementation of the national economic recovery program with several main focuses. The Government’s fast action in providing a legal basis is needed now more than ever, but even so, some criticize the policies planned by the Government.

Eight months ago, the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) uncovered a case of corruption involving several officials of State-Owned PT Perkebunan Nusantara III (Persero) (PTPN III). The KPK named several suspects, including then Managing Director of PTPN III, one Dolly Pulungan. The alleged briber was found guilty on May 13, 2020. The prosecutors read their demands for Dolly and another defendant (the bribee).

Nearly eleven years have passed since the Montara H1-ST1 wellhead caught fire in 2009. The incident supposedly caused environmental damages to Indonesia’s coast. The companies involved in the case, however, insisted on their innocence. Representatives of the affected people decided to file a class-action lawsuit in the Australian Federal Court, and the proceeding continues. Meanwhile, the Government formed a task force to resolve the problem, but we have not heard of any significant progress. 

It has been almost five years since the dispute over the Jakarta Bay reclamation project was taken to court. Since then, a lot has happened, including the investigation into the case of corruption. Licenses for the reclamation were revoked by the Governor of Jakarta in 2018, but the developers fought back. Most of the lawsuits were granted. The latest decision was given by the Jakarta State Administrative Court (PTUN Jakarta) for PT Muara Wisesa Samudra (MWS), a subsidiary of PT Agung Podomoro Land Tbk (APLN). So far, the court almost always decided in favor of the developers. So it is not surprising to know that even the High Court (PTTUN) recently denied Jakarta’s appeal in the case against PT Jaladri Kartika Pakci. At around the same time, the President also issued a Presidential Regulation, explaining the continuation of development on the four islands.

Our wait for the last stage in the investigation into the allegation of corruption in State-owned insurance company PT Asuransi Jiwasraya (Persero) will be over soon. Earlier this week, the Attorney General’s Office (AGO) announced that the public prosecutors had accepted the dockets of five suspects. They declared the dockets complete, so it will soon be expedited to the stage of prosecution. Separately, the dispute related to the rights on trademarks over the name Nyonya Meneer continues. Charles Saerang filed a new lawsuit. 

In the plenary session held on May 12, 2020, the House of Representatives officially passed two important laws, i.e., the revised Law on Mineral and Coal Mining (Minerba) and the Government Regulation in Lieu of a Law (Perppu) on the reallocations of the 2020 State Budget for COVID-19 mitigation. The House of Representatives allows the opposition parties to file a Judicial Review on the newly enacted Law on Minerba. As for the Perppu, several petitions for Judicial Review are currently being examined at the Constitutional Court.

The plan to revise and update the provisions in Law No. 4/2009 on Mineral and Coal Mining (UU Minerba) continues. After several intense exchanges, on May 11, 2020, the House of Representatives and the Government reached an agreement. The Bill will be discussed in the...

After being in a complicated dispute with its shareholder PT Kawasan Berikat Nusantara (Persero) (KBN) for over two years, PT Karya Citra Nusantara (KCN) was forced to restructure its debt by its former legal counsel Juniver Girsang. The odd lawsuit was granted, and...

The trial of the suspected bribers in the Sidoarjo graft case—involving the Regent of Sidoarjo Saiful Ilah (PKB)—started recently. In less than three months, the prosecutors read their demands for the defendants. Separately, towards the end of last week, the Panel of...

In March 2020, a lawsuit on Suspension of Debt Payment (PKPU) was filed against PT Mahkota Properti Indo Senayan and PT Mahkota Properti Indo Permata. Both are companies linked to PT Mahkota Properti Indo (MPI). MPI is a shareholder in PT Intikeramik Alamasri Industri...