I Dewa Gede Palguna

I Dewa Gede Palguna is a constitutional law academic who served two terms as a justice of the Constitutional Court of Indonesia.^[1][2] He holds the record for having been the youngest ever justice of the Indonesian Constitutional Court. In February 2020, he was appointed to the ethics council of Indonesia's Child Protection Commission.^[3]

I Dewa Gede Palguna
Justice on the Constitutional Court of Indonesia
In office 16 August 2003 – 15 January 2008
President	Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono
Succeeded by	M. Akil Mochtar
In office 7 January 2015 – 7 January 2020
President	Joko Widodo
Preceded by	Hamdan Zoelva
Succeeded by	Daniel Yusmic P. Foekh
Personal details
Born	24 December 1961 Bangli Regency, Bali, Indonesia
Citizenship	Indonesian

A Hindu from Bali, Palguna has said religious freedom is guaranteed by the Constitution and the state must protect any religion or belief regardless of whether they were formally recognized or not. ^[4]

First Constitutional Court term

Indonesia's Constitutional Court was established in 2001 but did not open its office until August 2003.^[5] Palguna served his first term in the court's first batch of justices between 2003 and 2008. The court has nine judges: three selected by the president, three selected by the Supreme Court and three selected by the House of Representatives (DPR). Palguna was among the three judges elected by DPR Commission II on legal affairs on 14 August 2003. The DPR factions had come up with a list of 12 candidates after two withdrew from the race. Most votes went to Jimly Asshiddiqie (nominated by Golkar Party and the Reform Faction), then to retired general and long-time legislator Achmad Roestandi (nominated by the United Development Party). Palguna, who was deputy secretary of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) faction in the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR), was the third DPR candidate elected. At the age of 41, he was the youngest ever justice of the Constitutional Court.^[6] He has kept that record after the minimum age for Constitutional Court justices was later raised to 47.^[7]

Second Constitutional Court term

Palguna served his second term as a Constitutional Court justice from 2015 to 2020. This time, he was one of three appointees selected by President Joko Widodo. He replaced the outgoing justice Hamdan Zoelva.^[8] Palguna had been lecturing in law at Udayana University prior to his second term.^[8] Alongside his colleagues Patrialis Akbar and Manahan Sitompul, Palguna was investigated in relation to a graft scandal at the court in January 2017. Arief Hidayat, the Chief Justice, cleared Palguna and Sitompul of any wrongdoing but dismissed Akbar.^[9]

Upon completing his second term on 7 January 2020, Palguna welcomed his successor, Daniel Yusmic Pancastaki Foekh, by quoting the title of the Guns n' Roses song, Welcome to the Jungle. He advised Daniel to be strong and careful "because, if not, it is not impossible that a judge will become 'lost'."^[10]

References

1. Constitutional Justices. From the official website of the Constitutional Court. Accessed 27 October 2016.
2. MK Holds Tax Amnesty Judicial Review. Tempo, 24 August 2016. Accessed 27 October 2016.
3. Swaragita, Gisela (25 February 2020). "KPAI sets up ethical council after 'swimming can cause pregnancy' blunder". The Jakarta Post. Retrieved 9 June 2020.
4. Parlina, Ina (7 January 2015). "Jokowi appoints PDI-P cadre as new justice". The Jakarta Post. Retrieved 20 January 2020.
5. Po Jen Yap (7 March 2019). Constitutional Remedies in Asia. Taylor & Francis. pp. 36–. ISBN 978-0-429-78812-3.
6. Stockman, Petra (April 2007). The New Indonesian Constitutional Court A study into its beginnings and first years of work (PDF). Hanns Seidel Foundation. p. 18. Archived from the original on August 18, 2019. Retrieved 21 January 2020.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
7. Hidayat, Rofiq (18 October 2018). "Batas Usia Calon Hakim Konstitusi Berubah Menuai Kritik". Hukum Online. Retrieved 21 January 2020.
8. Ina Parlina, Jokowi appoints PDI-P cadre as new justice. Jakarta Post, 7 January 2015. Accessed 25 October 2016.
9. Yustinus Paat and Eko Prasetyo, Patrialis Akbar Dismissed From Constitutional Court. Jakarta Globe, 28 January 2017. Accessed 2 February 2017.
10. Chusna Farisa, Fitria (7 January 2020). "Sambut Hakim MK yang Baru, Palguna: Welcome to The Jungle". Kompas.com. Retrieved 20 January 2020.