Discrepancy of the law on disaster emergency in Indonesia: In search of an integrated law

Abstract

The emergency status is a critical factor in handling disasters in Indonesia, particularly for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). It provides adequate access for the Government to reduce legal bureaucracy and facilitate expenditure. However, it has faced difficulties in its application as it does not have an explicit reference to existing emergency-related disaster laws. This article investigates this discrepancy in terms of the meaning of emergency status within the legal framework in Indonesia. This study uses the doctrinal method to explore six various laws related to disaster emergencies and analyse their discrepancies that have adversely impacted the management of COVID-19. The article finds that the term ‘disaster emergencies’ in the Indonesian legal system has different legal interpretations and a lack of standardisation, making their execution difficult.

Contribution: This article significantly highlights the normative issues of determining disaster emergencies and their status in six different disaster-related laws. It provides an alternative approach to mainstream thinking by proposing amendments to the Infectious Disease Outbreak Law as an integrated law to ensure legal certainty, benefit, and fairness for the people in handling potential pandemics in Indonesia in the years to come.