Constitutional (Planning) Law: The Difference Between Indonesia Local Government Regulation and The Special Region of Aceh

DOI

10.2991/978-94-6239-785-9_6How to use a DOI?

Keywords

Constitutional Law; Local Government Regulation; Planning; Special Region Regulation

Abstract

This article examines the constitutional distinction in regional planning law between general local government regulation in Indonesia and the unique regulatory framework. Article 18 of the Constitution affirms the existence of regional governments within the unitary state system, with the authority to regulate and manage their own affairs under the principles of autonomy and co-administration. Article 18A governs the distribution of powers between the central and regional governments, which must be regulated by law, while Article 33 stipulates that natural resources are controlled by the state and utilized for the greatest benefit of the people. Within this framework, regional governments are required to formulate several development planning documents. These include the Regional Long-Term Development Plan (RPJPD), which covers a 20-year vision; the Regional Medium-Term Development Plan (RPJMD), which aligns with the regional head’s administration for a five-year term; and the Regional Government Work Plan (RKPD), which covers annual planning. While local governments across Indonesia follow a standardized legal model based on the 1945 Constitution, Law Number 23 Year 2014 on Regional Government, and Law Number 25 Year 2004 on the National Development Planning System, Aceh exercises special constitutional status grounded in Article 18B (1) of the Constitution and Law Number 11 Year 2006 on the Governance of Aceh. This special status grants Aceh the authority to issue Qanun to govern development planning in ways that reflect local Islamic values, historical identity, and political agreements stemming from the Helsinki MoU. Using a normative and comparative legal method, this study highlights key constitutional disparities, including the source of legal authority. The findings demonstrate that Aceh’s planning law operates within a constitutionally recognised asymmetrical decentralisation framework, making it fundamentally distinct from other provinces. This distinction underscores the evolving nature of constitutional pluralism in Indonesia and its implications for regional governance and legal uniformity.

Copyright

© 2026 The Author(s)

Open Access

Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

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TY  - CONF
AU  - Mohammad Rif’an
AU  - Sayyidatun Nashuna
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/07
TI  - Constitutional (Planning) Law: The Difference Between Indonesia Local Government Regulation and The Special Region of Aceh
BT  - Proceedings of the UUM 13th International Legal Conference 2025 (UUMILC 2025)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 73
EP  - 89
SN  - 2667-128X
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-94-6239-785-9_6
DO  - 10.2991/978-94-6239-785-9_6
ID  - Rif’an2026
ER  -