Jurnal Hukum & Pembangunan Vol. 51 No.

1 (2021): 1-15
ISSN: 0125-9687 (Cetak)
E-ISSN: 2503-1465 (Online)

SOCIAL JUSTICE IN LAW, SOCIETY AND DEVELOPMENT: A MARXISM

PERSPECTIVE OF INDONESIAN CASE
Ridwan Arifin*, Vania Shafira Yuniar**
* Lecturer Faculty of Law, Universitas Negeri Semarang
* Researcher on Law and Social Justice Forum
Korespondensi: ridwan.arifin@mail.unnes.ac.id, vaniashafira2@gmail.com
Naskah dikirim: 31 Januari 2020
Naskah diterima untuk diterbitkan: 30 April 2020

Abstract
This article explores about social justice in people's lives according to Karl Marx's
prespective of the concept of social class. It also discusses Marx's concept of the
struggle of the social class to provide a solution for the proletariat, to free themselves
from the chain of cruelty, violence and alienation in the capitalist system to achieve
social justice. The essence of social justice in Karl Marx's prespective is that if a
society has created a manifestation of self through compassion, and the collaboration
of a classless society, without violence, and without oppression, and humans are free
from all forms of human alienation. Our main analysis is to examine the relationship
between the concept of social class struggle and the need for a social revolution as a
tangible form of justice for the formation of classless societies and also analyze the
inhumane living conditions of the proletariat class in modern society. Marx considers
freedom as a possibility for all people to develop their human potential, so that this
thinking is the background of their social justice theory. This shows that social justice
in Indonesia is a very important thing in the life of society and state for the sake of
prosperity, peace and security.
Keywords: Social Justice, Karl Marx, Social Class, Indonesia

Abstrak
Artikel ini mengupas tentang keadilan sosial dalam kehidupan masyarakat menurut
pandangan Karl Marx tentang konsep kelas sosial. Juga membahas konsep perjuangan
kelas sosial Marx untuk memberikan solusi bagi kaum proletar, untuk membebaskan
diri dari rantai kekejaman, kekerasan dan keterasingan dalam sistem kapitalis untuk
mencapai keadilan sosial. Esensi keadilan sosial dalam pandangan Karl Marx adalah
jika suatu masyarakat telah menciptakan manifestasi diri melalui kasih sayang, dan
kerjasama masyarakat tanpa kelas, tanpa kekerasan, dan tanpa penindasan, dan
manusia bebas dari segala bentuk keterasingan manusia. Analisis utama kami adalah
untuk mengkaji hubungan antara konsep perjuangan kelas sosial dan perlunya sebuah
revolusi sosial sebagai bentuk nyata dari keadilan untuk pembentukan masyarakat
tanpa kelas dan juga menganalisis kondisi kehidupan kelas proletar yang tidak
manusiawi dalam masyarakat modern. Marx memandang kebebasan sebagai suatu
kemungkinan bagi semua orang untuk mengembangkan potensi kemanusiaannya,
sehingga pemikiran inilah yang melatarbelakangi teori keadilan sosial mereka.. Hal ini
menunjukkan bahwa keadilan sosial di Indonesia merupakan hal yang sangat penting
dalam kehidupan bermasyarakat dan bernegara demi kemakmuran, perdamaian dan
keamanan.

Kata Kunci: Keadilan Sosial, Karl Marx, Kelas Sosial, Indonesia.

Tersedia versi daring: http://jhp.ui.ac.id

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.21143/jhp.vol51.no1.3004
2 Jurnal Hukum & Pembangunan Tahun ke-51 No.1 Januari-Maret 2021

I. INTRODUCTION

Justice is an absolute requirement in relations between humans, in the life of

society, nation, and state. Justice is a condition of morally ideal truth about something,
whether it concerns objects or people. According to most theories, justice has a large
degree of importance. John Rawls, an American philosopher who is considered one of
the leading political philosophers of the 20th century, stated that "Justice is the first
virtue of a social institution, as is the truth in the system of thought". But, according to
most common theories too, justice has not yet been reached: "We do not live in a just
world". Most people believe that injustice must be resisted and punished, and many
social and political movements throughout the world are struggling to uphold justice.
But, the large number and variety of justice theories give the idea that it is unclear
what is required of justice and the reality of injustice, because the definition of justice
is still not clear. justice is to put everything in its place or in accordance with its
portion, fairness does not necessarily apply equally to all people but is very subjective.
The concept of social justice is a node of all dimensions and aspects of humanity
regarding justice. The term social justice is closely related to the formation of the
structure of people's lives based on the principles of equality and solidarity. In the
concept of social justice there is an acknowledgment of human dignity which has the
same fundamental human rights in interpersonal relations to the whole both material
and spiritual.1
Justice can also be interpreted as something that is related to attitudes and actions
in human relations that contain a demand that among others get treatment according to
their rights and obligations. But if reviewed in a broader context, thinking about
justice develops with a different approach, because the discussion about justice is
contained in many literatures. So that talk about justice is not possible without
involving moral, political and legal theories. Explaining about justice in a single way
is almost difficult to do.
One of famous philosopher who discusses social justice is Karl Marx. Anyone
who studies sociology or other social sciences must know this name. Karl Marx the
phenomenal figure of the 19th century was the prophetess of sociology besides
MaxWeber. His thinking is very coloring the history of the change of the world, until
it reaches all parts of the world today. 2 Karl Marx was a philosopher, economist,
sociologist and political activist. Marx's thinking was influenced by Hegel, Feurbach,
French socialist thinkers such as St. Simon, Prudhon and revolutionary figures like
Blanqui. During his life, Marx has produced many works, such as: Economic and
Philosophical Manuscript, The German Ideology, The Class Structures in France and
the Eighteenth Century of Louis Bonaparte, The Communist Manifesto, Das Capital.
Marx used historical and philosophical methods to build a theory of change that
showed the development of society towards a state of social justice. Social change for
Marx runs dialectically. Contradictions between the final classes still seek balance.
The stages of the history of society for Marx are as follows; feudalism, capitalism and
socialism / communism. Marx is the critic of the earliest and most fierce capitalist
system. Humanist sociology and critical sociology take on the theory of alienation of
Karl Marx. He rejects capitalism because it causes unemployment, the concentration
of one class of capital, and the increasing misery of the proletariat.
Alienation for Marx happened when the human being as a worker was alienated
and controlled by the results of his work, his production. Humans are exiled from the

