Women stall review of marriage law
Women stall review of marriage law
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
What could be more ironic than being opposed by fellow women when
one intends to defend women's rights in matrimony?
"May God lead her to the right path," scholar Nabilah Lubis
said referring to Siti Musdah Mulia, the leader of the Ministry
of Religious Affairs' committee on gender mainstreaming, which
produced a white paper on the revision of the Islamic Law Code,
as if Musdah had been what Muslims refer to as "misled".
Nabilah's comment was greeted by a chorus of Amens from the
predominantly female audience during a discussion on marriage law
organized by the country's largest Islamic organization,
Nahdlatul Ulama.
Late last year, Musdah and her committee published a white
paper for a new Islamic law code, which sparked acrimonious
debate over such issues as allowing interfaith marriages,
prohibiting polygamy and promoting gender equality.
The forum, however, raised fundamental questions as to whether
prevailing interpretations of Islamic law are open to debate.
The white paper, which deals also with inheritance rights for non-
Muslim children and a woman's right to divorce, was accused of
being out of line with the Koran.
Minister of Religious Affairs M. Maftuh Basyuni shelved the
controversial draft on Feb. 14 for fear it might generate
conflict among Muslims.
The majority of both the speakers and members of the audience
attending the seminar insisted that there were some things in
Islamic law that could not be questioned as they were clearly
stated in the Koran.
"Some of the fiqh (generally accepted/official interpretations
of the Koran and Sunnah) stated expressly in the Koran or Sunnah
must be accepted as they are and cannot be changed under any
circumstances," Nabilah said.
She stressed that the prohibition on interfaith marriage and
the permitting of polygamy were clearly stated in the Koran, and
to suggest otherwise was contrary to Islamic law.
Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) research and development unit head
Huzaemah Tahido Yanggo supported Nabilah's comments and added
that the white paper had the potential to mislead the public at
large and should have not been published without prior
consultation with more experienced ulema.
Despite the harsh criticism of the draft, a more enlightened
and objective perspective was voiced by a male member of the
audience, who said that Islamic law should also be interpreted
equitably, rather than just literally.
This would mean the need for a contextual, not literal,
interpretation of Islamic law.
The committee started out on its work with the objective of
responding to various social phenomena, such as domestic violence
-- which was reported by the National Commission on Violence
Against Women to have increased from 7,787 reported cases in 2003
to 14,020 cases in 2004 -- and child trafficking.
Musdah responded to both the criticism and support by
underlining that Islam is not a religion that is black and white.
There were also gray areas. "Even the Imams -- religious leaders
-- whose teachings we use now -- admitted that their views were
not the absolute truth.
"Why should we, people living 14 centuries later, say that
their teachings are absolute and cannot be interpreted
contextually," she asked.
She admitted that the draft was still only at the proposal
stage and had not yet been formalized as a bill, and was thus
open to amendment following discourse and discussion.
"Understanding religious teachings should be done critically
and rationally," she said. "Differences in viewpoints should not
be a problem."
However, the day's discussion ended by concluding that the
reform-minded white paper had indeed confused the public, and
that a larger and more comprehensive forum involving ulemas was
required before any formal decision could be made.
When all was said and one, the only discourse that took place
in reality during the forum revolved around who is eligible to
question Islamic law. (003)