URGENCY OF INSTITUTIONALIZING COLLABORATIVE GOVERNANCE IN THE LEGAL SYSTEM FOR THE PROTECTION OF CHILDREN IN CONFLICT WITH THE LAW

This article aims to analyze the legal protection of children in conflict with the law (ABH) from a normative legal perspective and assess the urgency of institutionalizing collaborative governance within Indonesia's legal system. Although Law No. 11 of 2012 on the Juvenile Justice System has adopted a rehabilitative approach, the practical protection of ABH still faces many challenges, particularly in inter-agency coordination. This study shows that the absence of explicit legal provisions regarding cross-sector cooperation mechanisms has led to collaboration occurring only on a personal, non-institutional, and sporadic basis. Using a conceptual and regulatory approach, this article proposes that the principle of collaborative governance can be interpreted as a new administrative legal norm that must be institutionalized through positive regulation. Recommendations include the establishment of a permanent legal-based collaborative body, regulatory harmonization, and strengthening institutional accountability. Thus, the ABH protection system can become more effective, participatory, and socially just.