Jakarta. Thousands of judges across Indonesia launched a week-long strike on Monday, demanding higher wages after enduring stagnant salaries for 12 years amid rising inflation. In response, the Supreme Court (MA) clarified that there is no mass strike, but rather a coordinated leave among judges.

“There is no mass strike or collective leave,” said MA spokesperson Suharto during a meeting with the Indonesian Judges' Solidarity (SHI) in Jakarta.

According to Suharto, the action being taken by judges involved in SHI is a coordinated leave rather than a strike. “They are exercising their leave rights simultaneously. So, it is not a strike,” he explained.

Suharto said that the MA does not object to the SHI actions but warned that it should not disrupt the court proceedings. Some courts are continuing with scheduled hearings due to pressing time constraints in certain civil and criminal cases. Judges who remain on duty are wearing white ribbons on their left arms to show solidarity with their striking colleagues.

The Judicial Commission (KY) indicated that the elected president, Prabowo Subianto, has been informed about the proposal to improve judges' welfare in Indonesia. KY Chairman Amzulian Rifai previously met with Prabowo some time ago.

“We hope the executive branch will support this, but ultimately, the Finance Ministry, has more authority to determine this,” said KY spokesperson Mukti Fajar Nur Dewata.

He said that this issue is closely related and poses a potential risk of violations of the code of ethics and integrity.

Indonesia has approximately 7,700 judges serving at district, provincial, and national levels. According to a 2012 government regulation, the basic salary for a first-year judge is Rp 2 million ($127), with additional benefits totaling Rp 14.6 million, bringing the total monthly take-home pay for the lowest-ranking judges to Rp 16.6 million.

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