Legal disparities in handling narcotics abuse among teenagers in Indonesia
Ellys Lossus Urbaningrum, Setiawan Noerdajasakti & Yuliati
Abstract
This study aims to identify obstacles in law enforcement affecting the effectiveness of protection and rehabilitation of adolescents involved in drug cases. It also highlights the discrepancy between the principle of restorative justice and the application of the law in distinguishing the treatment of drug users and dealers. The approach used is normative juridical with library research method. The analysis is conducted using normative legal interpretation techniques, including systematic and historical interpretation of relevant legislation, such as Law No. 35/2009 on Narcotics and Law No. 11/2012 on the Juvenile Justice System. This research examines legal doctrine and court decisions relating to the rehabilitation of drug abusers. The results show that although regulations have emphasised rehabilitation as the main approach in dealing with adolescent drug abusers, its implementation still faces various obstacles, such as the limitations of the justice system, the lack of rehabilitation facilities, and social stigma that prioritises punishment over rehabilitation. In addition, discrepancies in the application of the law often lead to drug users being categorised as dealers, so they are more often sentenced to criminal penalties rather than receiving rehabilitation, which should be a priority. This research is limited to normative analysis of the applicable regulations and has not empirically examined the implementation of rehabilitation policies in various regions. The implication of this research is the need for policy revisions that emphasise rehabilitation for adolescent drug abusers as well as increased understanding of law enforcement officials in applying restorative justice consistently. This study provides a fresh perspective that highlights the inconsistency between the repressive legal approach and the rehabilitative spirit that should be prioritized in the protection of children.
Keywords
legal inequality, narcotics, teenagers, Indonesia
Author information & Contribution
Ellys Lossus Urbaningrum. Corresponding author. Faculty of Law, Universitas Brawijaya, Indonesia. Email: ellyslossusurbaningrum@gmail.com
Setiawan Noerdajasakti. Faculty of Law, Universitas Brawijaya, Indonesia. Email: setiawan.sakti@ub.ac.id
Yuliati. Faculty of Law, Universitas Brawijaya, Indonesia. Email: yuliaticholil@ub.ac.id
"All authors equally contributed to the conception, design, preparation, data gathering and analysis, and writing of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript."
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).
Funding
This work was not supported by any funding.
Institutional Review Board Statement
Not Applicable
AI Declaration
AI tools were not used in writing this paper.
Notes
Acknowledgement
References
Barnes, H. E. (1959). New horizons in criminology. Prentice-hall.
Duarif, D., & Saleh, M. (2024). Law enforcement against children perpetrating narcotics crimes in Teluk Bintuni Regency. International Journal of Social Science Research and Review, 7(10), 181–187. https://doi.org/10.47814/ijssrr.v7i10.2239
Ewing, S. W. F., Smith, S. M., & Mead, H. K. (2012). Serving dually diagnosed youth in the juvenile justice system. In: Handbook of juvenile forensic psychology and psychiatry (pp. 371–384). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-0905-2_24
Galván-Moya, A. E., & Durán-Palacio, N. M. (2019). Adolescentes infractores y promoción de acciones prosociales: una tarea pendiente. El Ágora USB, 19(2), 583–595. https://doi.org/10.21500/16578031.3756
Hartono. (2012). Investigation and enforcement of criminal law. Sinar Graphic.
Hiraiej, E. O. S. (2016). Prinsip-prinsip Hukum Pidana. Cahaya Atma Pustaka.
Hughes, T. A. (2001). Juvenile delinquent rehabilitation: Placement of juveniles beyond their communities as a detriment to inner-city youths. New England Law Review, 36, 153.
Humas BNN. (2024). Fenomena transformasi patronase bandar narkoba, mengancam keberlangsungan hidup bangsa dan negara. Bnn.Go.Id. https://bnn.go.id/fenomena-transformasi-patronase-bandar-narkoba-mengancam-keberlangsungan-hidup-bangsa-dan-negara/
Justice, T. F. (1976). Juvenile justice and delinquency prevention: Report of the task force on juvenile justice and delinquency prevention. National Advisory Committee on Criminal Justice Standards and Goals.
Laksana, A. W., Widodo, H., Siswanto, M. A., Djunaedi, H. D., & Widiyoko, S. (2025). Criticism of legal protection for victims of drug abuse: the disharmony in legal substance regulation. Legality: Jurnal Ilmiah Hukum, 33(1), 93–109. https://doi.org/10.22219/ljih.v33i1.36680
Lamintang, P. A. F., & Lamintang, F. T. (2022). Dasar-dasar hukum pidana di Indonesia. Sinar Grafika.
Marbun, L. P. E., & Ismed, M. (2023). How to enforce criminal law against narcotics abuse of new types of variants that have not been included in law number 35 of 2009 concerning narcotics. Policy, Law, Notary and Regulatory Issues (POLRI), 2(1), 67–80. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.55047/polri.v2i1.531
Mertokusumo, S. (2005). Mengenal Hukum Satu Pengantar. Liberty.
