After Massive Judicial Rotation, What's Next?

Following the revelation of a bribery case involving several judges in courts in Jakarta, the Supreme Court has reshuffled the composition of judges and clerks in the district courts in Jakarta and Surabaya, East Java, as well as in several other district courts. A total of 199 judges and 68 clerks have been reassigned and exchanged positions, with those originally serving in Jakarta being sent to the regions and those from the regions being brought to Jakarta.

For example, at the Central Jakarta District Court, out of a total of 35 judges, 11 have been transferred to other courts in the region. Meanwhile, 11 judges from a total of 28 judges at the West Jakarta District Court have also been rotated. Similarly, 13 judges from 30 judges at the South Jakarta District Court, 14 judges from a total of 30 judges at the East Jakarta District Court, and 12 judges from 24 judges at the North Jakarta District Court have undergone rotation. Additionally, 10 judges from a total of 41 judges at the Surabaya District Court have been affected.

They will be replaced by new judges selected from various regions. The West Jakarta District Court and the Central Jakarta District Court will each receive an additional 15 new judges, the South Jakarta District Court will receive 14 new judges, the East Jakarta District Court will receive 18 judges, and the North Jakarta District Court will receive 21 new judges. Meanwhile, the Surabaya District Court will receive an additional 14 judges.

In addition to the transfer of judges, three District Courts in Jakarta, namely the Central Jakarta District Court, the South Jakarta District Court, and the North Jakarta District Court, have received new leadership.

The Central Jakarta District Court will be led by Husnul Khotimah, who previously served as the Chair of the Balikpapan District Court, while the position of deputy will be held by Efendi, who previously served as the Chair of the Dumai District Court.

The Chairperson of the South Jakarta District Court will be replaced by Agus Wahyudi, who was previously the Chairperson of the Banjarmasin District Court, while the position of Deputy Chairperson will be held by I Gusti Ayu Susilawati, who was formerly the Chairperson of the Gresik District Court. Meanwhile, the Chairperson of the North Jakarta District Court will be Yunto S Hamonangan Tampubolon, who previously served as the Chairperson of the Serang District Court, and his deputy, Salman Alfarasi, who was formerly the Chairperson of the Tanjung Karang District Court.

The massive reshuffle of judges is expected to improve the condition of the courts, which have been plagued by integrity issues, where several judges have been involved in bribery and gratification cases.

The latest case involves the Chairman of the South Jakarta District Court, Muhammad Arif Nuryanto, and three judges from the Jakarta Corruption Court, namely Djuyamto, Ali Muhtarom, and Agam Syarif. They have been detained by the Attorney General's Office due to their involvement in an alleged bribery case amounting to IDR 60 billion related to the handling of a corruption case concerning the export of crude palm oil (CPO) involving three major companies.

Previously, precisely at the end of October 2024, investigators from the Attorney General's Office also arrested three judges suspected of being involved in a bribery case to acquit Gregorius Ronald Tannur, the defendant in the murder of Dini Sera Afrianti, his girlfriend. They are three judges from the Surabaya District Court, namely Heru Hanindyo, Erintuah Damanik, and Mangapul, who had previously issued a verdict of acquittal for Ronald.

However, how effective is the massive mutation of judges and clerks in minimizing transactional practices in handling cases and, further, in realizing an integrity-based judiciary?

The Head of the Center for Development of Criminal Justice System Research at Brawijaya University, Fachrizal Afandi, appreciated the move by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, Sunarto, to carry out a massive rotation of judges and clerks, particularly for the District Courts in Jakarta and Surabaya. However, he cautioned that this step is not the final measure but rather the beginning that must be followed by subsequent policies.

"This is the first step, because this is a mafia issue. There is a network, if it is rotated it will disrupt the network. When it has been rotated, so what's next. The next is to evaluate the integrity of the judge who was rotated. So if it has been rotated, it will continue to be monitored whether he is as expected," said Fachrizal, when contacted on Wednesday (4/23/2025).

In addition, he suggested that the Supreme Court map out the potential for corruption and the patterns used by judicial mafias. In this context, strengthening oversight both internally (Supreme Court Supervisory Agency) and externally (Judicial Commission) is essential.

"If mapping is not carried out, whoever the person is, however (judicial corruption) will continue to occur," he stressed.

