Injustice in the application of the law is a serious problem that continues to occur. Injustice in the law occurs when a rule is not applied evenly, thus threatening public trust in the legal system. This can be seen from various factors, such us the provision of light sentences in corruption cases, differences in treatment based on economic status, and the many unresolved legal cases due to a lack of efforts in justice. Therefore, i believe that injustice in the application of the law is the main factor that causes legal inequality and harms society.
Firstly, light sentences in corruption cases are the most obvious form of injustice. Corruption that harms state finances and public services often only gets sentences that are far from proportional. For example, data from the Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) in 2023 shows that the average sentence for corruption offenders was only 3 years 4 month, with many cases receiving sentence reductions. A concrete example is the bribery case of the Riau-1 PLTU project involving Idrus Marham, the former secretary general of the Golkar party. The initial sentence was 3 years, then increased to 5 years, but the supreme court later reduced it to 2 years after cassation appeal. These light sentences create the impression that the law can be manipulated by the powerful and wealthy, thereby diminishing public trust in the legal system.
Secondly, the injustice becomes even more evident in the unequal treatment under the law based on a person's economic status. Outside of corruption cases, many instances show that the law in Indonesia is harsher on the lower. Class citizens, while perpetrators from higher economic backgrounds often receive lighter treatment or even escape legal proceedings entirely. One example is the case of grandma Asyani, a poor 63 years old woman from East Java, who in 2015 was sentenced to one year in prison with a 15 month probation period and fined 500 million rupiah for allegedly stealing seven teak logs owned by the state forestry company, perhutani. In fact the wood was cut down by her late husband from land they believed to be their own, yet the legal process still proceeded. A 2023 report by Kompas highlighted that access to quality legal aid is still dominated by the wealthy, making the poor more vulnerable to unfair legal processes. This shows that the legal system tends to favor those with economic power.
Lastly, the injustice is worsened by the large number of unresolved legal cases due to weak justice enforcement. Many major cases have stalled due to political interference, lack of evidence, low integrity among law enforcement officers. For example, the murder case of environmental activist Munit Said Thalib has remained unresolved for nearly to decades providing no justice for the victim and their family. In addiction, a 2023 report from the commission for the disappeared and victims of violence recorded more than 75 cases of enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings that remained unresolved. This situation reinforces the perception that the law is sharp toward the weak but dull toward the powerful.
From the explanation above, it is clear the injustice in the application of law is a serious ongoing problem. Light sentences in corruption cases, unequal treatment based on economic status, and unresolved cases are evidence that the law is not being applied fairly and equally. If left unchecked, this situation will continue to erode public trust worsen legal inequality and harms society.
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