1
Rahardjo, Satjipto. 2006. Hukum Dalam Jagat Ketertiban. Jakarta. UKI Press. hal. 56.
2
Bahari, Yohanes. 2010. Karl marx: sekelumit tentang hidup dan pemikirannya. Jurnal
pendidikan sosiologi dan Humaniora. April. Vol. 1 No.1.
Social Justice in Law, Society and Development, Ridwan Arifin, Vania Shafira Yuniar 3

products of their work, alienated from production activities, alienated from their social
characteristics, alienated from their colleagues or community.3
The realization of justice and social justice in the rule of law is the main element,
its so fundamental, as well as the most complicated are broad, structural and abstract
element. This condition is because the concepts of justice and social justice are
contained in the meaning of protection of rights, equality and position before the law,
public welfare, and the principle of proportionality between individual interests, social
interests and the state. Justice and social justice cannot always be born of rationality,
but also determined by the social atmosphere which is influenced by the values and
other norms in society. In any position, according to Gustav Radburg, the legal
presence must be able to realize three basic values, namely: (i) the value of justice, (ii)
certainty, and (iii) value of benefits (utility).4
Social justice in Indonesia also exists at the opening of the 1945 Constitution and
has been regulated in its articles. This shows that social justice in Indonesia is very
important in the lives of people and the state for the sake of prosperity, peace and
security. the country is burdened with social responsibility, the state must side with
those who are weak by actively involving them in decision making in the political,
economic and cultural fields, and the state is demanded to be fair to its citizens without
discrimination against anyone, to build a democracy with humanitarian and social
justice.

II. CLASS THEORY OF MARXISME

The problem of justice has long been the subject of study and thought material
by philosophers, politicians and clergy, however, if people ask about justice or ask
about what justice is, there will be various answers and these answers rarely satisfy
those involved and thinkers who are not involved. Various answers may appear that
indicate that it is very difficult to get a general answer, if an answer or limit on justice
by a society is put forward there will be a very diverse kind of answer, so it can be said
that various formulations of justice are relative. This difficulty encourages people,
especially the positivists, to take shortcuts by handing over the formulation of justice
to the legislators who will formulate it on their own considerations.
Rational justice takes the source of his thoughts from the general principles of
rationality about justice. Rational justice basically tries to answer the matter of justice
by explaining it scientifically, or at least quasi-scientific, and it must be based on
rational reasons. While metaphysical justice, believes in the existence of justice as a
quality or a function above and beyond living beings, and therefore cannot be
understood according to intelligent human consciousness. Justice can also be
implemented in accordance with a certain time. Like Karl Marx who explained the
theory of justice from the era of capitalism associated with the existing conditions.5
Marx’s class theory rests on the idea that the history of society that exists
today is the history of class struggle. In other words, class theory assumes that the
main actors in society are social classes. For example, human alienation is the result of
the oppression of a class by another class. The theory put forward by Karl Marx is not
an explicit theory, but rather a background of Marx's description of the laws of

3
Kambali, Muhammad.2017. Kritik Ekonomi Islam Terhadap Pemikiran Karl Marx Tentang
Sistem Kepemilikan Dalam Sistem Sosial Masyarakat. Jurnal Ekonomi Syariah. Vol 1. No.2.
4
Mertokusumo, Sudikno. 1993. Penemuan Hukum: Sebuah Pengantar, Liberty, Yogyakarta. hal
1-2.
5
Maryanto. 2003. Refleksi dan Relevansi Pemikiran Filsafat Hukum Bagi Pengembangan Ilmu
Hukum. Jurnal Hukum. Vol. 13 (1). hal 52-54.
4 Jurnal Hukum & Pembangunan Tahun ke-51 No.1 Januari-Maret 2021

historical development, capitalism and socialism. In this theory, Marx distinguishes

