Sat, 05 Jan 2002

'Syariah' to be introduced gradually in Aceh

Ibnu Mat Noor, The Jakarta Post, Banda Aceh

The implementation of Islamic law or Syariah in Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam province will not rock the country's existing legal system, according to observers.

Dahlan, the dean of the school of law at Syah Kuala University in Banda Aceh said on Friday that the status of legal institutions and their daily activities would not change.

"If there are any changes in the future, they will take place after the bylaws concerned with the implementation of syariah are issued," Dahlan told The Jakarta Post.

In a separate interview a senior judge at the religious court in Banda Aceh, Abdullah Nafi, said that the religious court would still use existing laws and regulations. "In the future there may be more authority (for the religious court) on general civil cases.

"The bylaws have not been formulated yet, so how can we change the systems?" Nafi said.

According to Dahlan, formulating bylaws will take time. "Therefore the implementation of syariah will be gradual, parallel with the development of the Acehnese people, said Dahlan. "It would be impossible for the people to adapt the syariah drastically."

Both Dahlan and Nafi said that people had an inaccurate perception of syariah and this needed clarification.

Dahlan said that he had read the drafts of the bylaws which had been submitted by the governor to the provincial legislative council. "None of the bylaws refer to Islamic laws adopted by certain countries. There will be no cutting off of someone's hand found guilty of stealing, no stoning to death, nor whipping for those who commit adultery. We won't go that far. All the drafts of the bylaws are related to civil and societal affairs."

A seminar on syariah held at Syah Kuala University in December discussed a ruling on (Muslim) women's attire. "There were pros and cons in the seminar whether to physically punish women who don't wear jilbab (head scarf). Such articles should not be part of the bylaws. In my opinion there must not be such punishment."

"If prosperity is achieved, and the leaders manage the country in an honest and wise manner, nobody will go to prison. This is the essence of Islamic law," said Dahlan.

When Abdurrahman Wahid was in office the Acehnese ulema asked for the implementation of syariah. It was hoped that it would provide an alternative way to settle the prolonged conflict between pro-independence groups, including the Free Aceh Movement (GAM).

The Special Autonomy Law, which includes provisions for the introduction of syariah was implemented in Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam on Jan. 1, 2002. However, the Acehnese continue to be pessimistic.

There was no sound of applause when the implementation of the Special Autonomy Law was observed on New Year's Eve at Governor Abdullah Puteh's residence.

Life has not changed in the capital of the restive province. There has been no significant move to embrace syariah except the Arabic characters on the government offices' boards.

Killings continue. Five bodies were found on Tuesday and Wednesday. One corpse found in the village of Iboh Kutabaro was headless.

Only one of the five was identified. Military spokesman Maj. Ertoto confirmed the finding of the dead body -- with gunshot wounds -- in Gle Jai village on Tuesday, saying that the deceased was a member of Free Aceh Movement (GAM).