Coal Mining: A Comparison of Indonesian and Malaysian Laws

Malaysia is decentralized, while Indonesia is centralized. However, both countries have natural resources and the right to freely dispose, without interference from other countries. This means that the utilization of coal mining is determined by the policies of each country through regulations. This study is a comparative legal study that raises several issues, namely how state sovereignty over natural resources is regulated in the constitutions of Indonesia and Malaysia, how the coal mining legal systems of the two countries work, and what forms of permits and criminal sanctions are used in the regulation of coal mining in Indonesia and Malaysia. The results of the study show that state sovereignty over Indonesia's natural resources is constitutionally regulated through Article 3 Paragraph (3) of the 1945 Constitution, which states that the earth, water, and natural resources contained therein are controlled by the state for the welfare of the people. Malaysia is constitutionally regulated in Articles 83-91 of the Federal Constitution of the Malay Peninsula of August 31, 1957, which explicitly states that control of land and its management is entrusted to the Malaysian State. The Malaysian coal mining law system is decentralized in terms of licensing, while Indonesia's is centralized and granted by the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, although it was previously decentralized and granted by local governments before the issuance of Law No. 3 of 2020. The types of licenses granted to business actors in Indonesian coal mining law are more varied and not limited to IUPs when compared to the Malaysian state of Selangor. While Indonesia imposes heavier criminal sanctions because they are cumulative with fines, whereas Malaysia imposes alternative sanctions. However, in general, Indonesia's coal mining law system, particularly in terms of licensing, is less consistent compared to Malaysia's law, which has remained decentralized.