AL-IHKAM: Jurnal Hukum & Pranata Sosial

Child Marriage in Indonesia: How Communities Navigate Marriage Practices within Islamic, Adat, and State Norms

2026-07-18T02:28:43+07:00

This qualitative study, based on interviews and focus group discussions, examines how communities in South Kalimantan address child marriage within a plural legal framework. It addresses two central questions: how communities in South Kalimantan negotiate child marriage within the context of legal pluralism, and how the concept of marital readiness is constructed and understood within the legal consciousness of families, religious leaders, and community members. Using Participatory Qualitative Research, the study was conducted in two villages with distinct social characteristics: Cukan Lipai in Hulu Sungai Tengah Regency and Berangas Timur in Barito Kuala Regency. The findings reveal that communities in both villages prioritize customary norms and religious teachings, particularly Islamic law, over state law when determining the appropriate age and readiness for marriage. In many cases, religious reasoning and biological signs of maturity are used to justify child marriage, aligning with some classical fiqh interpretations that link marital eligibility to puberty. Meanwhile, formal legal provisions such as Law Number 16 of 2019 on Marriage and its dispensation mechanism are often viewed merely as administrative formalities that can be negotiated or bypassed through practices like unregistered marriages (kawin siri), which are considered religiously valid. Within this context, communities construct and obey their own norms. Therefore, efforts should bring together state law, Islamic principles, and local customary practices to narrow the gap between legal systems and how communities actually live and make decisions.

The Nexus of Religion, Ethnicity, and Money: Understanding Political Violence Against Women in Eastern Indonesia

2026-07-18T02:28:18+07:00

The 2024 General Elections in Indonesia were marked by significant cases of Violence Against Women in Politics (VAWP), including in Eastern Indonesia. This study aims to present the Islamic Law and Christian Perspective as the dominant faiths in Eastern Indonesia, on women’s involvement in politics. It also explores how, in the context of the 2024 elections, religious identity, ethnicity, money, and non-indigenous sentiment have been weaponized to perpetuate VAWP in Eastern Indonesia. This is qualitative research, based on in-depth interviews with female politicians in Eastern Indonesia, particularly in East Nusa Tenggara and West Papua. This study reveals that both Islamic Law and Christian perspectives allow women to participate in politics in the region. However, female candidates in East Nusa Tenggara encountered psychological violence (where their religious affiliations and ethnic backgrounds were frequently weaponized against them) and economic violence (manifested through voters’ high demands for material inducements in exchange for electoral support). More interestingly, Muslim women candidates in predominantly Christian regions in West Papua were subjected to psychological violence linked to their religious identity and perceptions of being non-indigenous women. This study concludes that VAWP in Eastern Indonesia is highly complex, as the interplay of religious diversity, ethnic identities, money and issues concerning non-indigenous sentiment intensifies its manifestations. These dynamics leave women politicians particularly vulnerable, especially in the absence of sufficient protective mechanisms. This study suggests the need for comprehensive legislation to address violence against women in politics (VAWP) at both national and local levels.

Chitasil Edible Coating and Price Stability of Agricultural Commodities: An Islamic Economic Law Perspective

2026-07-18T02:27:57+07:00

Agricultural commodity price instability in perishable markets is commonly explained as a supply–demand imbalance, yet such an interpretation overlooks the structural role of time constraints in market exchange. This study examines how post-harvest technology functions not only as a productivity tool but as an economic governance mechanism within the framework of Islamic economic law. Using an empirical legal method combined with juridical–sociological analysis, field interviews were conducted with horticultural farmers in Ngablak, Magelang, and interpreted through maqāṣid asy-syarī’ah and qawā‘id fiqhiyyah. The findings show that price volatility originates from forced-sale conditions caused by limited shelf life, where farmers sell under biological time pressure rather than economic choice. The application of Chitasil edible coating extends shelf life, enabling intertemporal selling and reducing the Price Stability Index from 1.37 (indicating high volatility) to approximately 0.6 (indicating moderate fluctuation). The mechanism stabilizes prices not by controlling prices directly but by redistributing temporal risk in market transactions. From the perspective of Islamic economic law, the technology eliminates the cause of value depreciation (raf’ aḍ-ḍarar), protects economic value (ḥifẓ al-māl), and restores proportional risk–benefit relations (al-gunmu bi al-gurmi). Furthermore, the technology functions as an institutional instrument of distributive justice by equalizing bargaining capacity without regulatory price intervention. This study concludes that post-harvest technology operates as a maqāṣid-based economic governance mechanism: justice is achieved through structural market design rather than contractual restriction. The contribution lies in repositioning agricultural technology from a production tool into a normative instrument of distributive justice within Islamic economic law.

