Discusses the creation a national school of Islamic law in Indonesia. Presents a complex range of references for syariah including the formal structures of a 'new fiqh', philosophies of law, transmissions of syariah through tertiary curricula and the Friday sermon in mosques, a bureaucratic form for conducting the Hajj, and contemporary debates on syariah values as expressions of public morality.
This book examines the life of women in the Indonesian province of Aceh, where Islamic law was introduced in 1999. It outlines how women have had to face the formalisation of conservative understandings of sharia law in regulations and new state institutions over the last decade or so, how they have responded to this, forming non-governmental organisations (NGOs) that have shaped local discourse on women’s rights, equality and status in Islam, and how these NGOs have strategised, demanded reform, and enabled Acehnese women to take active roles in influencing the processes of democratisation and Islamisation that are shaping the province. The book shows that although the formal introduction of Islamic law in Aceh has placed restrictions on women’s freedom, paradoxically it has not prevented them from engaging in public life. It argues that the democratisation of Indonesia, which allowed Islamisation to occur, continues to act as an important factor shaping Islamisation’s current trajectory; that the introduction of Islamic law has motivated women’s NGOs and other elements of civil society to become more involved in wider discussions about the future of sharia in Aceh; and that Indonesia’s recent decentralisation policy and growing local Islamism have enabled the emergence of different religious and local adat practices, which do not necessarily correspond to overall national trends.
Understanding and managing inter-religious relations, particularly between Muslims and Christians, presents a challenge for states around the world. This book investigates legal disputes between religious communities in the world’s largest majority-Muslim, democratic country, Indonesia. It considers how the interaction between state and religion has influenced relations between religious communities in the transition to democracy. The book presents original case studies based on empirical field research of court disputes in West Java, a majority-Muslim province with a history of radical Islam. These include criminal court cases, as well as cases of judicial review, relating to disputes concerning religious education, permits for religious buildings and the crime of blasphemy. The book argues that the democratic law reform process has been influenced by radical Islamists because of the politicization of religion under democracy and the persistence of fears of Christianization. It finds that disputes have been localized through the decentralization of power and exacerbated by the central government’s ambivalent attitude towards radical Islamists who disregard the rule of law. Examining the challenge facing governments to accommodate minorities and manage religious pluralism, the book furthers understanding of state-religion relations in the Muslim world. This accessible and engaging book is of interest to students and scholars of law and society in Southeast Asia, was well as Islam and the state, and the legal regulation of religious diversity.
No corporation is enthusiastic about paying tax, yet Islamic banks in Indonesia voluntarily pay corporate zakat. Why? The book analyzes corporate zakat norms and practices in Indonesia by investigating how Muslim jurists have interpreted sharīʿa of zakat and how these have been imposed through the legislative and regulatory framework. It also presents original case studies based on sociolegal field research on the reception of the new obligations in the Islamic banks that choose to pay – and choose not to pay – what is effectively a new tax. The book argues that the dynamics of sharīʿa interpretation, imposition, and compliance in Indonesia are too complex to be defined using the binaries of the religious versus the secular, public versus private, or tradition versus modernity. The corporate zakat context has revitalized the existing governance strategy in Islamic legal tradition and created a shared Islamic law vision between Islam and the state. Consequently, this fusion generates a mixed legal and religious consciousness toward corporate zakat. Addressing broader discussions on Islamic law and modernity, the book will be of interest to academics working on Asian and Comparative Law, sociolegal studies, anthropology of Indonesia, business studies of the Islamic world, Islamic/sharīʿa economics, Islamic law and politics, Islamic legal studies, Muslim society and Islam in Southeast Asia.
This book examines the life of women in the Indonesian province of Aceh, where Islamic law was introduced in 1999. It outlines how women have had to face the formalisation of conservative understandings of sharia law in regulations and new state institutions over the last decade or so, how they have responded to this, forming non-governmental organisations (NGOs) that have shaped local discourse on women’s rights, equality and status in Islam, and how these NGOs have strategised, demanded reform, and enabled Acehnese women to take active roles in influencing the processes of democratisation and Islamisation that are shaping the province. The book shows that although the formal introduction of Islamic law in Aceh has placed restrictions on women’s freedom, paradoxically it has not prevented them from engaging in public life. It argues that the democratisation of Indonesia, which allowed Islamisation to occur, continues to act as an important factor shaping Islamisation’s current trajectory; that the introduction of Islamic law has motivated women’s NGOs and other elements of civil society to become more involved in wider discussions about the future of sharia in Aceh; and that Indonesia’s recent decentralisation policy and growing local Islamism have enabled the emergence of different religious and local adat practices, which do not necessarily correspond to overall national trends.
