Chairman of Commission VIII States That the Isbat Session Has Been Conducted in Accordance with Procedure

JAKARTA - The Chairman of Commission VIII of the Indonesian House of Representatives, Marwan Dasopang, explained that the isbat session for determining 1 Syawal 1447 Hijriah or Eid al-Fitr 2026 could not be conducted earlier because it must await the results of rukyatul hilal.

According to Marwan, the timing of the isbat session held on Thursday (19/3/2026) was in accordance with procedure, as the determination of the start of Syawal must wait for confirmation of whether the hilal was sighted or not.

“The isbat session was indeed held today because it must wait for the appearance of the hilal. If conducted earlier, it certainly could not ensure the results,” said Marwan on Thursday (19/3/2026) evening.

Meanwhile, rukyat, Marwan clarified, serves as a confirmation that must be carried out at the time of hilal observation.

“Hisab can already be known from the beginning, but it still needs to be confirmed through rukyat. Therefore, the isbat session cannot possibly be held earlier,” he explained.

Marwan added that the determination of whether Eid al-Fitr falls on the following day or the day after can only be confirmed after the entire process of hisab and rukyat has been completed.

“Based on hisab, it is indeed not possible for the hilal to be sighted, and this was confirmed by rukyat in various locations which also did not see the hilal,” said Marwan.

He emphasised that the frequent differences in the determination of the start of Syawal are not caused by delays in the isbat session, but by differences in fiqh perspectives within society.

“Those differences are not because of late determination, but because of differences in fiqh approaches. As long as there is no agreement, the potential for differences in the start of fasting or Eid will still occur,” said Marwan.

“In the future, there needs to be a joint agreement regarding the fiqh basis, whether to prioritise hisab or rukyat, although fundamentally both confirm each other,” he concluded.