Dog Components in Vaccines; Jurisprudential Verses, Ḥādīṡ and ‘Ulamā’ Distinctive Perspective

2026-07-18T02:27:30+07:00

This study aims to explore the perspectives of Yogyakarta scholars on vaccines produced using MDCK (Madin-Darby Canine Kidney) cells derived from dog kidneys. MDCK raises concerns among Muslims regarding its ḥalāl status, as dogs are considered impure (najis) in Islamic law. Through in-depth interviews with five key informants from MUI, LPH, LBM PWNU, and UIN Sunan Kalijaga, this study examines their views based on the al-Qur’ān, Ḥādīṡ, and juristic opinions. The findings reveal diverse positions. One informant emphasizes regulatory barriers rooted in the Shafi'i school, which requires istiḥālah (perfect transformation) and rejects foreign ḥalāl certificates. Other informants invoke talfīq (eclecticism) by shifting to the Maliki or Hanafi schools, which consider dogs not impure. They also highlight the concept of mujāwir (process accompaniments), arguing that MDCK cells are effectively removed through purification, and that even in the Shafi'i school, impurity invisible to the naked eye is forgivable (ma‘fuwwun ‘anhu). Clinical analogies, such as Enoxaparin, further support conditional permissibility. The majority accept MDCK-based vaccines when no ḥalāl alternatives exist, purification ensures no cellular traces remain, and public health necessity (ḍarūrah) justifies their use under ḥifẓ an-nafs (preservation of life). This study has limitations, namely that it only covers scholars from Yogyakarta and focuses only on MDCK cells. Further research is needed for other regions and for other impure (najis) materials besides MDCK.

Boplang as ‘Urf in Islamic Law: Exploring the Transformation of Ritual Practices into Building Regulations

2026-07-18T02:27:08+07:00

The existence of customary law in the process of building a house's foundation, particularly the boplang tradition in Cirebon, is still very strong. Yet, modern society greatly desires simplicity and practicality, relying solely on positive law. Therefore, this article explores how Islamic law support and challenge boplang as a form of ‘urf in Cirebon, assess the societal and legal status within the local community and National law. Using an anthropological approach to law and framed within Islamic legal theory, especially the concept of ‘urf (custom), this study applies a qualitative method based on in-depth interviews with community leaders, cultural practitioners, and village officials. The study aims to identify and articulate the normative values embedded in boplang as a dynamic and living legal tradition. Findings indicate a persistent reliance on myth and oral tradition within the local community, which, although constitutionally protected, remains undocumented—thereby weakening its application of positive law from neighboring jurisdictions perceived as more authoritative. The study concludes that rationalizing boplang through systematic documentation and interpretation grounded in Islamic legal norms can strengthen its legitimacy law is often regarded as more flexible, adaptive, and context-sensitive compared to the rigid nature of formal positive law.

Dynamics of Post-Divorce Family Resilience: A Phenomenological Study of Ex-Wives within Ḥabā’ib’s Community

2026-07-18T02:26:43+07:00

Divorce within tight-knit socio-religious structures, such as the ḥabā’ib community, often places women in a vulnerable yet unique position. This vulnerability is manifested through both economic and social challenges, driven by prevailing cultural stigmas and restricted access to essential resources. This study aims to analyze the impact of divorce on women's socio-economic resilience and evaluate the effectiveness of ḥabā’ib widow's home facilities in supporting them after divorce. Employing a qualitative method with a purposive sampling-based case study approach, this study involved seven informants, consisting of six divorced women within the ḥabā’ib community and a facility administrator. Data were gathered through in-depth interviews focusing on post-divorce alimony protection and resource accessibility. The informants were selected based on specific criteria: having experienced divorce within the last five years and having utilized the community-provided housing facilities, ensuring an in-depth exploration of their socio-economic resilience. The results show that although widow ḥabā’ib homes provide benefits in the form of housing and social support, economic challenges remain major obstacles, including limited access to jobs, business capital, and skills training. Therefore, a more comprehensive empowerment strategy is needed, including access to skills training, sharia-based business capital, and more inclusive social protection policies. The implications of this study emphasize the importance of collaboration between the government, communities, and the private sector in creating sustainable empowerment programs to improve women's welfare and independence after divorce.

