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| Constituante (Indonesia) | |
|---|---|
| Name | Constituante |
| Native name | Konstituante |
| Jurisdiction | Indonesia |
| Established | 1956 |
| Disbanded | 1959 |
| Preceding | Constitution of 1950 |
| Superseding | 1950 Constitution restored by Presidential Decree |
Constituante (Indonesia) was the elected Constituent Assembly convened to draft a permanent constitution for the Republic of Indonesia during the transitional period following the Indonesian National Revolution and the dissolution of the United States of Indonesia. The body met amid tensions between supporters of a secular republican framework and proponents of an officially Islamic state, with major actors including PNI, NU, Masyumi, PKI, and figures such as Sukarno, Hatta, Muhammad Natsir, and Sutan Sjahrir. The assembly's failure to achieve the required two-thirds majority precipitated intervention by the 1959 Decree and reimposition of the 1945 Constitution principles.
The formation of the assembly followed political developments after the Linggadjati Agreement, the Renville Agreement, and negotiations culminating in the Dutch–Indonesian Round Table Conference that recognized Indonesian sovereignty. Post-independence debates during the Liberal Democracy era produced the 1950 Provisional Constitution of 1950, but pressure persisted from Islamist groups like SI and modernist Muslims such as Muhammadiyah to enshrine Sharia influences. The 1955 1955 Indonesian legislative election and 1955 Constituent Assembly election reflected fragmentation across parties including Partai Nasional Indonesia (PNI), PSII, and regional movements from Aceh, Papua, and Sulawesi. International contexts, including the Cold War alignments involving PRC sympathizers and Western-leaning politicians, shaped delegate alignments.
The assembly comprised delegates elected in 1955 from national parties and regional lists; principal contingents were from Masyumi Party, NU, Partai Nasional Indonesia (PNI), and PKI. Key members included Mohammad Natsir, Abdul Haris Nasution (as an influential military commentator), I Gusti Gde Agung, Kartosoewirjo-adjacent sympathizers were monitored, and intellectuals like Soemitro Djojohadikusumo participated in debates. Religious leaders from Nahdlatul Ulama and reformists from Muhammadiyah interacted with legal scholars linked to Universitas Indonesia, while representatives from West Irian advocates and PRRI dissenters influenced discussions. Women delegates from Fatmawati Sukarno circles and Gerwani-adjacent activists were present but underrepresented.
Mandated to produce a new permanent constitution, the assembly operated under parliamentary rules influenced by the 1950 Provisional Constitution and engaged committees on fundamental rights, state structure, and religion. It held plenary sessions in Jakarta and consulted legal experts, scholars from Gadjah Mada University, and foreign constitutionalists from nations like India and Turkey. Legislative-like activities included drafting bills on electoral law influenced by the 1955 elections, civil code revisions referencing the Burgerlijk Wetboek, and debates on national symbols tied to Pancasila and the role of President Sukarno. The assembly's committees produced competing drafts, notably the Jakarta Charter-informed proposals championed by Islamist blocs and secular drafts advanced by nationalist and leftist factions associated with PKI and labor unions.
Central disputes concerned whether the state should adopt an explicitly Islamic foundation—reflecting positions of Masyumi Party, Nahdlatul Ulama, and activists linked to Darul Islam—or retain a secular nationalist identity expressed through Pancasila. Advocates of religious clauses referenced the Jakarta Charter, while secularists echoed principles from the 1945 Constitution and the legacy of Sukarno's guided democracy rhetoric. Other flashpoints included the balance of power between the People's Representative Council (DPR) and the presidency, military roles tied to doctrines of commanders like Abdul Haris Nasution, regional autonomy demands from Aceh rebellion proponents, and land tenure disputes related to colonial-era laws such as the Agrarian Law (UUPA) precursors. Minority rights, language policy concerning Bahasa Indonesia, and judicial independence with respect to the Mahkamah Agung were debated alongside economic system choices referencing socialism-leaning proposals supported by PKI and capitalist models favored by PNI moderates.
After prolonged deadlock and inability to secure a two-thirds majority for any constitution, political instability escalated with cabinet collapses, regional rebellions like the PRRI/Permesta movement, and increased political maneuvering by President Sukarno. On 5 July 1959 Sukarno issued a Decree of 1959 dissolving the assembly and reinstating the 1945 Constitution, invoking support from military figures and nationalists. The dissolution marginalized parties such as Masyumi, which later faced bans, empowered leftist and nationalist currents including PKI until the 1965–66 events surrounding G30S/PKI and shifted constitutional development toward guided democracy and later the New Order under Suharto.
Historians assess the assembly as a focal point where competing visions for Indonesian identity—religious nationalism, secular nationalism, and leftist alternatives—clashed without resolution, influencing later constitutional arrangements under Guided Democracy. Scholarship from R. E. Elson, John Roosa, and Adrian Vickers situates the Constituent Assembly within broader narratives of postcolonial state-building, Cold War geopolitics, and Indonesian political culture. The failure of the assembly affected party system evolution, contributing to the concentration of executive power and shaping debates in later constitutional amendments during the Reformasi era following the fall of Suharto. The assembly's archives and draft proposals remain sources for jurists and political scientists studying constitutionalism, Islamist-secularist relations, and transitional institutions in Southeast Asia.
Category:Politics of Indonesia Category:Constituent assemblies