In early April 2026, the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) renewed calls for the Indonesian government to hold accountable all those responsible for the March 12 acid attack on human rights lawyer and legal aid defender Andrie Yunus, who sustained severe burns to his face, eye, chest, and hands after two assailants attacked him …
Zainal Arifin Mochtar, Idul Rishan, “Autocratic Legalism: the Making of Indonesian Omnibus Law.” Yustisia, vol. 11, no. 1 (2022): 29-41. Summary: The Indonesian House of Representatives’ approval of the Omnibus Law on Job Creation marks a significant enhancement of the business climate and a step forward for labor market flexibility, which should, over time, improve …
B.J. Kyle, A.G. Reiter, Military Courts, Civil-Military Relations, and the Legal Battle for Democracy: The Politics of Military Justice (1st ed.). London: Routledge, 2021. Summary: The interaction between military and civilian courts, the political power that legal prerogatives can provide to the armed forces, and the difficult process civilian politicians face in reforming military justice remain …
This article examines the challenges faced by defense lawyers operating within Indonesia’s authoritarian legal system.
Marie Seong-Hak Kim, “Travails of Judges: Courts and Constitutional Authoritarianism in South Korea.” The American Journal of Comparative Law, vol. 63, no. 3 (2015): 601–54. Summary: This study addresses the urgent need for enhanced external oversight of constitutional judges in Indonesia and South Korea, driven by increasing concerns over judicial integrity and accountability. Recent instances of …
Björn Dressel and Cristina Regina Bonoan, “ Courts and Authoritarian Populism in Asia: Reflections from Indonesia and the Philippines.” Law & Policy, vol. 46, no. 3 (2024): 277–297. Summary: Authoritarian populism has been making a comeback in Asia, as illustrated in Southeast Asia’s most important presidential regimes: the Philippines and Indonesia. In the Philippines, President …
Tamir Moustafa. “The Politics of Domination: Law and Resistance in Authoritarian States,” Chapter. In The Struggle for Constitutional Power: Law, Politics, and Economic Development in Egypt. 19–56. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007. Summary: The thought of judicial institutions in authoritarian states typically conjures up the image of state security courts with no standards of due process, handpicked …
This book explores how Indonesia’s leading legal aid organization, YLBHI, has used cause lawyering to resist authoritarianism, navigate democratic setbacks, and defend legal freedoms amid growing threats to democracy.