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December 12, 2002

A woman who has been found shot dead in Indonesia's Aceh province is the first 
confirmed victim of violence since the government's peace accord with 
separatists, residents said.

The corpse, identified as that of a 30 year-old woman named Darlina, was found 
abandoned on a road in the Lhok Aman area of South Aceh yesterday.

The woman died from massive bullet wounds to her chest and neck, a local 
medical worker said.

"The discovery of the corpse shocked residents because it took place following 
the signing of the peace pact," said a local resident.

Residents said they heard several gunshots in the area on Tuesday. 

Authorities are investigating the incident. There was no information on the 
woman's killers.

The government and the Free Aceh Movement signed a deal on Monday in Geneva to 
end the 26-year separatist war. 
-- Agence France-Presse
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Tempo Magazine
No. 14/III/December 10 - 16, 2002 
Cover Story 
Strict—Only on Paper 
-- A number of areas are busily trumpeting the application of Islamic Syariah 
law. But in practice this may not be as easy as has been imagined. Just what 
are the constraints? 

THE sun bore down on bare heads. The figures of two men slipped quietly into a 
shop via the back door. At first glance there was nothing special about this 
building on the corner of Jalan Panglima Polim, Banda Aceh. The same could be 
said about their reappearance. "As usual, a special order," quipped one of 
them. What were they carrying? Marijuana? Nothing so exotic. The five packages 
in their hands were simply connected with the business of the stomach: rice and 
side dishes. 

In the so-called Verandah of Mecca, carrying a package of rice in broad 
daylight when most people are restraining their hunger and thirst could well 
become a problem. That is why this transaction must be made carefully. The rice 
stall vendor too did not want to rashly serve just anyone, especially someone 
he didn't know. 

That is how things have been in Aceh from way back. For people there, the 
fasting month of Ramadan is extremely sacred. It is not impossible that in this 
holy month it could be virtually assured that no one would be found contentedly 
drawing on a cigarette or eating in public. So, places far from the public eye 
then become targets for those who are not fasting; where they can satisfy their 
desires. 

That is not all. Throughout Ramadan, the owners of food stalls, shops, private 
sector offices, salons, and hotels are asked to create a calm atmosphere. Food 
stalls may only open at 4pm. Owners of salons specifically for women are 
prohibited from accepting male customers. And vice versa. No mixing is allowed. 

Would it be the end of the world if someone did actually violate this? Would 
the sinner be sentenced to a lashing? It should be that way. If Islamic Syariah 
were applied with all its consequences, customarily those people found to be 
eating and drinking to their heart's content in public in the fasting month 
would assuredly be lashed with a special whip that was ready to bruise their 
backs and waists. But in Aceh, approaching the end of Ramadan, such punishment 
has never actually happened. 

That is certainly rather odd, because this area already applied Islamic law or 
Islamic Syariah from December two years ago. Aceh can be said to be the pioneer 
for other areas that later joined in applying the same law. The application of 
this special law was decided on in the term of President Abdurrahman Wahid, 
under Law No. 44/1999 on Special Treatment for Aceh. The central government 
offered a very special present to prevent the populace of Aceh from separating 
from the Republic of Indonesia. 

They gave many "sweeteners". The people of Aceh were free to regulate 
themselves in the fields of tradition, education, and religion. In July last 
year, the Law on Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam was ratified in the House of 
Representatives (DPR). The establishment of justice based on Islamic Syariah 
was regulated under this law. 

The local government then fortified this with five local regulations. The 
contents of these include the prohibition of alcoholic drinks, application of 
Islamic Syariah in the field of education, and implementation of traditional 
life. For those who violate this, the punishment is frightening: put them in a 
cell for three months at most or hit them with a fine of Rp2 million. Who 
oversees this? The Islamic Syariah Service. 

But don't hope that such penalties will immediately take effect. The only 
immediate result of the application of Syariah is in the notice boards of names 
of shops and offices, which are now complete with Arabic-Malay writing. It can 
also be seen in the appearance of many women who are now covered up with jilbab 
headgear when they are outside their homes. The matter of punishment for those 
Muslims who do not follow their teachings is just what was mentioned earlier, 
because there is no supervision, sentences are also not applied. 

Upholding Syariah law has ultimately not actually happened throughout Aceh. 
This is a result of a lack of fixed legal regulations on its realization. It is 
not clear what punishment will be given to Muslims who eat in public during the 
fasting month. "Indeed, they say they will be whipped, but the proof is that 
this is still not working," said Marwan, one of the organizers of mosque youths 
in Banda Aceh. 

How could it be like this? Top officials in the province can only draw a deep 
breath. The excuses proffered sound very clichéd: everything needs to be done 
in stages. "Now we are still at the stage of publicizing it to the public and 
familiarizing them with it. Even the prophet needed more than 10 years to make 
people aware of what he was saying," said Azwar Abu Bakar, Deputy Governor of 
Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam. 

