By: Aryo Wijaya )*
The government continues to demonstrate its commitment to strengthening the supremacy of national law through the renewal of the Criminal Procedure Code (KUHAP) as an integral part of national criminal law reform. Along with the implementation of the new Criminal Code (KUHP) starting January 2, 2026, the renewal of the KUHAP is a logical and urgent step to ensure that the Indonesian criminal justice system no longer relies on colonial legal products, but rather reflects the values of justice and legal sovereignty that originate from the character of the Indonesian nation itself.
The Coordinating Minister for Law, Human Rights, Immigration and Corrections, Yusril Ihza Mahendra, placed this criminal law reform within the larger framework of national legal development. He emphasized that the new Criminal Code is a concrete form of legal decolonization efforts that have long been a national aspiration.
According to Yusril, the national criminal law system formulated by the government is now built by considering the legal principles that exist in society, both those originating from customs, traditions, and Islamic values. The government no longer places criminal sanctions solely as a means of retaliation or deterrence as in the colonial legal system, but rather as a means of recovery, social peace, and restorative justice.
In the process of welcoming the implementation of the new Criminal Code, the renewal of the Criminal Procedure Code is important to strengthen the mechanism for implementing criminal law. This includes a comprehensive overhaul of the investigation, prosecution, and trial processes so that they run more efficiently, accountably, and in line with the principle of due process of law.
One important aspect in the renewal of the Criminal Procedure Code is strengthening the role of the prosecutor as dominus litis, namely the main controller of criminal cases from the initial stage of the legal process to the court’s decision. This idea is reinforced by many countries that adhere to the civil law system and is considered effective in accelerating the trial process and avoiding overlapping authority between investigators and public prosecutors.
The importance of dominus litis was also emphasized by an academic from the Faculty of Law, University of Indonesia, Junaedi. According to him, the renewal of the Criminal Procedure Code must strengthen the position of the prosecutor as the controller of the case so that law enforcement is not continuously hampered by technical problems such as the back and forth of case files between the police and the prosecutor’s office. With this affirmation, the legal process is expected to run more systematically and not cause uncertainty for the community. This arrangement also guarantees that the decision on the continuation of a case is in the hands of an institution that is able to consider not only formal legal aspects, but also substantive justice.
The government through the Ministry of Law and Human Rights is not remaining silent in welcoming the implementation of the new criminal law system. One of the strategic steps taken is to hold massive socialization to law enforcement officers, including prospective police officers.
The Director General of General Legal Administration, Widodo, views that understanding the new Criminal Code is an absolute requirement for anyone who will carry out law enforcement functions in Indonesia. He emphasized the importance of the new Criminal Code as the foundation of national criminal law that not only unites criminal norms in one codification, but also emphasizes the spirit of democratization of law based on Pancasila and the 1945 Constitution.
According to Widodo, the new Criminal Code contains a number of important updates that must be understood in the context of modern law enforcement. One of them is the recognition of living law in society, as a form of adaptation to social reality and local wisdom. In addition, the criminal justice system that is applied is more proportional and oriented towards social justice.
One of the most significant innovations is the recognition of corporations as subjects of criminal law, so that business entities that commit crimes for the benefit of their organizations can now be held legally accountable. This is a concrete answer to the challenges of systemic and organized crime in modern institutional structures.
The socialization carried out by the Directorate General of AHU is also part of the government’s strategy in overseeing the implementation of the new Criminal Code and Criminal Procedure Code comprehensively. The government realizes that legal reform does not only involve changing norms, but also the readiness of human resources who will enforce them. By equipping law enforcement officers from an early age, the government is trying to build a legal culture that is in line with the principles of restorative justice, social justice, and the supremacy of national law.
With all these efforts, it is clear that the renewal of the Criminal Procedure Code is not just an administrative revision, but part of a fundamental transformation of the Indonesian criminal law system. In the long term, this is an important foundation for creating legal certaintylaw, human rights protection, and a dignified justice system. The government has not only demonstrated political courage in ending dependence on colonial law, but also technocratic capability in building a legal system rooted in the nation’s noble values.
The criminal law reform currently being implemented, through the synergy of the new Criminal Code and Criminal Procedure Code, is a reflection of the state’s determination to uphold the supremacy of law that is just, democratic, and has an Indonesian character. The government is not just a rule maker, but the main driver of the birth of a national legal system that is able to answer the challenges of the times without abandoning the nation’s identity.
)* Observer of Law and Society