society based on modes of production (technology and division of labor). Or it can be
said that Marx's theory of social class is based on the idea that the history of human
civilization is a history of social class conflict in society.
Marx usually means classes are used to express a group of people who are in the
same situation in relation to their control of the means of production. From each of
these modes of production a different class system is born where a class controls the
production system (class of capitalists) or is called the bourgeois class and the other
class is the direct producer and service provider for the dominant class (the working
class) or the proletarian class. The bourgeois class is a special name for capitalists in a
modern economy. They have the means of production and employ hired workers. The
bourgeois class is the capital owners who pay wages to the proletariat. In his theory,
Marx found the core of capitalist society in commodities. Whereas the proletariat is
workers who sell their services and do not have their own means of production. A
society is dominated by objects whose main value is exchange which produces certain
categories of society. It is this economic factor which finally regulates social relations
in the society of capitalism.6
Before the arrival of human industrialism was a whole, not alienated. However,
after the advent of industrialism the human condition was divided into capitalism. The
realization of work appears as a loss of reality for the workers. The bigger the product,
the more alienated it is. Therefore, Marx stressed the need for human liberation. In
The Communist Manifesto written by Karl Marx with Engels, an axiom emerged that
all history is the history of class struggle. Marx developed a two-class model that was
much imitated by later sociologists and historians, namely modern history is the battle
of two fundamental classes: bourgeoisie and proletariat.7
The working relationship in the capitalist production system seems stable. That's
because there are those who master the mastered. Objective conflict between the two
classes is certain because the objective interests of the two classes are different. Where
the capitalist as the ruler is conservative towards his power while the proletariat is
progressive with the aim of liberating his class from the oppression of control over
him and the struggle with compromise and deliberation on mutual interests will not
succeed. Because during the economic system based on the monopoly of the owner's
class power rights over the production process, the conflicts between the two classes
remained, not a change of attitude that ended the conflict. But changes in the structure
of economic power.
Karl Marx blamed class relations in a state which limited people's freedom,
because small / medium society could not increase above bourgeois power, according
to him, the bourgeoisie laid restrictions on what could be achieved by law. Only in a
non-class society (egalitarian) can law be a tool of free will of society and can give
power to all people regarding the conditions of their lives This inequality in the
amount of wealth makes people split in the status of master-slaves, servants, bourgeois
workers. Those who are more diligent, skilled, and smarter, will be faster to get richer.
Conversely, those who are not creative, lazy, poor, disabled, and do not own property
will remain poor. The status based on wealth makes the gap between the poor and the
rich wider. As a result arises an attitude of envy, mutual suspicion, and humans live in
competition. One human being faces another human being with negative thoughts and
feelings. Thus, the "natural state" that is completely harmonious turns into a state of
war characterized by hostility, malice, violence, and mutual destruction. This state of

6
Soekanto, Soerjono. 1992. Sosiologi Suatu Pengantar. Jakarta: PT. Raja Grafindo Persada.
7
Marx, Karl. 2003. Das Capital, The Manifesto. Beilharz:69-72.
Social Justice in Law, Society and Development, Ridwan Arifin, Vania Shafira Yuniar 5

war has the potential to wipe out the lives of fellow humans and all of their
possessions.
The essence of social justice in the thinking of Karl Marx is that if a society has
created self-realization through compassion, cooperation is a classless society, without
violence, and without oppression, and humans are free from all forms of alienation of
human beings. According to Karl Marx, existing social justice is a justice that depends
on the structures of power that control groups that suffer from injustice, which
determine people's lives in political, economic, social, cultural, legal and ideological
dimensions. The state is nothing but only used as a guarantor for the ongoing practices
of oppression by protecting and supporting the oppressive class, as well as religion and
other value systems giving legitimacy to the power structure of the class.
Advancing the critical agreement known as historical materialism, Marx
predicted that, like the previous socio-economic system, capitalism produced internal
tensions which would lead to self-destruction and be replaced by a new system:
socialism. For Marx, class antagonism under capitalism, which is part of instability
and the nature of crisis tendencies, will then make the working class develop class
consciousness, which leads to their conquest of political power and then accumulates
the absence of class, communist society governed by free producer associations. 8
Marx actively encouraged its application, arguing that the labor class must carry out
revolutionary actions to overthrow capitalism and send socio-economic emancipation.9
Criticism of ideology is one of Marx's great contributions to the power structure
of society. Such as the creation of ideology which later became the justification of the
capitalists regarding each person given the same right to try and freedom for anyone
who tried. Even though in reality the members of the community are not of the same
strength, the strong ones overtake the weak. In this case the existence of capitalists
who have strong economies.
The direction of Marx's dialectical philosophy, especially his views on
individuals and society, and his humanism insights did not merely understand the
classy society where all injustices blossomed, but how to eradicate injustice. His
defense of human liberation from the shackles that hindered his appearance in full
form was brilliant humanitarian ideas and became the material of thought in studies
relating to social justice. Marx's teachings offer promises and hopes for the creation of
prosperity and prosperity, peace and security, as well as solving the problems faced by
the proletariat, in order to create social justice. The philosophy of Marxism bases itself
on matter, which in this case is social and economic conditions or to be more
specifically called a mode of production consisting of productive relations and
productive forces. Every process of historical development cannot be separated from
the "contradiction" between the two components of this mode of production.
By following the lines of Locke's thinking, Marx said that liberalism paved the
way for each person to develop his freedom to set up factories and buy machines. The
means of production then fall into the hands of individuals (capitalists) and become
their personal property. Furthermore, they use laborers to run the machines and to
multiply production. Marx said, in the process of production, the labor (labor) that has
been purchased is part of capital, because during work the worker adds values to the
means of production that he transforms into a product by removing his labor. In the

