Implementation of the Constitutional Court Decision Number 47-81/PHPU.A-VII/2009 Related to the Legitimacy of the Noken System in the 2024 Election in Papua

Abstract

This research analyzes the Constitutional Court's legal considerations in legitimizing Papua's noken system and its implications for the 2024 Election. Constitutional Court Decision No. 47-81/PHPU.A-VII/2009 recognizes the validity of the ‘’community consensus’’ or ‘’acclamation’’ system as a legitimate voting method in Papua, despite differing from direct, general, free, secret, honest, and fair principles in Article 22E of the 1945 Constitution. Using normative juridical methods, this study reveals three Constitutional Court considerations: juridical (legal certainty), sociological (utility), and philosophical (justice). Research findings indicate the Constitutional Court's erga omnes decision provides constitutional legitimacy to the noken system as protection for Papua's indigenous community rights based on Article 18B paragraph (2) of the 1945 Constitution. Juridical considerations emphasize the need to accommodate this system to avoid social conflicts, sociological considerations acknowledge Papua's geographical and cultural uniqueness, while philosophical considerations uphold justice for indigenous communities practicing consensus traditions. The decision's implications create dualism in the national electoral system, accommodating local wisdom. This ruling becomes jurisprudence, providing a strong legal foundation for implementing the noken system in subsequent elections, including the 2024 Election. However, implementing the noken system in the 2024 Election faces challenges in guaranteeing voter privacy, given that the collective and open characteristics of traditional deliberation systems led by big men. The General Election Commission developed adaptive efforts through technical regulations and integrated monitoring, yet tensions between modern vote secrecy principles and traditional transparency remain fundamental issues in Papua's democratic implementation.