Moeljatno, S. H. (2002). Asas-asas Hukum Pidana. Rineka Cipta, Jakarta.
Mulyadi, L. (2013). Mediasi Penal Dalam Sistem Peradilan Pidana Indonesia: Pengkajian Asas, Norma, Teori Dan Praktik. Yustisia Jurnal Hukum, 2(1). https://doi.org/10.20961/yustisia.v2i1.11054
Muslim, D., Darwis, N., & Sudarto, S. (2024). Legal study analysis of criminal law policy in the implementation of integrated assessment for drug abusers based on law number 35 of 2009 concerning narcotics. International Socio-Cultural Scientific Journal, 6(2), 500–509. https://doi.org/10.37010/lit.v6i2.1704
PPATK (2024). Indonesia Darurat Narkoba, Perputaran Uang Capai Rp99 Triliun. https://www.ppatk.go.id/news/read/1426/indonesia-darurat-narkoba-perputaran-uang-capai-rp99-triliun.html
Pratiwi, G. M. (2023). Restorative justice for children in conflict with the law in narcotics cases. International Journal of Law, Environment, and Natural Resources, 3(2), 323–335. https://doi.org/10.51749/injurlens.v3i2.90
Reid, S. T. (1997). Crime and criminology. Brown & Benchmark.
Roa-Pinto, G. Y. (2020). Prácticas restaurativas en instituciones de reeducación. Revista Unimar, 38(2), 143–170. https://doi.org/10.31948/Rev.unimar/unimar38-2-art6
Saba, C. (2024). Prevalensi Narkoba 2023: 3,3 Juta Penduduk Indonesia Terpapar. https://www.rri.co.id/daerah/781774/prevalensi-narkoba-2023-3-3-juta-penduduk-indonesia-terpapar
Siahaan, A. R., Rifai, H. H., & Hosnah, A. U. (2025). No title disparity in sentencing and the effectiveness of Indonesia’s narcotics law: A critical analysis of law no. 35 of 2009. Arkus, 11(2), 754–766. https://doi.org/10.37275/arkus.v11i1.680
Susanto, I. S. (2011). Kriminologi. Genta Publishing.
Tanaya, I. K. P., & Apryani, N. W. E. (2023). Implementation of diversion towards children who commit criminal acts of drug abuse in Denpasar City Resort Police. Policy, Law, Notary and Regulatory Issues (POLRI), 2(2), 126–133.
Utomo, K. S., & Barthos, M. (2024). Efforts for reforming the criminal justice system in implementing rehabilitation sentences for drug abusers. Jurnal Ekonomi Teknologi Dan Bisnis (JETBIS), 3(12), 1827–1836. https://doi.org/10.57185/jetbis.v3i12.164
Wardika, M., Harun, R. R., & Jiwantara, F. A. (2024). The interpretation of article 127 of law number 35 of 2009 on narcotics in addressing drug abuse through restorative justice. Pena Justisia: Media Komunikasi Dan Kajian Hukum, 23(3), 2209–2223. https://doi.org/10.31941/pj.v23i3.4890
Widiartana, G. (2017). Paradigma Keadilan Restoratif Dalam Penanggulangan Kejahatan Dengan Menggunakan Hukum Pidana. Justitia et Pax, 33(1).
Zakun, M. S., Soetoto, H. E. O. H., & Hakim, L. (2025). Sanksi Rehabilitasi Bagi Anak Pecandu Narkotika. Ranah Research: Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Development, 7(2), 1108–1120. https://doi.org/10.38035/rrj.v7i2.1405
Cite this article:
Urbaningrum, E.L., Noerdajasakti, S. & Yuliati (2025). Legal disparities in handling narcotics abuse among teenagers in Indonesia. International Review of Social Sciences Research, 5(2), 178-200. https://doi.org/10.53378/irssr.353202
License:
![]()
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) International License.
Most read articles
- Social media usage and the academic performance of Filipino junior high school students
- Exploring the factors influencing commuters’ satisfaction and the use of public utility buses in Quezon City, Philippines
- A narrative exploration of romantic experiences and ideal relationship standards among Filipino Gen Z
- Students’ exposure to social media and their radical involvement on the societal issues in the Philippines
- ChatGPT integration significantly boosts personalized learning outcomes: A Philippine study
- Tiktok made me book it: The impact of Tiktok on tourism destination selection of generation Z and millennials in Manila
- Senior high school students’ awareness and literacy on computer software applications
- Self-perception of ABM students towards their academic, social and emotional college preparedness
- Enhancing financial literacy among Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program beneficiaries
- Emotional intelligence and leadership efficacy of university student leaders