8
Marx, Karl. 1891. The Critique of the Gotha Program. Germany.
9
Calhoun, Craig. 2002. The class consciousness of frequent travelers: Toward a critique of
actually existing cosmopolitanism. The South Atlantic Quarterly 101 (4). hlm. 23–24.
6 Jurnal Hukum & Pembangunan Tahun ke-51 No.1 Januari-Maret 2021

hands of the capitalist who has bought it, the worker is a force that produces value.10
The workers themselves do not develop and progress, because the owners of capital
have absolute power over them. Investors are the ones who determine their salaries
and fire them if they don't want them anymore. Investors forced workers to work
according to their arbitrary provisions. Marx called it 'colonization' or the occupation
by the capitalists of workers. Capitalists exploit labor and monopolize profits.11
For Marx, a situation like this is a fetter for workers because the workers do not
become authentic human beings. They live in alienation (alienation). Marx described
the workers as alienated from their jobs because the benefits of work were only
enjoyed by the owners of capital. In addition, they are also alienated from fellow
workers because each worker competes to get a job. They are also estranged from their
employers because they are always under his control and their fate really depends on
the employer. They are also estranged from themselves because they no longer have
self-respect. According to Marx, the deepest alienation is alienated workers from the
results of their work. This situation of alienation makes workers poor, no matter how
much their efforts go forward. Strangely, the situation of shackled workers like that
can actually survive in a country. Marx said that such a situation did last for centuries
because of two human creations, namely the state and the rule of law. 12 The state
issues legal products and rules compiled by powerful people. Regulations are drawn
up to protect first of all the privileges of powerful people. Laws are also made in their
interests.13 Laws are also made in their interests.14
In a society that is de facto mapped into the ruling class and ordinary people, the
circle of power is actually filled by the owners of capital. As an implication, laws and
regulations are made to serve their interests. 15 Marx said that the state helped
strengthen their position because the country was no other than the organization of
power of the owners of capital. 16 Through the state, they can maintain the state of
society that benefits them. According to Marx, religion also has a stake in supporting
the position of the capitalists. Marx said that religion is opium which lulls people into
always accepting the situation. Religion is an opium that eats the spirit of people to
fight. Religion makes the poor and oppressed patient in their suffering.17
In addition, Marx also sees that the state is a tool of the dominant class to
oppress other classes. Therefore, then in the country there is a special unit of armed
people and prisons which is of no other use than is to maintain and maintain existing
power. The state is a tool to suck up the oppressed class, therefore the one who
controls the state is the class that has dominance in political economy.18
Marx dismantled the ideal veils that encompassed the concept of the Liberal state
and the Hegelian state. Like the historical dialectical materialism philosophy, which
sees that reality is the history of material contradictions, then the state according to
Marxism is a silencer of these contradictions (especially class contradictions). Because

10
Marx, Karl. 1961. Capital. A Critique of Political Economy Vol. II, ed. F. Engels (Moskow:
Foreign Languages Publishing House. p.378-379.
11
Marx, Karl. 1906. Capital. A Critique of Political Economy, trans. Samuel Moore & Edward
Aveling, ed. F. Engels. New York: The Modern Library. p.835-837.
12
Huijbers, Theo. 1993. Filsafat Hukum dalam Lintasan Sejarah. Kanisius. hlm.113.
13
Ibid, 113
14
Marx, Karl. 1906. Inilah yang disebut Marx sebagai “kolonisasi sistematis”, yakni kaum
kapitalis menggunakan kekuatan negara untuk mengeksploitasi kaum buruh. p. 838-839.
15
Ibid, 840.
16
Ibid, 841.
17
Suseno, Magnis.2016. Pemikiran Karl Marx. p.73-123.
18
Permata, Harsa. 2001. Filsafat Dan Konsep Negara Marxisme. Jurnal Filsafat. Vol.21. Nomor
3, Desember.
Social Justice in Law, Society and Development, Ridwan Arifin, Vania Shafira Yuniar 7

the state is not a tool of peace, then the creation of state peace will then disappear in
line with the disappearance of class contradictions. This happened after going through
the transition phase, namely the state of socialism (the dictatorship of the proletariat).
Society when the state disappears is called Marx as a communist society or is the
highest stage of the stages of the economic (production process) of society. In this
stage life goes into "each giving according to his ability, each receives according to his
needs".
For Marx, the minimal role of the state only institutionalized a prolonged conflict
between the working class and the capitalist class. At its peak, the workers will rebel
and take power and seek socialism - that is, the wealth of this world belongs to all.
Socialism holds that joint ownership is better than private property. It is said better
because this principle negates the difference between rich-poor, bourgeois-workers,
and capital-workers. Socialism limits the desire to pursue personal gain, so that
personal interests that are a source of evil, jealousy, and war can be eliminated because
everyone is considered a brother. Karl Marx said that in brotherhood, everyone gets
the same, no one has too much and no one suffers from lack.
At this point the idea of justice is increasingly defined. In Marx injustice means
the exploitation of the workers by the capitalists. The author of the book Introduction
to Contemporary Political Philosophy, Will Kymlicka, states that justice in Marxism is
not about the reach to whom resources must be generalized, but more about the form
that allows generalization to occur.19 Generalizing productive resources must be in the
form of socialization of production facilities, so that each person participates equally
in collective decisions around the distribution of production assets.
Marx said that the conditions for the liberation of the working class were the
disappearance of each class, as the conditions for the release of the 'third state', namely
the establishment of bourgeois society, was the disappearance of all old political
estates. The working class will continue to replace the old bourgeois society with a
union which excludes class and class conflict, and there will be no more real political
power because the union is the political power especially that takes care of class
opposition in bourgeois society. In human creation, there are no classes where social
evolution ceases to be a political revolution.20
For Marx, justice means that the meaning of production must be social, they
must belong to the community, because these tools are made by the people and for the
benefit of the people. Production tools must be jointly owned, communis. And the
ownership of the means of production together will only be achieved by means of
revolution. 21 In the theory of accumulation, Marx argued that there was wild
competition among large investors and small investors. According to Marx, large
investors are the most successful in large companies, because these large companies
will monopolize so that small companies disappear. This kind of wild competition will
lead to an economic crisis, which is when the necessary benefits decrease. Because
production is increasing, eventually the market will be flooded with goods until there
are no more buyers. Then, production is stalled, workers are fired and become poorer.
At its peak, the workers will rebel and take power.
According to Marx, the revolutionary consciousness of the workers is not a
concept that results from the reflection of intellectuals, but the result of the dialectic of
the struggle of the proletariat itself. The revolutionary consciousness of the proletariat