But the rules of the game continue to be discussed. The Chair of the 
Consultative Assembly of Muslim Clerics in Aceh, Teungku Muslim Ibrahim, says 
the local regulations or qanun on Islamic Syariah are actually ready to go into 
effect. But, he says, the regulations cannot be applied this year because the 
legal apparatus to do so is still incomplete, including the question of the 
Syariah Court. This institution will comprise a group of clerics who will 
monitor all violations. "They will issue a warning and then report this to the 
Syariah Police if there are any violations," he said. 

The Syariah Court, Syariah Police, and much of this legal apparatus imbued with 
religion cannot be activated without the approval of the central government. 
Some time ago, the Minister of Justice & Human Rights, Yusril Ihza Mahendra, 
declared that the Syariah Court would be ready last August. Later, that was 
delayed to day 17 of Ramadan, but once again that plan has not taken 
shape. "This is because there are several matters that we believe have been 
settled, but it turns out Jakarta has not agreed to," said Teungku Muslim. 

It is this delay that has a triggered real anger. Locals claim that two years 
is more than enough time to prepare the necessary legal apparatus. "We 
shouldn't still be tied up in publicizing all this. Weren't we the ones that 
asked for it? So, how come now we get the impression we are not supposed to be 
ready?" said Ferdi Sijabat, an organizer of the Muslim University Students 
Movement, Aceh branch. Without any legal apparatus, the application of Islamic 
Syariah too will be stalled. "It is like a toothless tiger," he said. 

The lack of any bite in upholding Syariah has not only occurred in Aceh. A 
number of areas that dreamed of having a setup like the Verandah of Mecca have 
also encountered a variety of obstacles: in the Pamekasan Regency, Madura, for 
instance. Although Syariah was applied there a month ago, the general public 
there has, to all intents and purposes, ignored it. The local government, its 
esteemed decision makers, too, do not have the power to do much about it. Local 
regulations made as a shield have, it turns out, just become a form of empty 
talk under the umbrella of the national law already in effect. Don't imagine 
practices such as those in Iran, for instance. At almost every corner there 
Syariah Police are standing by to snare evildoers. 

It cannot be denied that the drive leading to the appearance of euphoria for 
Islamic Syariah is indeed inseparable from what happened at the 2002 Annual 
Session of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR). At that time, several 
parties hoped that the Jakarta Charter would be included in Article 29 clause 1 
of the 1945 Constitution. The grounds were very simple. With the inclusion of 
the seven magic words, ie, "with the obligation to carry out Islamic Syariah 
for its followers," they hoped that Islamic law could be applied in this 
country. 

That attempt failed. But, apparently, the urging from those on the ground was 
very strong. In certain areas, large groups appeared seeking the implementation 
of Syariah. South Sulawesi was the most determined. The Islamic Syariah 
Establishment Committee appeared, that was the motor driving the establishment 
of Islamic law there. They set up the Laskar Jundullah, whose leader, Agus 
Dwikarna, is now confined in a jail in the Philippines because he was accused 
of carrying explosives in his suitcase. 

All this urging has apparently had some result, though, not only in South 
Sulawesi, but has also mushroomed in several areas. Hence, Islamic Syariah has 
appeared in Pamekasan, Madura, and also in the South Sulawesi regencies of 
Maros, Sinjai, and Gowa. In West Java, meanwhile, people busily making Syariah 
stamps have set up in Cianjur, Indramayu, and Garut. The legal basis used is 
local regulations, which are now being discussed in each local legislative 
council and then ratified by their regents. 

But don't imagine the Syariah points are all uniform. There are some that 
are "light" such as in Indramayu: every Friday there citizens and local 
government employees are required to wear Muslim-style high collar shirts and 
women to wear traditional garb. In several government offices, they are obliged 
to recite the Qu'ran for half an hour before work. But there are also those 
that are "heavy" such as in Gowa and Jeneponto, South Sulawesi. They apply the 
law of amputation of hands (qishas) for those who commit crimes there. 

What happens in Garut is different again. There, Syariah is more directed at 
maximizing the strength of the local economy. "This sector can be a trigger. 
After we calculated it all out, it could be billions—almost equal to the local 
source income," said Mahyar Suara, deputy speaker of the Garut legislative 
council. What he meant was that in this regency famous for its dodol sweetmeats 
local regulations are being discussed on the collection of zakat alms, infak 
donations, and sedekah charitable offerings. These will give rise to local 
regulations based on Islamic Syariah. "After this Idul Fitri these new local 
regulations will be in place," he said. 

Quite a number of clerics object to all this. Religious figure and leader of 
the Luhur Al-Wasilah school of Islamic studies, in Cipanas, Garut, who also 
doubles as Rois Syuriah for Nahdlatul Ulama Garut Branch, K.H. Thonthowi 
Musaddad M.A., is one who does not agree with the application of Islamic 
Syariah. His argument is simple. If the public is not yet ready, Syariah should 
not be forced on them willy-nilly. "God forbids forcing other people," he said. 
He smells a whiff that this whole Syariah issue is being used by political 
parties as something to trade on in the next election campaign. 

That is the difficulty if the state and government get involved in 
managing "God's law". Especially so if it has political overtones. 
-- Irfan Budiman, Bobby Gunawan (Garut), Yuswardi Suud (Banda Aceh) 
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