Integration of Customary Law and Islamic Law in Makassaarsche Chrestomathie Manuscript

2026-07-18T02:26:21+07:00

In the Makassar community, some of the customary legal norms are preserved in the Makassaarsche Chrestomathie, a manuscript compiled by B.F. Matthes in 1860. This article aims to explore how the Makassaarsche Chrestomathie manuscript addresses cases of homicide, adultery, and inheritance, and how the formulations and substantive contents of those customary legal norms are integrated with Islamic law. This study adopts a philological approach, employing interviews and document analysis as data collection methods. Content analysis and qualitative analysis are used to interpret the findings. The study reveals that: First, the manuscript outlines specific customary legal concepts, including puli (retaliatory killing) and sapu (paying compensation) related to homicide, sikatinroang (sleeping together) in the context of adultery, and tawa rua (men and women have an equal share) regarding inheritance. Second, there are both substantive and normative integration between customary law and Islamic law, although each retains its own distinctive features and conceptual uniqueness. Concepts puli and sapu indicate parallel Islamic qiṣāṣ and diyah concepts. Sikatinroang has the same meaning as adultery or zinā in Islamic law. However, there are differences between customary law in inheritance distribution, which recognizes equal status between men and women, while Islam recognizes the concept of proportion.

Ḥukm Idnā' al-Jilbāb: Dirasah an-Niẓām al-Ijtimā'ī fī Naẓor Naqdi al-Ḥadīth wa Āyāt al-Aḥkām

2026-07-18T02:29:07+07:00

This study examines the concept of lowering the jilbab in Islamic jurisprudence (fiqh) through an integrative approach that combines a textual study of the Qur’an and the Prophetic Hadith with a socio-religious analysis of contemporary practice. The study takes as its starting point the Qur’anic verse in Sūrah al-Ahzāb (59) as the legislative basis for the command to let the jilbāb hang down, then focuses on the relevant hadith, tracing its transmission, examining its chain of transmission, and comparing it with the accounts found in the exegesis. It provides a practical description of how the women of the Ansar complied with the command to let the jilbab hang down, as recorded in the reasons for revelation. The research adopts a qualitative methodology by combining desk-based and field research, analysing the views of exegetes and jurists on the meaning of the jilbab and ‘idna’, and conducting field observations and in-depth interviews with Muslim women from diverse social and educational backgrounds. The findings reveal that the motivations for wearing the long jilbab vary, including religious commitment, the construction of social identity, the influence of fashion and social media, and family and cultural factors. The research also highlights a significant jurisprudential difference regarding the issue of face covering, whereby ‘idna’ is not understood as an absolute obligation to cover the face but is linked to the objectives of Sharia, such as covering the ‘awrah’, preventing fitnah, and preserving dignity.

Piil Pesenggiri; Local Living Law between Enforcing and Diminishing Fiqh Munakahah

2026-07-18T02:26:01+07:00

This study aims to analyze how a local living law intervenes with fiqh munākahah while turning it into living practice either in enforcing or diminishing the ideal concept of the latter. Piil Pesenggiri, a form of local wisdom within Lampung community does shape and construct how local Muslim practice their religion in term of wedding and marriage. However, its position aligning with fiqh munākahah in solving the daily family problem of local Muslim was not clear enough. This study employs a socio-legal approach using qualitative methods. Data were collected through fieldwork, in-depth interviews with purposively selected informants, customary leaders, religious figures, and married couples across Central Lampung, South Lampung, and Pringsewu. The data were analyzed using living law framework, specifically how Piil Pesenggiri as a normative ‘inner order’ negotiates with formal fiqh doctrines which reconstruct the daily practice of Islamic family law in. The findings reveal that Piil Pesenggiri does either enforce or diminish Islamic law as Muslim guidance in organizing wedding and living a married life. This negotiation is really obvious in how Lampung people practice Islamic law in their family, ranging from the concept of qiwamah or family division of labor, family conflict resolution, to a series of wedding provision.