Azyumardi Azra

Arskal Salim

After the fall of President Soeharto, there have been heightened attempts by certain groups of Muslims to have sharia (Islamic law) implemented by the state. Even though this burning issue is not new, it has further divided Indonesian Muslims. The introduction of Islamic law would also affect the future of multi-cultural and multi-religious Indonesia. So far, however, the introduction of sharia nationwide has been opposed by the majority of Indonesian Muslims. This book gives an overview of sharia from post-Independence in 1945 to the most recent developments in Indonesia at the start of the new millennium.

Shari'a and Politics in Modern Indonesia

Indonesia has probably the fastest changing legal system in the Muslim world. This ethnographic account of legal pluralism in the post-conflict and disaster situation in Aceh addresses changes in both the national legal system and the regional legal structure in the province. Focusing on the encounter between diverse patterns of legal reasoning advocated by multiple actors and by different institutions (local, national and international; official and unofficial; judicial, political and social cultural) it considers the vast array of issues arising in the wake of the December 2004 earthquake and tsunami in Aceh.It investigates disputes about rights to land and other forms of property, power relations, the conflict of rules, gender relationships, the right to make decisions, and prevailing norms. These disputes are presented on multiple levels and in various forums, either through negotiation or adjudication, regardless of whether they are settled or not. The cases involve various actors from villages, the courts, the provincial government and the legislature, the national Supreme Court and the central government of Indonesia.

Sharia and Legal Pluralism

Contemporary Islamic Law in Indonesia

John Bowen

In this volume, eight scholars of Indonesian Islam examine women’s access to property in law courts and in village settings. The chapters go beyond the world of legal and scriptural texts to ask how women in fact fare at critical moments of marriage, divorce, and death.

Women and Property Rights in Indonesian Islamic Legal Contexts

Zakat, one of Islam's Five Pillars, is the practice of giving a fixed proportion of one's financial assets to those in need, thereby purifying both one's soul and one's remaining wealth. In Indonesia, since the coming of Islam, zakat has been a means of worship, and its collection has been voluntary and decentralized. Arskal Salim's study argues that in the post-New Order regime (1966-1998) zakat practice changed structurally and institutionally through the enactment of a law on zakat management, followed by the establishment of a national zakat agency. A cultural shift is now in progress with two possible outcomes: either zakat collection will become compulsory and centralized or it will become such an intricate part of taxation law that it loses its spiritual relevance. Arskal Salim is Senior Lecturer at the Faculty of Syariah and Law, Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University (UIN), Jakarta.

Arskal Salim

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