19
Kymlicka, Will. 2004. Pengantar Filsafat Politik Kontemporer, terj. Agus Wahyudi.
Yogyakarta: Pustaka Pelajar. hlm.228.
20
Dahrendorf, Ralp. 1986. Konflik dan Konflik dalam Masyarakat Industri: Sebuah Analisa-
Kritik. Jakarta: Rajawali. hal.9.
21
Kuusinen, Otto. 1960. Dutt (Ed.). Fundamentals of Marxism – Leninism. p.164-173.
8 Jurnal Hukum & Pembangunan Tahun ke-51 No.1 Januari-Maret 2021

will grow and develop in its struggle. Lenin, who claimed to be the sole heir to Marx's
idea, 22 said that the consciousness of the workers was pumped from outside (the
communist party). According to Lenin, the revolution will not arise by itself. Likewise
the revolutionary consciousness of the workers does not automatically grow. It takes a
party that encourages and encourages the creation of that awareness. The presence or
absence of a revolution depends on revolutionary will, and the revolutionary will
cannot automatically exist, but must be 'held'. That is the function of the revolutionary
party, which is to inject awareness of the revolution. This injection of revolutionary
consciousness departs from the assumption that the proletariat cannot alone develop
their revolutionary consciousness, because their intellectual abilities are weak. Their
awareness must be pumped from the outside. According to Lenin, if the workers
follow their spontaneity alone, they will only develop awareness of trade-unionism
(thinking follows the pattern of the bourgeoisie). And following the pattern of the
bourgeoisie means preparing the land for the transfer of the labor movement into a tool
of bourgeois democracy. The spontaneous labor movement is only capable of
producing trade unions, and the politics of the trade unions of the working class is the
bourgeois politics of the working class. In Lenin, the ruling party was actually not a
group of proletariat, but a group of people, namely the executive committee, the
Central Committee of the Communist Party. The proletariat is only an instrument of
party elites.23
Revolution itself means a change of social order. Revolution moves power from
the hands of a class that has run out of energy to another stronger class. Unlike natural
processes, a revolution is made by humans and through humans. The aim of the
revolution is to overthrow the ruling class in society (bourgeoisie). Revolution for
Marxism means the overthrow of the bourgeois regime and upholding the power of the
proletariat. Revolution in the view of Marxism-Leninism requires a pioneering
organization called the revolutionary party, which serves to unite the revolutionary
elements. The leadership of the revolutionary party is indeed needed in the struggle for
the liberation of the oppressed class towards the democratic revolution and socialism.
This party will disappear along with the disappearance of the state, because the party
is one of the state institutions.
The process of changing power from the oppressor class (bourgeoisie) to the
oppressed class (proletariat) also requires an international unity of the oppressed who
approve the ideology of socialism (internationalism). Without internationalism which
is truly socialist (truly socialist), the process of the disappearance of the state
(communism) will be difficult to materialize. What happened was the opposite, a
country that had once been a socialist had collapsed one by one, some large socialist
countries, such as the Soviet Union and the PRC, turned into a country that adhered to
the economic system of capitalism. This happens because of the inability to defend
themselves from the economic-political attacks of international capitalism which have
now morphed into globalization or neoliberalism.
The whole point of Marx's theory is the proposition that human survival and the
changing of its needs depend on productive activities where people are actively
involved in changing their natural environment. However, productive activities have a
paradoxical and ironic effect, because once individuals devote their creative energy to
productive activities, the products of this activity have the nature of objective objects
apart from the people who make them. Because productive activities include the use of
human power and creative abilities, the products that are created actually manifest part

22
Magnis, Suseno. Dalam Bayang-Bayang Lenin. Jakarta: Gamedia, 2005. xi-xii
23
Alwino, Alfensius. 2016. Diskursus Mengenai Keadilan Sosial: Kajian Teori Keadilan Dalam
Liberalisme Locke, Persamaan Marx, dan Justice As Fairness Rawls. Jurnal Melintas. Page: 309-328
Social Justice in Law, Society and Development, Ridwan Arifin, Vania Shafira Yuniar 9

of that "human nature" (popular Marxist expression). So humans confront their own
nature (ie the results of sweat and their creative abilities) in the form of being alienated
or exiled, or as objects in the world beyond their control, and even humans must adapt
to it. After that, the freedom of individuals to express their creativity and develop their
abilities as human beings is very limited. In other words, individuals must adjust to the
world of things which limits their freedom as humans even though it is humans who
create it. Of course they are not aware that the obstacles and constraints that make it
difficult for them are their own creations.24

