Peranan Lembaga Bantuan Hukum Terkait Penanganan terhadap Anak yang Berhadapan dengan Hukum (Studi Lembaga Bantuan Hukum Medan)

Abstract

The Republic of Indonesia as a country of law guarantees that every citizen receives fair legal protection and certainty as regulated in Article 28D paragraph (1) of the 1945 Constitution of the Republic of Indonesia. This guarantee is also strengthened through Law Number 16 of 2011 concerning Legal Aid, which aims to guarantee access to justice for the poor and vulnerable groups, including children. In reality, children in conflict with the law (ABH) still often undergo the legal process without proper assistance, so they are vulnerable to discriminatory treatment and human rights violations. This study aims to examine the legal regulations for ABH, analyze the role of the Medan Legal Aid Institute (LBH) in providing legal assistance to children, and identify various internal and external obstacles faced by LBH in the process. This study uses an empirical legal method with a sociological legal approach, through literature studies and direct interviews with LBH Medan. The results of the study indicate that LBH Medan plays a strategic role in legal assistance to ABH in accordance with the mandate of Law Number 11 of 2012 and Law Number 16 of 2011. However, LBH Medan still faces various obstacles, including limited human resources and budget as internal obstacles, as well as minimal legal education and the still strong negative stigma of society towards child perpetrators of crimes as external obstacles. The conclusion of this study confirms that although the role of LBH Medan has been running substantively, its effectiveness has not been maximized due to various inhibiting factors. Therefore, it is necessary to strengthen institutions, increase the capacity of legal resources, and provide broad legal counseling to the community so that legal protection for children can be realized optimally.