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Author	Mrs Gita Putri Damayana
Organisation/Institution	Indonesia Jentera School of Law
Country	AUSTRALIA
Panel	Law and Society
Title	A Hurdle to Accession? Addressing Regulatory Incoherence in Indonesia’s Law-Making for Sustainable Regional Integration
Abstract	The Indonesian Academic Draft (Naskah Akademik) serves as a mandatory, foundational document justifying the need for every proposed bill before parliamentary deliberation. Despite its critical objective—to scientifically answer why a new law is necessary—this legal instrument currently suffers from pervasive scientific and methodological shortcomings. This paper argues that the Academic Draft’s utility is fundamentally compromised by a lack of standardized scientific rigor and, crucially, a systemic oversight in the use of data. Our findings reveal a troubling trend: Academic Drafts frequently overlook the incorporation of quantifiable data, resulting in arguments for national-level regulation that lack empirical grounding. Furthermore, even where qualitative methods are invoked, the analysis is often poorly executed and lacks methodological clarity. This deficiency in robust, evidence-based legal knowledge makes the resulting legislation ill-equipped to address complex national challenges related to sustainability and justice. We contend that the Academic Draft must be repositioned within the legislative hierarchy and its drafting process fundamentally reformed to ensure adherence to rigorous scientific standards. If the quality of these drafts remains unchanged, they constitute a significant waste of state budget, producing documents that cannot effectively guide policy. For a nation as pivotal to Asia’s rise as Indonesia, this regulatory inefficiency is a material concern. The failure to leverage substantial, evidence-based knowledge—particularly quantifiable data—in the primary stage of law-making creates regulatory incoherence. This institutional weakness poses a potential hurdle in Indonesia’s ongoing efforts towards OECD accession, raising questions about its capacity for effective, transparent, and regionally integrated governance. This paper offers a framework for reform, advocating that only a repositioned and scientifically grounded Academic Draft can empower Indonesia’s sustainable and just development.
Biography	Gita Putri Damayana is an accomplished legal reform professional from Jakarta, Indonesia, with over 20 years of experience in civil society organization (CSO) leadership and legislative advocacy. She is currently a Ph.D. candidate at Regnet (School of Regulation and Global Governance) at the Australian National University (ANU), where she is a recipient of the Australia Award Scholarship Gita's extensive academic background includes a bachelor’s degree in law from the University of Indonesia and an LL.M. in Sustainable Development from the University of Washington School of Law, where she graduated as valedictorian under a Fulbright Scholarship from the US Department of State. Prior to her doctoral studies, Gita served as Executive Director of the Indonesia Centre for Law and Policy Study (PSHK) and as Research Deputy Dean at Indonesia Jentera School of Law. In these roles, she managed complex legal reform programs funded by bi-lateral and multi-lateral donors, and played a significant role in research design and strategic planning, contributing to policy development in the parliamentary and judiciary sectors. Her work includes senior management positions on programs for the Supreme Court of Indonesia and members of the national parliament. Her current Ph.D. research explores the factors shaping Indonesia's legislative process after 25 years of reform, aiming to construct a best-practice framework for evidence-based regulatory reform. In 2024, she received the Ruth Daroesman Award from The Indonesia Project at ANU for her focused work on these critical national policy issues.