Sharia-compliance is the raison d’etre of Islamic banks. All of their instruments and activities should be based on sharia principles, which unfortunately exposes them to greater risks than their conventional counterparts, regulated under the dual banking system in Indonesia. These include inconsistencies between fatwas, unique reputational risks, and inefficiencies in the regulatory framework governing Islamic banks. This book critically examines the less-studied issue of developing an Islamic banking regulatory and supervisory framework that considers the risk pressures faced by Islamic banks’ operations in an Indonesian financial sector dominated by conventional banks. The book assesses the extent to which the global financial standards of the Basel Accords have been followed by Islamic Banks in Indonesia, with respect to their regulation, supervision, and risk management, to highlight the unresolved tensions in the multiple regulatory and supervisory institutions. The book proposes a middle-ground approach that accommodates modification of the existing financial regulatory and supervisory system in line with international best practice. The reforms proposed in this book offer a way for financial regulatory and supervisory agencies to further develop modern Islamic law and finance. The book will be a valuable resource for scholars and policymakers interested in the dual banking system in Indonesia.
This book is a work of historical analysis focusing on the development of Islamic financial institutions from 1992 to 2011 in Indonesia as they relate to Islamic banking using a political-economic approach. Indonesia plays an influential role in various international political and Islamic organizations because it has the largest Muslim population in the world. Although Indonesia was late in establishing its banking initiatives, it did so 1992 in response to the growth of the Islamic financial institutions. From 1992 to 2011 many laws and regulations were established to support the growth of Islamic banking in Indonesia, but by national financial market indicators, Islamic banking in Indonesia fell behind many expectations. This analysis suggests that the shortcomings may be due in part to the waning power of key elements of the political superstructure to push policies that supported Islamic banking and Islamic economic systems, and establish synergies with institutions of Islamic economic education and stakeholders to accelerate the growth of Islamic banks in terms of service, national market share, and public trust.
Islam and Citizenship in Indonesia examines the conditions facilitating democracy, women’s rights, and inclusive citizenship in Indonesia, the most populous Muslim-majority country and the third largest democracy in the world. The book shows that Muslim understandings of Islamic traditions and ethics have coevolved with the understanding and practice of democracy and citizen belonging. Following thirty-two years of authoritarian rule, in 1998 this sprawling Southeast Asian country returned to electoral democracy. The achievement brought with it, however, an upsurge in both the numbers and assertiveness of Islamist militias, as well as a sharp increase in violence against religious minorities. The resulting mobilizations have pitted the Muslim supporters of an Indonesian variety of inclusive citizenship against populist proponents of Islamist majoritarianism. Seen from this historical example, the book demonstrates that Muslim actors come to know and practice Islam in a manner not determined in an unchanging way by scriptural commands but in coevolution with broader currents in politics, society, and citizen belonging. By exploring these questions in both an Indonesian and comparative context, this book offers important lessons on the challenge of democracy and inclusive citizenship in the Muslim-majority world. Well-written and informative, this book will be suitable for adoption in university courses on Islam, Southeast Asian Politics, Indonesian and Asian studies, as well as courses dealing with religion, democracy, and citizen belonging in multicultural societies around the world. The book will be of interest to the general reader with an interest in Islam, citizenship, and democracy.
Indonesia's military government collapsed in 1998, igniting fears that economic, religious, and political conflicts would complicate any democratic transition. Yet in every year since 2006, the world's most populous Muslim country has received high marks from international democracy-ranking organizations. In this volume, political scientists, religious scholars, legal theorists, and anthropologists examine the theory and practice of Indonesia's democratic transition and its ability to serve as a model for other Muslim countries. They compare the Indonesian example with similar scenarios in Chile, Spain, India, and Tunisia, as well as with the failed transitions of Yugoslavia, Egypt, and Iran. Essays explore the relationship between religion and politics and the ways in which Muslims became supportive of democracy even before change occurred, and they describe how innovative policies prevented dissident military groups, violent religious activists, and secessionists from disrupting Indonesia's democratic evolution. The collection concludes with a discussion of Indonesia's emerging "legal pluralism" and of which of its forms are rights-eroding and rights-protecting.
Using the high-profile 2017 blasphemy trial of the former governor of Jakarta, Basuki ‘Ahok’ Tjahaja Purnama, as its sole case study, this book assesses whether Indonesia’s liberal democratic human rights legal regime can withstand the rise of growing Islamist majoritarian sentiment. Specifically, this book analyses whether a 2010 decision of Indonesia’s Constitutional Court has rendered the liberal democratic human rights guarantees contained in Indonesia’s 1945 Constitution ineffective. Key legal documents, including the indictment issued by the North Jakarta Attorney-General and General Prosecutor, the defence’s ‘Notice of Defence’, and the North Jakarta State Court’s convicting judgment, are examined. The book shows how Islamist majoritarians in Indonesia have hijacked human rights discourse by attributing new, inaccurate meanings to key liberal democratic concepts. This has provided them with a human rights law-based justification for the prioritisation of the religious sensibilities and religious orthodoxy of Indonesia’s Muslim majority over the fundamental rights of the country’s religious minorities. While Ahok’s conviction evidences this, the book cautions that matters pertaining to public religion will remain a site of contestation in contemporary Indonesia for the foreseeable future. A groundbreaking study of the Ahok trial, the blasphemy law, and the contentious politics of religious freedom and cultural citizenship in Indonesia, this book will be of interest to academics working in the fields of religion, Islamic studies, religious studies, law and society, law and development, law reform, constitutionalism, politics, history and social change, and Southeast Asian studies.
