Customary Council Decisions as Grounds for the Elimination of Prosecution: Notes on the Criminal Procedure Code

Aris Hardinanto (Faculty of Law, Universitas Trunodjoyo Madura)
Zico Junius Fernando (Faculty of Law, Universitas Bengkulu)
Nahdiya Sabrina (Faculty of Law, Universitas Merdeka Malang)
Eka Nugraha Putra (Centre for Trusted Internet and Community National University of Singapore)
Benny Sumardiana (Faculty of Law, Universitas Negeri Semarang)

Indonesian Journal of Criminal Law Studies
Vol. 11 No. 1 (2026): Indonesia J. Crim. L. Studies (May, 2026)

This article examines whether decisions issued by customary councils should constitute a legal ground for the elimination of prosecution under Indonesia’s Law No. 20 of 2025 on the Criminal Procedure Code. Following the enactment of Law No. 1 of 2023 on the National Criminal Code, customary criminal law has been formally recognized as part of Indonesian living law. However, the Criminal Procedure Code does not provide procedural provisions governing the relationship between customary justice mechanisms and the state criminal justice system. Using normative legal research with statutory and case approaches, this study analyzes Supreme Court jurisprudence recognizing customary decisions as a valid basis for eliminating prosecution. The findings indicate that the lack of procedural recognition creates legal uncertainty and undermines the principle of legal pluralism. Therefore, this article proposes the inclusion of a specific provision in the Criminal Procedure Code that recognizes customary council decisions as a ground for eliminating prosecution when the offender has complied with the imposed customary sanction.