Sundanese couple wins lawsuit over marriage

JAKARTA (JP): A couple, who married in a traditional Sundanese ceremony last year, won their case yesterday against the East Jakarta civil registry office which had refused to recognize their marriage.

The Jakarta State Administrative Court ordered the civil registry office to annul the Directorate General of Common Administration and Regional Autonomy's letter rejecting the couple's request for a marriage license. The letter was issued Dec. 30 last year.

A. Gumirat Barna Alam and Susilawati married on Oct. 1 last year in a traditional West Java ceremony. The two were not members of any of the five religions recognized by the state. They called themselves followers of the "faith toward God," a non-denominational faith.

They registered their marriage two days before it was annulled.

Presiding judge Marina Sidabutar said the civil registry office had broken the law.

"Only a court has the right to annul a registration of marriage," she said.

Marina said that marriages could be recognized if they were based on customary laws.

She said that a marriage between adherents of "faith toward God" was not recognized, but marriage according to customary laws was recognized.

"The marriage of Gumirat and Susilawati is legal according to customary law, though it is not based on government laws, so their marriage has complied with registration conditions," Marina said.

In a defense statement, lawyers for the civil registry office said that their client had refused to register the plaintiffs' marriage because it was not in accordance with the 1974 Marriage Law.

Article 2 of the law stipulates that a "marriage is legal if it is carried out according to the laws of the couple's religion and faith".

"Sundanese (marriage) custom is not a religion but a culture," the statement said.

Judge Marina said the clause "according to the laws of the couple's religion and faith" meant that religions and faiths were two different, non-interchangeable terms.

Last September, a couple of Chinese descent, Budi Wijaya and Lanny Guito, who had married in a Confucianist ceremony in Surabaya, East Java, lost their case against a local civil registry office which had refused to recognize their marriage.

The Surabaya State Administrative Court ruled that the civil registry office was abiding by government regulations when it did not recognize the marriage because Confucianism was not one of the country's five recognized religions. (05)