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Author	Asst Prof Ghunarsa Sujatnika
Organisation/Institution	Universitas Indonesia, Faculty of Law
Country	INDONESIA
Panel	Constitutional and Admin Law
Title	Is the Recruitment and Candidacy Process for Parliamentary Members Democratic? Lessons from Indonesia and Other Countries
Abstract	This paper aims to determine whether the process of political parties selecting parliamentary candidates is democratic. This is important because political parties are the most important element of democracy, so political parties must also be able to apply democratic values within themselves. Many political parties face election dilemmas. Sometimes they have to choose between nominating their own cadres or public figures who can win votes. In reality, especially in Indonesia, political parties are tempted to nominate public figures to win a significant number of votes. To achieve the objectives of this paper, the author uses several approaches, namely, the regulatory, conceptual, and comparative approaches. The regulatory approach is used to examine how rules related to the recruitment and candidacy processes for parliamentary members are regulated by state and internal party rules. The conceptual approach is used to examine how the recruitment and candidacy processes are based on existing theories and concepts. In conducting the analysis, the author uses the recruitment and candidacy model scheme theory of Pippa Norris. Norris divides these stages into the certification, nomination, and election stages. Finally, the comparative approach is used to examine how the recruitment and candidacy processes in South Korea, India, the Philippines, and Japan compare. These countries were selected because they use a multiparty system. This paper argues that a process of democratization is needed in the recruitment and candidacy of members of parliament based on the approach and theory used. Public figures can be recruited as long as they follow the party’s cadre selection process. Thus, the party will not only be a catch-all party but also a party with cadres in line with its ideology and political policies. Keywords: democratic process, political party, recruitment, candidacy
Biography	Ghunarsa Sujatnika is a lecturer in Constitutional Law at the Faculty of Law, Universitas Indonesia. Ghunarsa is also a senior researcher at the Center for Constitutional Law Studies, Faculty of Law, Universitas Indonesia. His research interests include political parties and elections, executive power, parliament, and constitutional law from an Islamic law perspective. Currently, Ghunarsa is also pursuing his doctoral studies at the Faculty of Law, University of Indonesia.