Constitution Making and Nation-State Imagination: A Historical Comparison, 1945-2002

(Pembentukan Konstitusi dan Imajinasi Negara Bangsa:Suatu Perbandingan Historis 1945-2002)

  • Herlambang Perdana Wiratraman Universitas Gadjah Mada
Keywords: comparative constitution, constitution making, human rights, nation state, indonesian history

Abstract

Abstract

In Indonesia’s history, the making of the constitutional foundation has been shaped by its political context. From the decolonization process till present, the making of the constitution has been intervened by various actors, both national and international parties. Hence, constitution changes are socially and politically complex. The complexities are represented in constitution-making governance, process, and its debates in the substantive drafting. This article focuses on how the constitution-making processes and its debates regarding issues of human rights and fundamental freedom have been contested since the very beginning of Indonesia’s independence, and how this debate provides answers to the cases, processes, substance, and implementation involved in Indonesia’s constitution making. It is clear in a comparative analysis, using Arato’s model, that the constitution-making during the amendment period (1999-2002) is the best process that involved civil society and substantially more progressive. However, this argues that understanding the constitution-making would play important role in underpinning Indonesia’s nation state imagination.

Abstrak

Dalam sejarah Indonesia, pembentukan landasan konstitusional telah dibentuk oleh konteks politiknya. Dari proses dekolonisasi hingga saat ini, terlihat bahwa pembentukan konstitusi telah diintervensi oleh berbagai aktor, baik nasional maupun internasional. Oleh karena itu, perubahan konstitusional bersifat kompleks secara sosial dan politik. Kompleksitas tersebut terdapat dalam model pembentukan konstitusi, proses, dan perdebatan dalam penyusunan substansinya. Pembahasan artikel ini berfokus pada bagaimana proses pembentukan konstitusi dan perdebatannya mengenai beberapa isu hak asasi manusia dan kebebasan dasar sebagai gagasan yang diperdebatkan sejak awal kemerdekaan Indonesia, dengan memberikan jawaban atas penyebab, proses, substansi, dan implementasi yang terlibat dalam pembuatan konstitusi baru di Indonesia. Jelas dalam analisis komparatif, berbasis model Arato, bahwa pembentukan konstitusi selama periode amandemen (1999-2002) merupakan proses terbaik dalam melibatkan masyarakat sipil dan secara substansial lebih progresif. Namun, hal ini menunjukkan bahwa memahami pembuatan konstitusi akan memainkan peran penting untuk mendukung imajinasi negara bangsa Indonesia.

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Legal Instruments
Indonesia’s Constitutional Amendment (Amandemen Undang-Undang Dasar Negara Republik Indonesia Tahun 1945, called as UUDNRI 1945).
The 1949 Indonesia’s Federal Constitution or Konstitusi Republik Indonesia Serikat (RIS)
The 1950 Constitution/The Provisional Basic Law of 1950 was enacted by Law No. 7 dated August 15, 1950. or Undang Undang Dasar Sementara/UUDS 1950
The 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
The Vice-President’s Proclaim (Maklumat Wakil Presiden) No. X of 16 October 1945
MPR Decree XVII/MPR/1998 on Human Rights
Presidential Decree 129/ 1998 on Indonesia’s National Action Plan on Human Rights
Law 5 of 1998 on Ratification of the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
Law 8 of 1998 on Consumer Protection
Law 9 of 1998 on Freedom of Expression in the Public Sphere
Law 29 of 1999 on Ratification of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination
Law 39 of 1999 on Human Rights
Law 40 of 1999 on Press
Law 26 of 2000 on the Human Rights Court.
Published
2026-06-10
How to Cite
Wiratraman, H. P. (2026). Constitution Making and Nation-State Imagination: A Historical Comparison, 1945-2002. Mimbar Hukum, 38(1), 114-147. https://doi.org/10.22146/mh.v38i1.27473
Section
Articles