The Politics of Islamic Criminal Law in Indonesia(A Critical Analysis)

Abstract

Indonesia is well known as the country where Muslims are the majority. However, never has Islamic law
become the priority especially after the Indonesian independence. Therefore, the uproar calls for the
application of Islamic are law still echoing until today. Though the state has answered those calls and
successfully applied Islamic law as part of the national legislation as seen, for example, in marriage law,
Islamic banking law, law on hajj etc, it still fails to acknowledge the Islamic penal law to some extent.
The paper would elaborate the problem of the politics of Islamic penal law in Indonesia. By analyzing the
politics of Islamic penal law critically, this paper hopes to expose the problem behind the phenomenon.
For this purpose, Islamic methodology through “maqashid syari’ah” (purposes of Islamic syariah) is
needed in order to see how Islamic law should work in the modern era and contextually stand side-by-side
with the local need.