Int'l Civil Code Bill Strengthens Legal Certainty in Mixed Marriage: Parliament

RRI.CO.ID, Jakarta - Member of Indonesia's House of Representatives (DPR), Yasonna Laoly, affirmed the importance of absorbing the aspirations of various stakeholders in drafting the International Civil Code Bill. Particularly, in enriching the substance of the bill, which will be further discussed in the House.

Yasonna, deputy chairman of the special committee for drafting the bill, highlighted one of the most frequently expressed aspirations in the bill drafting: issues and problems faced by mixed marriages involving Indonesian citizens and foreign nationals. According to him, issues of divorce, child custody, and division of joint property are frequently encountered and require a clearer legal basis.

"A classic issue faced by our brothers and sisters in mixed marriages is whether the husband is foreign or the wife is foreign. This is more common with foreign husbands. The issues often involve divorce, division of marital property, and child custody," he said after a visit to Gadjah Mada University, Sleman Regency, Special Region of Yogyakarta, on Wednesday, June 17, 2026.

However, he underscored that the bill will not regulate each issue in excessive detail. The regulation is designed to provide a legal umbrella containing the basic principles of the international civil code, serving as a guideline for law enforcement officials and judicial institutions.

"This shouldn't be too detailed, as it's the foundation, a kind of basic law. But we hope it can effectively address concerns related to international civil law issues," he said, quoted from the House's press release on Thursday, June 18, 2026.

He explained that the scope of the HPI Bill not only touches mixed marriage issues but also various other cross-border legal relationships. Examples include international contracts, choice of law, recognition of foreign judgments, child status, and inheritance issues involving movable and immovable assets.

"We hope that the basic principles of all these matters, including contracts, choice of law in contract law, recognition of foreign decisions, mixed marriages, child status, inheritance, and movable and immovable property, will be regulated," the lawmaker said.

He hopes the draft bill will provide stronger legal certainty in resolving cross-border civil disputes. Yasonna said that Indonesia currently lacks a specific law governing international civil law, resulting in judges still relying heavily on outdated provisions and jurisprudence.

"We look forward to making the court process easier. Until now, there has been no specific law regulating it, aside from the jurisprudence established by the Court. Therefore, we need to present the basic principles of international civil law in one comprehensive regulation," he said.