III. CORRELATION OF KARL MARX’S SOCIAL JUSTICE IN INDONESIA

The rapid growth of the economy today has brought tremendous changes to
everyday life, unconsciously people are in the midst of the current of globalization.
Capitalism as a phase of development of society, especially the Western countries
which adhere to the capitalist system, raises a conflict between the owners of capital
(bourgeoisie) and the working class (proleta).
The emergence of the industrial revolution from the fruit of the thought of the
karl marx brought major changes to the proletariat at that time, with the theory of
materialism, dialectics, history. Marx encouraged the resistance of the workers who
had always been shackled by the power of the bourgeoisie. Massive resistance
leading to an increasingly massive rebellion, and extending to various countries and
raising many figures of Marxism. With the aim of creating a community system of
socialism as stated by Karl Marx.
Indonesia is no exception, starting from the independence of the Republic of
Indonesia to the 1998 reforms. Resistance continues to be made by workers, especially
in Indonesia's big cities such as Jakarta, Surabaya. Deprivation of wages, labor rights
and the system of contract work and outsourcing are considered as the efforts of the
bourgeoisie to take maximum advantage by extorting their labor. When the owners of
capital (bourgeoisie) experience a decline in income, for example due to the global
economic crisis, the main road will definitely lay off workers. Employees will conduct
a demonstration, because their livelihood comes from the wages / salaries of the
bourgeoisie.
The demonstration carried out by the employee cannot be said to be absolutely
correct. What is done by employees is really looking for a justice or indeed the
employee has the right to get a stipulated salary. The salary may be in accordance with
the performance of the employee
The definition of justice has a long history of thought, in legal discourse, the
nature of Justice can be seen in two main meanings, namely in a formal sense that
demands that the law applies in general, and in the material sense, which requires that
each law must be in accordance with ideals of community justice.25
The implementation of social justice is very dependent on the creation of just social
structures. If there is social injustice, the cause is an unfair social structure. Seeking
social justice also means that it must be done through the struggle to improve social
structures that are not fair. Social justice means justice that applies in society in all
areas of life, both material and spiritual. This means that justice does not only apply to
the rich, but also applies to the poor, not only for officials, but also for ordinary people,

24
Johnson, Doyle Paule. 1994. Teori Sosiologi Klasik dan Modern. Jakarta: Gramedia pustaka.
hal. 139-140.
25
Suseno, Frans Magnis. 1991. Etika Politik: Prinsip-Prinsip Moral Dasar Kenegaraan Modern.
Gramedia Pustaka Utama. hal 81.
10 Jurnal Hukum & Pembangunan Tahun ke-51 No.1 Januari-Maret 2021

in other words all the people of Indonesia both in the territory of the Republic of
Indonesia and for Citizens Indonesia in other countries.
The concept of social justice is important to be discussed in Indonesia, because it
is part of the basic law of the Indonesian state. The term social justice is indeed not
explicitly mentioned in the constitution of the United States, Egypt, or Germany. This
reality brings the spirit that the term social justice should be brought to life in the
world of law in Indonesia, both in the drafting phase of legislation and in resolving
disputes or prosecution of violations of the law. However, the positivistic paradigm of
law has made Pancasila, including sila regarding social justice, not living in the world
of law in Indonesia.26
The concept of social justice is a node of all dimensions and aspects of humanity
regarding justice. The term social justice is closely related to the formation of the
structure of people's lives based on the principles of equality and solidarity. In the
concept of social justice there is a recognition of human dignity that has equal rights.
The conditions that must be fulfilled by the implementation of social justice are as
follows: (1) All citizens must act, act fairly, because social justice can be achieved if
each individual act and develop a fair attitude towards others; (2) All human beings
have the right to live according to human values, so they also have the right to demand
and get everything related to their needs. The Meaning of the Realization of Justice
and Social Justice in the State of Law The Meaning of the Realization of Justice More
operationally the realization of justice according to Satjipto Rahardjo,27 related to the
distribution in the community. This distribution is not always physical but also non-
physical (intangible), among others: goods, services, business capital position, social
role, authority, power, opportunity and so on which have certain values for human life.

IV. THE MEANING OF THE REALIZATION OF SOCIAL JUSTICE IN

CONSTITUTION OF REPUBLIC INDONESIA

In the constitution of the word justice which is then followed by the social word
as stated in paragraph IV Opening of the 1945 Constitution of the Republic of
Indonesia, is not a coincidence because of the prevalence, but rather as an actualization
of norms that regulate social relations between people in a social space. This is a
manifestation of the principle of equality in common life naturally, which in everyday
life is a form of willingness to be useful to others. Social justice is formulated as the
fifth principle in Pancasila, but its meaning becomes more pronounced, if we read it
directly from the formulation of paragraph IV of the 1945 Constitution of the Republic
of Indonesia. In paragraph IV of the 1945 Constitution Opening, the first, second, third
and fourth precepts are formulated statically as objects basic state, on the contrary
social justice is formulated with active sentences. The formulation of paragraph IV of
the opening of the 1945 Constitution of the Indonesian Republic of Indonesia is
written as follows: "... The composition of the state of the Republic of Indonesia which
is sovereignty based on the Almighty Godhead, Just and Civilized Humanity,
Indonesian Unity, Popularism led by Wisdom of Wisdom in Permusywaratan /
Representation, and by realizing a social justice for all Indonesian people".
In fact, social justice according to the 1945 Constitution of NRI carries the credo
of equalitarianism (understanding society with differences that therefore need to be
assumed to be equal or equal), rather than egalitarianism (the notion of society without
differences and therefore everyone is equal without exception). The basic meaning of

