Court panel removes Indonesia’s chief justice for ethical breach that benefited president’s son

By FADLAN SYAM and NINIEK KARMINI
Associated Press

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — An ethics council dismissed the chief justice of Indonesia’s top court from the post after finding him guilty of making last-minute changes to election candidacy requirements. The chief of the court’s Honorary Council said Tuesday that Constitutional Court Chief Justice Anwar Usman committed an ethical violation that cleared the way for President Joko Widodo’s eldest son to run for vice president next year. The ruling came less than a month after the Constitutional Court, in a 5-4 decision, carved out an exception to the minimum age requirement of 40 for presidential and vice presidential candidates. The president’s 36-year-old son subsequently was picked tapped as the running mate of a leading presidential contender.