Thus, the large-scale rotation of judges and clerks carried out by the Supreme Court will not be just a gimmick after the revelation of the bribery and gratification scandal involving judges. Rather, he added, the large-scale rotation of judges and clerks is truly a serious effort to improve the judicial situation in this country.

One of the aspects that needs attention, according to him, is the importance of establishing a culture of integrity within the judiciary. Monitoring slogans such as the corruption-free area (WBK) are expected to be genuinely implemented. Judges and clerks are also urged to uphold the rules and avoid conflicts of interest.

"Corruption is initially a conflict of interest. For example, a judge is paid by his friend (for) the hajj, for example, that is a conflict of interest. That is not allowed. It must be stricter," he said.

The spokesperson for the Judicial Commission (KY), Mukti Fajar Nur Dewata, also appreciated and supported the steps taken by the leadership of the Supreme Court to reshuffle judges across all district courts in Jakarta and also in strategic courts such as Surabaya. This policy is seen as a serious effort by the Supreme Court to reform the judiciary following the recent arrests of several judges in connection with alleged bribery and gratification cases.

"The Judicial Commission (KY) is committed, together with the Supreme Court (MA), to uphold the honor of judges. KY is also prepared to provide input and information regarding judges with integrity through their past track records as considerations in the process of judge mutations," said Mukti Fajar.

Regarding the rotation of the river, KY believes that this has been done by the Supreme Court based on data and integrity.

Meanwhile, the Chief Justice Sunarto, in a speech disseminated among the internal court community, expressed hope that the promotion and transfer of 199 judges and 68 clerks would serve as a refreshment that could provide greater motivation for judges and court personnel to perform better. He also advised all court officials to avoid transactional service practices.

"Let us avoid services that will be provided by the judicial apparatus and the Supreme Court apparatus that are transactional in nature. Moving forward, let us pray together that there will be no more services of a transactional nature," said Sunarto.

In the video, Sunarto stated that the leadership meeting of the Supreme Court discussing the promotion and transfer of 199 judges and 68 clerks was just completed on Tuesday (22/4/2025) at 20:00 WIB. The transfer of judges will continue to be carried out.

The request for court officials to avoid and steer clear of transactional services was reiterated by the Chief Justice in his speech during the peak celebration of the 72nd Anniversary of the Indonesian Judges Association (Ikahi) with the theme "Integrity Judges, Quality Justice" on Wednesday (23/4/2025) morning.

The theme of integrity has been the focus of Indonesian judges for the past three years. At the 70th anniversary of Ikahi in 2023, the theme presented was "Realizing Integrity in Judges, Gaining Public Trust." One year later, at the 71st anniversary celebration of Ikahi in 2024, the theme presented was "Integrity in Judges, Dignified Courts."

According to Sunarto, the consistency in raising the theme of integrity reflects that the issue of integrity remains a primary problem and a homework that must be addressed.

"In the midst of the storm of turbulence shaking the judicial world today, amid the sharp scrutiny of Indonesian judges due to several ironic events affecting a handful of our colleagues, this theme increasingly finds its significance," he stated.

"The series of themes and events underline that integrity is not something that can be realized overnight, but rather a collective effort and commitment over a long period, demonstrated through actions, as well as the courage to reject all forms of deviation, consistency in the principles and values upheld, and the alignment of attitudes, words, and deeds," he added.

He also reminded that judges are the heart of justice. The gavel of a judge is akin to the heartbeat that circulates the blood of justice into the veins of human life, bringing hope to the community in search of justice.

Without judges acting with conscience and wisdom, according to Sunarto, the law becomes merely a series of articles devoid of spirit, and justice loses its true meaning.

"On the contrary, when judges deviate from the truth, distorting the values of justice, the gavel that should symbolize legal certainty and justice transforms into a sound echoing in emptiness. A ruling that is supposed to uphold justice can instead become a tool for legitimizing falsehoods, tarnishing the meaning of law as a guardian of balance in life," said Sunarto.

He also quoted the prominent Dutch jurist, BM Taverne, who once said, "Give me a good judge, and I will uphold justice no matter how bad the law is at present." Sunarto invited judges and judicial officials to use the momentum of the 72nd anniversary of IKAHI as an opportunity to reaffirm their integrity. This is important for the realization of a quality judiciary.