26
Prastyo, Brian Amy. The Principle of Social Justice As The Law. Jurnal IUS Kajian Hukum
dan Keadilan.Vol I. Nomor 3 Desember 2013.hlm.416
27
Rahardjo, Satjipto. 2006. Op.cit. hal.56
Social Justice in Law, Society and Development, Ridwan Arifin, Vania Shafira Yuniar 11

the creed of equality in the context of Indonesianness is the teaching not to equate
things differently and not to impose equations to overcome differences.28
Social justice must be interpreted by the attitude to treat the same things and treat
different things that are different because if things are treated differently they will be
unfair. Justice means being able to put something in its place and in accordance with
its proposition.
Underlining the principle of Indonesia is a country based on law, the 1945
Constitution as a basic law places the law in a decisive position in the Indonesian
constitutional system. In this regard, the concept of Indonesian statehood, among
others, determines that the government adheres to a constitutional concept, namely a
government that is limited by the provisions contained in the constitution. In countries
with a constitutional system or based on basic law, there is a hierarchy of laws, where
the Constitution is at the top of the pyramid while the other provisions are under the
constitution. This constitution is known as "stufenbau theory" Hans Kelsen.29
Indonesia as a nation-state (nation state), is actually formed with a humanitarian
and justice background and aims to realize things related to humanity and justice,
which in its elaboration are protection, welfare, intelligence, and participating in
realizing world order and peace. In order to realize this goal, a basis that is not far
from humanity and justice is chosen, which is then called Pancasila. Thus, humanity
and justice are the common thread for the Indonesian nation in the life of the nation
and state that are consistently present in every stage of state formation, namely in the
background stage, in the stage of goal setting, and in the stages of determining basic
choices in the nation.30
Fair, justice, and social justice are written almost in all paragraphs of the
Preamble of the 1945 Constitution, precisely written in 3 (three) paragraphs. Of the 3
(three) paragraphs, specifically in the fourth paragraph the fair is written 1 (one) time
written social justice 2 (two) times, so as a whole written 3 (three) times. Furthermore,
in paragraph 1 written 1 (one) time and in paragraph II written 1 (one) time. So,
overall in the Preamble of the 1945 Constitution is written 5 (five) times. What is the
meaning of all of that. The strengthening of justice in various forms of words in the
Preamble of the 1945 Constitution as an important document for the state in a state
and legal perspective shows the position of the importance of justice. Justice is a
fundamental problem in state and law. It is important and fundamental that justice in
state and law can be seen in a political perspective that views the state as a unit of
political society as described above based on Rawl theory and Habermas theory.31
The value of social justice in the process of Indonesian nation's economic
development if we trace it clearly or in fact just started to be noticed since the New
Order regime came to power, where it was reflected in the development trilogy,
namely in terms of equity. Unfortunately this value is only a mere verbal statement for
the New Order authorities. Practice shows that the orientation of economic
development is only focused on economic growth, while equity is far from the
government's attention and bureaucracy, even equity is expected to occur through
something that is impossible, that is through the invisible hand or other terms used are
" drop down '(tickle down effect).32
28
Hage, Markus. 2011. Kepentingan Ekonomi dan Komodifikasi. hal: 358
29
Nasution, Bahder Johan. 2014. Kajian Filosofis Tentang Konsep Keadilan Dari Pemikiran
Klasik Sampai Pemikiran Modern. Jurnal Of Yustisia. Mei - Agustus. Vol. 3 No.2
30
Sumadi, Ahmad Fadlil. 2015. Law and Social Justice in Constitutional Law Perspective.
Jurnal Konstitusi. Desember. Volume 12, Nomor 4.
31
Rawls, John. 1986. A Theory of Justice, Indianapolis: Augsbung Publishing House. hlm. 234
32
Gedeona, Hendrikus Tri Wibawanto. 2004. Mempertanyakan Nilai Keadilan Sosial Dalam
Pembangunan Ekonomi Di Tengah Kekuatan Modal. Jurnal Administrasi Publik. Vol.3, No.2.
12 Jurnal Hukum & Pembangunan Tahun ke-51 No.1 Januari-Maret 2021

