JAKARTA (UCAN): Indonesia’s Supreme Court came out with a circular on July 17 requesting courts not to grant a nod to interfaith marriages in contradiction to its 1986 ruling making interfaith marriages legal in the country.
The new circular came after Muslim groups protested against several court decisions that recently granted a nod to marriages between Muslim and Christian couples.
In the circular, Muhammad Syarifuddin, chairperson of the Supreme Court, emphasised the need to establish guidelines to “provide certainty and unity in the application of law in adjudicating applications for the registration of marriages between people of different religions and beliefs.”
The Supreme Court stressed that “a valid marriage is a marriage that is carried out according to the laws of each religion and belief” in accordance with the 1974 Marriage Law.
The circular contradicts a 1986 Supreme Court ruling that states interfaith marriages are legal in Indonesia by way of a court order which later became the jurisprudence for judges in deciding similar cases.
The order was counted on by religious institutions, including the Catholic Church, to conduct interfaith marriage ceremonies.
Ahmad Nurcholish, a Muslim cleric and programme director for the Indonesia Conference on Religion and Peace, said the circular was “an extraordinary setback for the Supreme Court” because it contradicted the 1986 ruling, which actually provided a way out for interfaith couples.
…the circular was ‘an extraordinary setback for the Supreme Court’ because it contradicted the 1986 ruling, which actually provided a way out for interfaith couples
“I am disappointed and surprised,” said Nurcholish, who is also a counsellor for interfaith couples. He claims to have helped 1,655 couples marry since 2005.
With the circular, it is possible that interfaith couples will marry abroad only to re-register later in Indonesia. “They may also be forced to choose a religion, even if temporarily, just to have their marriage legalised,” he said.
Father Yohanes Aristanto Heri Setiawan of the Missionaries of the Holy Family, executive secretary of the Indonesian Bishops’ Conference Family Commission, said that he was not ready to comment on this circular.
“We are still discussing the response to the circular letter,” said on July 20.
Bonar Tigos Naipospos, vice chairperson of Setara Institute for Democracy and Peace, an advocacy organisation for religious freedom, said the circular was “a setback and closed room for the advancement of the judiciary in guaranteeing the rights of citizens from diverse backgrounds.”
Naipospos emphasised that the state’s obligation to a citizen’s marriage should “respect and protect the choices of each citizen.”
He said, “The state’s obligation is only to record the marriages of these citizens and provide justice in related administrative services.”
He also urged the Supreme Court to revoke the circular and asked the House of Representatives, the national parliament, and the government to revise the 1974 Marriage Law.
“The state must establish a marriage law that is in accordance with Pancasila [five principles, the country’s philosophy of one God, nationalism, humanitarianism, democracy and social justice] and Indonesia’s diversity,” he said.
Cholil Nafis from the Indonesian Ulema Council, stated that he supported the circular, which he called “a form of respect for the Supreme Court for the teachings of religions in Indonesia.”
