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Village institutions play an important role in supporting participatory and sustainable rural development. The Village Law No. 6 of 2014 recognizes village autonomy and emphasizes the importance of community participation through Village Community Institutions (Lembaga Kemasyarakatan Desa/LKD). However, the implementation of these institutions in practice has not always functioned effectively. This study aims to analyze the role of village community institutions in supporting village development and to identify the factors that influence their effectiveness in Oematamboli Village, Lobalain District, Rote Ndao Regency. This research employs an empirical legal research method with a qualitative approach. Data were obtained through interviews and field observations involving village government officials, community institution administrators, and community leaders, while secondary data were obtained from documents and relevant regulations. The results indicate that the functions of LKD, including the Community Empowerment Institution (LPM), Neighborhood Associations (RT), and Community Associations (RW), have not been implemented optimally in supporting village development. This condition is reflected in the limited participation of LKD in development planning, weak absorption of community aspirations, and low community participation in development activities. Several factors influencing this condition include limited human resource capacity, inadequate infrastructure, low community participation, and limited development funding. Therefore, strengthening institutional capacity, improving coordination, and increasing community participation are necessary to enhance the effectiveness of village development.

The implementation of local democracy in Indonesia faces challenges when the electoral and procedural mechanisms regulated in modern village administration are not fully in line with the socio-cultural traditions of indigenous communities. Many villages still strongly uphold the values, norms, and authority of traditional institutions that have historically regulated communal life, including in terms of leadership legitimacy. Tension between formal democracy and customary values arises when the village political process is perceived as not reflecting the cultural identity of the community. This situation creates a need to understand how the integration of customary institutions can strengthen the legitimacy of village leaders in the local democratic system. This study uses a literature review method with a content analysis approach because the study focuses on the concept of the role of customary institutions in strengthening local democracy and the legitimacy of village leadership. This method allows researchers to explore theories and compare previous findings to form a systematic understanding. The research data comes from 19 secondary sources in the form of scientific books and journal articles published between 2016 and 2025 that are relevant to the themes of customs, village governance, community participation, and local leadership. The search was conducted using the Publish or Perish application with purposive sampling techniques to select sources directly related to the main research issue. This study concludes that the integration of traditional institutions into local democracy produces a model of village leadership that is legally strong and culturally rooted. This integration provides a basis for strengthening local democracy based on cultural wisdom, thereby supporting village development.

Population administration services are essential public services that fulfill the civil rights of the community. However, the process of changing Family Card (KK) data at the village level often faces problems, such as complicated procedures and limited access to services. With the development of information technology, village governments are required to implement digital-based service innovations through a digital governance approach. This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of digital governance implementation in population administration services through the LAPAK SARAH application for Family Card data changes in Dayu Village, Nglegok District, Blitar Regency. The approach used in this study is descriptive qualitative with data collection techniques in the form of in-depth interviews, observation, and documentation. Research informants included village officials and community members as service users. The results showed that the use of the LAPAK SARAH application could improve the performance of population administration services, as indicated by faster service times, easier access, and increased service transparency and accountability. From a digital governance perspective, the role of village officials, cooperation with the Population and Civil Registration Office, and community participation improved service quality. However, this study also found obstacles such as limited digital literacy among the community, differences in village device capacity, and technical infrastructure constraints. The success of digital population administration services at the village level is not only determined by the use of technology, but also by the quality of governance and the readiness of the parties involved.

One of the long-standing marriage traditions in the Ende community is the ana ale marriage tradition. Ana ale marriage is a form of marriage based on an agreement between the parents of the man and woman, as well as a long-established good relationship between both parents. This research was conducted in Tiwu Tewa Village, Ende Timur District, Ende Regency. This research aims to understand the fundamental values contained in marriage as viewed from customary law, the process of implementation and its legitimacy, as well as the obstacles in the implementation of the ana ale marriage. The method used is empirical legal research with a qualitative approach, which includes interviews and literature study. The research results show that the fundamental values contained in the ana ale marriage, as viewed from customary law, consist of sacred and spiritual values, responsibility and commitment values, social and mutual assistance values, and adherence to customs. The process of implementing the ana ale marriage includes Ru’u Tu Jaga Rara, Janji, Puzi Ru’u, Teo Zambu, Bou Engga, Mai Tu Gega Padha, Tu Ngawi, Teke Ngara, Dari Nikah, Tu Ana. Meanwhile, the marriage is considered valid at the Tu Ana ceremony. The obstacles faced in the ana ale marriage include economic factors and the occurrence of clandestine marriages by the female party.

