Civil Service Neutrality in Indonesian Regional Elections: Enforcement Authority, Administrative Accountability, and Due Process
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.71250/rlr.v4i2.184Keywords:
civil service neutrality, professional ethics, regional elections, merit system, electoral integrityAbstract
Civil service neutrality in Indonesian regional elections serves as both an ethical obligation of State Civil Apparatus (ASN) employees and a safeguard for fair elections and impartial public administration. This article examines the relationship between ASN neutrality and civil servants’ political rights, as well as the allocation of authority and procedural safeguards in enforcing neutrality obligations. It employs normative legal research using statutory, conceptual, and case approaches. Primary materials include the 1945 Constitution, Law No. 20 of 2023 on the State Civil Apparatus, Law No. 10 of 2016 on Regional Elections, Government Regulations No. 42 of 2004 and No. 94 of 2021, related implementing regulations, and Constitutional Court Decision No. 121/PUU-XXII/2024. The analysis shows that neutrality restrictions are justified when preventing the use of public office, resources, or hierarchical influence for partisan purposes but should not extend to private political opinions without a clear legal basis. The main enforcement problem is the absence of a traceable process from reporting to accountability. The article proposes a legal-characterization matrix and a coordinated case-handling protocol to ensure institutional competence, reasoned decisions, and protection against political coercion and arbitrary punishment. As a normative study, it proposes a legal model without claiming empirical effectiveness.
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