SAMAWA : Jurnal Hukum Keluarga Islam

Interfaith Marriage in Indonesia After Supreme Court Circular (SEMA) No. 2 of 2023: A Juridical-Normative Analysis

Chuzaimatus Saadah, Az-Zahra Aulya Salsabila, Fatwa Syibromalisi — Thu, 30 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The issuance of Supreme Court Circular Letter (SEMA) No. 2 of 2023 is a significant development regarding interfaith marriages in Indonesia. This circular letter changes judicial practice by prohibiting courts from granting applications for interfaith marriages. This study aims to analyse the position and power of SEMA as a judicial policy instrument, as well as its impact on judicial independence. A jurisdictional-normative approach is employed, incorporating legislative, conceptual and case-based methods. The findings suggest that SEMA No. 2 of 2023 does not introduce a new legal norm, but rather reaffirms the Marriage Law, with the intention of standardising judicial practices. SEMA implies a shift in the role of judges from discovering law to implementing judicial policy that emphasises uniformity. However, for effective implementation, the norms must be harmonised with the Marriage Law and the Population Administration Law.

Legal harmonization of marriage guardian appointments for children from unregistered marriages: a shafi'i perspective

Hasani, Madina, Mila Dwi Juniarty, M. Chabib Fazal Jinan, Naufal Rifqi Nasution — Thu, 30 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The appointment of marriage guardians for children born from unregistered marriages remains a legal issue due to differences between the Shafi'i School and Indonesian positive law. The Shafi'i School recognizes the biological father as the lawful marriage guardian if the marriage fulfills Islamic legal requirements, whereas Indonesian law requires marriage registration to establish the legal relationship between father and child. This study analyzes the legal considerations applied by the Mojosari Office of Religious Affairs (KUA) in appointing marriage guardians from the Shafi'i perspective. A qualitative case study was conducted using observation, interviews, documentation, and literature review, with data analyzed through qualitative and normative approaches. The findings show that the KUA appoints a wali hakim when the parents' marriage cannot be legally verified, while a wali nasab is recognized only when supported by documentary evidence or a court-issued itsbat nikah. The study demonstrates the harmonization of Islamic jurisprudence and Indonesian positive law in marriage guardian appointments, contributing to greater legal certainty and improved marriage administration.

Reconstructing family mediation through local wisdom: the tuha peut practice from an islamic legal perspective

Thu, 30 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This study examines the implementation of Tuha Peut in resolving domestic conflicts in Langsa City by analysing its institutional role, implementation challenges, and conceptual reconstruction within the framework of customary law, Islamic family law, and state law. Employing an empirical legal research approach with qualitative methods, data were collected through interviews with Tuha Peut members, keuchik, religious leaders, and families involved in domestic disputes, complemented by an analysis of Aceh qanun, national legislation, and relevant scholarly literature. The findings demonstrate that Tuha Peut functions effectively as a community-based mediator by promoting deliberation, reconciliation, and family preservation before disputes proceed to formal judicial mechanisms. Nevertheless, its effectiveness remains constrained by limited institutional authority, the absence of standardized mediation procedures, inadequate mediator capacity, potential gender bias, and challenges in addressing complex cases such as domestic violence. Unlike previous studies that primarily describe the customary functions of Tuha Peut, this research proposes a Hybrid Family Dispute Resolution Model integrating the social legitimacy of customary institutions, the normative principles of Islamic family law, and the juridical legitimacy of state law. This model contributes to the development of community-based family dispute resolution that strengthens institutional capacity while ensuring legal certainty, protection of vulnerable parties, and sustainable social harmony.

Post-marital kafā’ah: reconstructing marital equality theory through maqāṣid al-sharī‘ah for redefining divorce legitimacy

Zaenal Arifin, Adelia Idris, Muhammad Mahbubi Ali — Thu, 30 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The concept of kafā'ah in Islamic law has traditionally been confined to premarital compatibility between prospective spouses, while the legality of divorce has generally been assessed through formal juridical grounds without adequately considering the continuity of substantive marital equality. This study aims to reconstruct kafā'ah into a Post-Marital Kafā'ah Theory grounded in Maqāṣid al-Sharī'ah as a framework for redefining divorce legality in Islamic family law. Using a normative-conceptual legal research design with statutory, conceptual, comparative, and Islamic legal philosophy approaches, the study argues that kafā'ah should function as a continuous principle of marital compatibility encompassing spiritual, moral, psychological, intellectual, social, and economic dimensions, together with the reciprocal fulfillment of spouses' rights and obligations. Persistent deterioration of these dimensions, resulting in the loss of maṣlaḥah and the failure to achieve the objectives of Maqāṣid al-Sharī'ah, may therefore constitute substantive grounds for divorce. The study's novelty lies in proposing the Post-Marital Kafā'ah Theory, which integrates kafā'ah, Maqāṣid al-Sharī'ah, and divorce law into a Maqāṣid-oriented paradigm for a more adaptive, progressive, and welfare-oriented Islamic family law.