This kind of research can reveal a purpose, namely to be able to carry out an analysis of the important role of the government together with the community in realizing policies to combat corruption of village funds. It is necessary to understand that village funds have been made one of the government's priority programs in order to increase the level of prosperity of rural communities and village development through the Village Law. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to identify policy solutions provided by the government and the community to prevent corruption of village funds. This study utilizes a literature study method through a qualitative approach that can be used to assess the role of the government and the community in implementing policies to combat corruption of village funds as an effort to uphold the integrity of the village administration system. Meanwhile, the research data sources obtained came from secondary data, which included the collection of scientific journals in the last five years, reading books in the last ten years, reports in the mass media, and government regulations. The findings of this study describe that the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) has identified several loopholes that are often exploited by village officials in misappropriating Village Funds. Then there were 98 cases of corruption that caused the state to lose up to Rp. 37.2 billion. This creates an urgency for the government and the community to play a role in creating village regulations that are capable of overcoming corruption of village funds.

This study aims to analyze the role and optimization strategies of Pecalang Segara in monitoring fishing activities that contribute to coral reef ecosystem degradation in the Traditional Village of Pemuteran, North Bali. Pecalang Segara is a customary security institution that holds social legitimacy and customary authority in maintaining order within coastal areas. This research applies an empirical legal approach using a qualitative descriptive method. Data were collected through field observations, interviews with customary leaders and coastal communities, and a literature review of environmental laws and related regulations. The findings indicate that Pecalang Segara plays a strategic role in supervising fishing activities based on local wisdom, particularly in preventing destructive fishing practices that damage coral reefs. However, the effectiveness of this role remains limited due to insufficient technical capacity, low environmental legal awareness, and weak integration between customary law and formal legal systems. The study highlights the importance of strengthening Pecalang Segara through environmental education, regulatory-based monitoring training, and institutional coordination with local government authorities. The integration of customary law and national environmental law is expected to establish a sustainable community-based marine monitoring model capable of effectively protecting coral reef ecosystems and supporting environmental governance in coastal areas.

This study examines the implementation of the Manak Salah tradition in Padang Bulia Customary Village from the perspectives of legal certainty and human rights protection. Manak Salah is a customary practice associated with the birth of opposite-sex twins, which in Balinese Hindu cosmology is considered a sacred event that may disrupt the balance between the sekala and niskala realms, thereby requiring purification rituals. Although the contemporary practice of this tradition has become more humane and no longer involves social exclusion, its regulation remains unwritten and has not been formally codified in the village’s Awig-awig (customary law). This condition creates the risk of multiple interpretations, legal uncertainty, and insufficient protection of the rights of children and affected families. This research employs an empirical juridical method with a qualitative approach, using interviews with customary leaders, field observations, and document analysis of statutory regulations and customary legal sources. The findings reveal that the absence of written norms causes the implementation of Manak Salah to rely heavily on the discretion of customary authorities, leading to potential inconsistency and normative vulnerability. This study emphasizes the urgency of codifying the Manak Salah tradition into the Awig-awig as a form of customary law reform aimed at ensuring legal certainty, strengthening institutional accountability within customary villages, and harmonizing customary law with Bali Provincial Regulation No. 4 of 2019 and fundamental human rights principles.

This study aims to analyze the supervisory strategy of the Panwascam (Central Election Supervisory Agency) of Sinjai Borong District in handling election violations in the 2024 Simultaneous Regional Elections in Sinjai Regency. The study focuses on two main aspects, namely preventive strategies and repressive strategies. The research method uses a qualitative approach with case studies, through in-depth interviews, observation, documentation, and interactive data analysis. The results show that the Panwascam's preventive strategies include socialization of election regulations, political education, and strengthening coordination with village officials and community leaders. This strategy has been proven to increase regulatory understanding among lower-level election organizers and public political awareness, especially first-time voters. Meanwhile, the repressive strategy is implemented through violation handling mechanisms, preparing legal recommendations, and summoning perpetrators and witnesses. Based on field findings, the Panwascam successfully handled one case of violation of ASN neutrality that was recommended to the Regency Bawaslu. This study concludes that the supervision of the Sinjai Borong Panwascam is relatively effective, although it still faces limited resources, low public legal literacy, and strong local political patronage. The results of this study provide a conceptual contribution to strengthening the community-based electoral supervision model, which integrates regulatory, educational, and collaborative aspects. They also serve as practical recommendations for improving the quality of electoral democracy at the local level.