Liability for Nuclear Damage: Perspectives of International Conventions, Indonesian Positive Law, and Islamic Law

Abstract

: Utilization of nuclear energy for nuclear power plants (PLTN/NPP) has great benefits for human life and, at the same time, can also cause an enormous negative impact in the event of an accident. And it is necessary to take responsibility for nuclear losses that might occur. This article examines the liability for nuclear damage from the perspective of international conventions, Indonesian positive law, and Islamic law. This article is a normative-doctrinal study. Using a conceptual, statutory, and comparative approach, this article concludes that there are similarities regarding the principle of liability for nuclear damage in the three legal systems (international conventions, Indonesian positive law, and Islamic law), namely that both adhere to the principle of strict liability, although in Islamic law it is not stated explicitly. On the other hand, some differences between the three legal systems, especially regarding the form of liability and the amount of compensation or compensation that must be given. In international conventions and Indonesian positive law, the responsibility for nuclear damage is attached to the nuclear operator, while in Islamic law, the responsibility for losses is borne by the party carrying out the damage. As for the limit for giving compensation, international conventions and Indonesian positive law have definitively determined it, while in Islamic law, the limit for giving compensation can be determined according to several models, namely: according to mutual agreement ( at-taqd ī r al-ittif ā qi ); based on the judge's decision ( at-taqd ī r al-qad ā i ), and based on the provisions of the legislature ( at-taqd ī r asy-sy ā r'i ).