KAJIAN POLITIK HUKUM TERHADAP TRANSFORMASI HUKUM POSITIVISME DALAM CAKRAWALA BERPIKIR HUKUM PROGRESIF GUNA MEWUJUDKAN KEADILAN SUBSTANTIF BAGI PENEGAK HUKUM

Abstrak

The dominance of the legal positivism paradigm in Indonesia has placed the law within a rigid, textual, and mechanistic scheme, thereby tending to reduce the essence of law to a mere formal analysis of statutory regulations. This legalistic-positivistic way of thinking shackles the horizons of law enforcers, who often act as mere technicians of the law without considering the dynamics of truth beyond the text. Consequently, the law loses its original form as an instrument for seeking justice and becomes trapped in formalism that ignores moral values and conscience. Within the grip of positivism, the resolution of social problems is forced to submit entirely to the text of the law, which ultimately closes the space for discourse on interpretations outside the text and regards them as a deviation from legal certainty. Therefore, a radical paradigm transformation toward progressive law is required to break down these walls of formalism, so that the law can be returned to its fundamental nature as an instrument for achieving human justice, rather than a mere instrument of power enshrined in text. Through normative studies using statutory and case approaches, it is evident that the rigidity of legal texts in the modern legal system is a result of the transplantation of Western legal systems that are often inconsistent with the cultural and spiritual values of Indonesian society. Progressive law serves as a correction to the decline of law when understood only as the rule of law without being balanced by the rule of morality. This paradigm positions the law as a dynamic institution that is constantly in the process of formation (law in the making) to realize the happiness and welfare of society. The implementation of progressive legal interpretation by law enforcers is an inevitability to bridge legal gaps that arise due to the limitations of written texts in responding to the changing times. Based on the mandate of Article 5, paragraph (1) of Law Number 48 of 2009 concerning Judicial Power, law enforcers are obligated to explore, follow, and understand the legal values and sense of justice living within the community. By integrating conscience and substantive justice, law enforcers are required to have the courage to make legal breakthroughs in deciding various issues, ranging from petty theft cases that offend human conscience and systemic corruption crimes to agrarian disputes involving marginalized communities. This transformation will ultimately realize law enforcement that is more affirmative, humane, and capable of providing justice that is truly felt by the community in a tangible way.