Ideally, for the sake of upholding social justice in economic development, then
first of all the implementation of the mini justice itself must be carried out fairly. For
this reason, we need an impartial government or a democratic and just government.
This is very important because this is precisely the problem facing our government.
Economic policies, perhaps quite clear and good, but if there is no fair government,
there is no use of brilliant concepts in the policy. Because it will always be
manipulated and utilized for the benefit of certain groups that are privileged as
explained in the previous section.
If traced the meaning of social justice in Article 33 of the 1945 Constitution of
the Republic of Indonesia before the amendment and after the amendment has shifted.
Before the amendment to the 1945 Constitution of the Republic of Indonesia, social
justice was more interpreted as the meaning of a socialist economic system or more
accurately said of Indonesian socialism. Whereas after being amended, the meaning of
social justice in the economic field is more directed at the Neosocialism of Indonesia
because the addition of paragraph (4) in Article 33 of the 1945 Constitution of the
Republic of Indonesia. efficiency with justice, sustainability, environmental insight,
independence, and by maintaining a balance of progress and unity of the national
economy. In paragraph (4), new principles of the "liberal" economic system are no
longer communal such as democracy, efficiency, independence and so on that often
marginalize the spirit of togetherness as the essence of social justice.
Social justice is always aimed at realizing or creating social welfare for all
Indonesian people. As said by Mahfud MD 33 , that social justice in the state of
Pancasila law has the meaning that the distribution of resources is intended to create
social welfare, especially for the lowest groups of people or the socio-economic weak
community. In addition, social justice also requires efforts to distribute resources so
that weak community groups can be alleviated from poverty and so that socio-
economic disparities in the midst of society can be reduced. Thus, the distribution of
existing resources can be said to be socially just if it can improve the socio-economic
life of poor groups so that the level of socio-economic inequality between community
groups can be reduced.34
The realization of justice and social justice in the State of Indonesian law is the
main element, fundamental, as well as the most complex and broad dimension. Justice
as a constant and continuous will to give everyone what should be accepted. For this
reason, all actions that tend to produce and maintain happiness and prosperity of the
people are fair. Justice and social justice have close ties, in the context of the
Indonesian law. The realization of social justice, must be based on justice, order and
order, where everyone has the opportunity to build a decent life so as to create public
welfare. The constitutional mandate affirms that social justice is always aimed at
realizing or creating social welfare for all the people of Indonesia. The realization of
social justice requires efforts to distribute resources so that weak community groups
can be alleviated from poverty and so that socio-economic disparities in the midst of
society can be reduced.
When talking about social justice, the prominent dimension is the structural
dimension or "the gap between groups that get a lot and there are few." In this regard,
efforts to achieve justice are often associated with reducing inequality. If so, the reality
in Indonesia which shows the breadth of the social inequalities that mediate between

33
Mahfud. 2010. Perdebatan Hukum Tata Negara Pasca Amandemen Konstitusi. Jakarta.
Rajawali Pers. hlm. 10-11
34
Ibid, hlm.12
Social Justice in Law, Society and Development, Ridwan Arifin, Vania Shafira Yuniar 13

the elite and the marginalized has indicated the problem of social injustice in
Indonesia.35
Empowerment of all resources owned by Indonesia to the fullest, including
human resources, is also one of the concrete solutions to the problems of social
injustice that lead to the disintegration of the nation. The empowerment or
development of human resources in question can be in the form of training or
education, as has been done by Prof. Yohanes Surya is willing to give himself to
educate a number of outstanding Papuan students. If all elements of society, including
the most backward society, are included in development and can make a real
contribution, a sense of national unity will be more visible in each individual nation.36
In accordance with the fifth meaning of the Pancasila "social justice for all the
people of Indonesia", in this context to know the meaning of justice more deeply.
Justice is a right that belongs to all people and no one can obstruct their rights. Justice
has the meaning of balance for all Indonesian people. The intended balance is, there is
no difference between one another and can mean equality and there is no
discrimination in any form.
In accordance with the explanation of the meaning of justice above that every
citizen has equal rights and does not receive discriminatory treatment, and obtains
attention both personal rights and the fulfillment of his rights. The principle of justice
encourages the emergence of equal treatment for every citizen without seeing or caring
for their conditions and potential. Including individuals who have special needs and
are physically disadvantaged so that access is increasingly available for them to obtain
equal quality educational opportunities for all.
Social justice is a concept as well as the ideals of an Indonesian nation that must
be implemented in real life in daily life. Social justice as one of the values that
animates Pancasila becomes a very important thing to try and fight for, because social
justice for all levels of society is the goal of the state. In addition, social justice is
important to be realized in a real and more perfect way, because social justice can
stimulate the spirit of unity and support the realization and maintain the unity and
unity of the nation, especially the Indonesian people. However, Pancasila will only
remain as an ideology and utopian ideals if it is not supported by all elements of the
Indonesian nation. The problem of new social injustice will only be overcome when
all elements of the nation are able to implement the values of unity and justice in
everyday life. The problem of social injustice can be overcome mainly by affirmative
policies made by the government and concrete implementation with strict laws.37
Since laying the foundation of an independent Indonesian state, President
Soekarno has asserted that Indonesia is not a follower of Marxian socialism. This was
reflected in the basic formulation of the Indonesian state, namely Pancasila. Pancasila
is 324 a conception of justice that is 'neutral' towards various beliefs and views of life.
Such neutrality is intended to provide equal opportunities to various adherents of the
view of life. The conception of justice as fairness contained in Pancasila is a
conception that has gained support through overlapping concensus from reasonable
philosophical, religious, and moral doctrines. The slice of consensus is a kind of
common reason, which is as neutral as possible against comprehensive doctrines. 38

35
Sujatmiko. Iwan Gardono. 2006. Keadilan Sosial dalam masyarakat Indonesia”. Dalam
Pancasila Bersama Simposium. Jurnal Restorasi Pancasila.
36
Siregar, Christian. 2014. Pancasila, Keadilan Sosial, Dan Persatuan Indonesia. Jurnal
Humaniora. Vol.5 No.1 April: 107-112.
37
Ibid, hlm.113
38
Rawls, John. 1996. Political Liberalism. New York: Columbia University Press. p.144-147.
14 Jurnal Hukum & Pembangunan Tahun ke-51 No.1 Januari-Maret 2021

Such neutrality is not intended as an indifferent attitude towards religious,

philosophical, and moral doctrines, but rather as a form of respect and attention to
each value. Thus, Pancasila can be accepted by each individual, group, and group, and
with whatever religion, ethnicity, culture, belief, moral view, and political beliefs.

4.1. Acknowledgement
I would like to thank Mr. Ridwan Arifin S.H., LL.M., for reading and providing
comments on a previous draft of this paper.

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.