Jurnal Smart Hukum (JSH)
Vol. 5 No. 1 (2026): June-September

A Pancasila as a Critique of Legal Positivism in National Lawmaking

Ni Putu Ega Maha Wiryanthi (Fakultas Hukum, Universitas Pendidikan Nasional, Denpasar, Indonesia)
Putu Wahyu Widiartana (Fakultas Hukum, Universitas Pendidikan Nasional, Denpasar, Indonesia)
Dominikus Rato (Fakultas Hukum, Universitas Jember, Jember, Indonesia)
Fendi Setyawan (Fakultas Hukum, Universitas Jember, Jember, Indonesia)



Article Info

Publish Date
26 Jun 2026

Abstract

Legal positivism has contributed to legal certainty in Indonesia, but its dominance in national lawmaking may reduce law to formal legality and procedural validity. This article examines Pancasila as a philosophical critique of legal positivism in the formation of national law. The study employs normative legal research, drawing on philosophical, conceptual, and statutory approaches. The analysis shows that Pancasila should not be treated merely as an ideological symbol or a formal source of legal validity. Rather, it functions as a substantive evaluative standard for testing whether legislation reflects human dignity, democratic participation, social justice, national unity, and moral responsibility. The novelty of this article lies in treating Pancasila not only as the source of all sources of law, but also as a critical framework for correcting legal formalism in legislative practice. In the future, national lawmaking needs to balance legal certainty with substantive justice so that positive law remains rooted in the philosophical ideals of Pancasila.

Copyrights © 2026






Journal Info

Abbrev

jsh

Publisher

Subject

Law, Crime, Criminology & Criminal Justice Social Sciences

Description

Jurnal Smart Hukum (JSH) E-ISSN. 2961-841X is a Legal science journal issued by Inovasi Pratama Internasional. Ltd. The Editorial Board only accepts research and discussion in the field of law which is already in the form of journal articles to be considered for publication. The focus of this ...