Page 110 - BUKU A CENTURY OF PARLIAMENTARY LIFE IN INDONESIA

EFFORT TO REUNITE THE REPUBLIC OF INDONESIA
(1950 – 1960)

4. The fourth right was the right of immunity
as formulated in Article 71 of the 1950 Con-
stitution. The article stated that the chair and
members of the DPRS and ministers could
not be prosecuted due to their verbal or writ- However, the President
ten delivery in the assembly. cannot act arbitrarily

In a government that implements a parliamentary to dissolve parliament.
democracy system, the DPRS can overthrow the There is a provision in
cabinet if it sees that the government has taken
actions without the approval of the DPRS (Article Article 84 of the UUDS,
83 paragraph 2 of the 1950 Constitution). In ad- which states that after
dition, the 1950 Constitution also stated that the
President had the right to dissolve the DPR if the the dissolution of the
DPR failed to represent the will of the people. DPR, new members of

However, the President cannot act arbitrarily to the DPR must be elected
dissolve parliament. There is a provision in Article within 30 days.
84 of the UUDS, which states that after the disso-
lution of the DPR, new members of the DPR must
be elected within 30 days. This is an attempt to
prevent the president from arbitrarily dissolving
the DPRS.

Meanwhile, with 49 seats in the DPRS, Mohammad Natsir, the Chair of
the Masyumi Party, was appointed as the first prime minister during the
Liberal Democracy period. Natsir’s appointment as prime minister was
arguably an effort to respect Natsir’s integral motion. Natsir’s appoint-
ment also highlighted Masyumi’s position as one of the major parties in
Indonesia.

The formation of the cabinet by Natsir, who was appointed as the cabinet
formator, was not easy. At the beginning of its formation, Natsir needed
the support of at least 150 DPRS members, including from smaller parties
such as Parkindo, the Catholic Party, and the Labor Party. In addition,
support from the PNI as the party with the second most members after
Masyumi in the DPRS was also needed to strengthen the cabinet’s
position.

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