Legal Protection for Wives in Unregistered Polygamous Marriages: An Analysis of Islamic Law in Indonesia
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.31941/pj.v24i2.6589Keywords:
Gender equity, Legal reform, Maqashid sharia, Marriage, Unregistered polygamyAbstract
Indonesia’s Marriage Law No. 16/2019 mandates marriage registration, yet cultural-religious norms perpetuate nikah sirri (unregistered marriages), particularly in polygamy, denying wives spousal rights. While Islamic law validates such unions via rukun and syarat, statutory exclusion strips wives of inheritance, alimony, and child legitimacy, violating maqashid sharia principles like hifz al-nasl (lineage) and hifz al-mal (property). Prior studies identify this dissonance but lack systemic reforms bridging Islamic jurisprudence and comparative law. This research addresses this gap by analyzing wives' legal status in unregistered polygamy under Islamic and Indonesian law, designing reforms reconciling religious validity with enforceable safeguards. Using normative legal research, it combines doctrinal analysis of Islamic texts/statutes with qualitative analysis of Religious Court rulings. Findings reveal 78% of nikah sirri wives face economic disenfranchisement, and 89% lack alimony recourse due to burdensome retroactive marriage validation. Comparatively, Malaysia’s and Morocco’s laws slashed polygamy rates (95%, 99.7%) via judicial oversight absent in Indonesia. Legal pluralism enables patriarchal qiwamah interpretations: 67% of Java’s polygamy permits bypass spousal consent; 72% of rural nikah sirri involve child brides. Consequently, 81% of unregistered wives suffer disinheritance; 54% of children endure stigma. The study innovates by proposing a hybrid reform model integrating maqashid sharia with feminist jurisprudence, advocating specialized courts, simpler isbat nikah, and criminalizing unregistered solemnization. Aligning with Moroccan/Malaysian models could cut nikah sirri by 40%, upholding hifz al-ird (dignity) and constitutional equity, offering a blueprint for Muslim-majority nations
Downloads
References
Addzaky, Khoirul Umam, and Muhammad Asy'ari. "Deconstruction of Hifdzun Nasl in Maqasid Syari'ah: Analysis of the Childfree Phenomenon from the Perspective of Islamic Family Law." IN RIGHT: Jurnal Agama dan Hak Azazi Manusia 14.1 (2025): 111-133.
Afary, Janet, and Roger Friedland. "The practice of informal marriages in the Muslim world: a comparative portrait." British Journal of Middle Eastern Studies 51.5 (2024): 1068-1090.
Akbar, Hikmal, and M. Nabil Syauqi. "The Dynamics of Family Life in Polygamous Practices: An Islamic Legal Perspective on Contemporary Indonesian Society." El-Aqwal: Journal of Sharia and Comparative Law (2025): 35-50.
Amin, Ibnu, Salma, Muchlis Bahar, Lendrawati. "Stratification of Al-Maqashid Al-Khamsah (Preserving Religion, Soul, Reason, Heredity and Property) and Its Application in al-Dharuriyah, al-Hajiyah, al-Tahsiniyah, and Mukammilat." AJIS: Academic Journal of Islamic Studies 9.1 (2024).
Andrizal, Andrizal, Imron Rosidi, and Aslati Aslati. "Constitutional Rights of Children from Unregistered Marriages: A Juridical Analysis of Islamic Family Law and Residency Administration Law in Indonesia in Maqashid Sharia Perspective." Pena Justisia: Media Komunikasi dan Kajian Hukum 23.3 (2024): 2576-2598.
Anggraeni, Rr Dewi. "Islamic law and customary law in contemporary legal pluralism in Indonesia: Tension and constraints." Ahkam: Jurnal Ilmu Syariah 23.1 (2023): 25-48.
Anggriani, Jum. "Analysis of the Ranau Community's Traditional Inheritance System from an Islamic View." Pena Justisia: Media Komunikasi dan Kajian Hukum 23.3 (2024): 683-695.
Aspinall, Edward, Sally White, and Amalinda Savirani. "Women’s Political Representation in Indonesia: Who Wins and How?" Journal of Current Southeast Asian Affairs 40.1 (2021): 3-27.
Auda, Jasser. "Maqasid as a Basis for an Integrated Framework and Methodology." Journal of Contemporary Maqasid Studies 4.1 (2025): 1-20.
Badan Pusat Statistik (BPS) & UNICEF. (2022). Marriage and education in rural Indonesia: A statistical review. https://www.bps.go.id/publication
Bavelaar, R. (2023). Contracting Coptic-Muslim Marriage in Egypt: Class, Gender, and Clerical Mediation in the Administrative Management of Religious “Crossings”. muslim marriage and non-marriage, 307.
Baysal, Başak, and Gizem Arslan. "The Making of the Turkish Civil Code." The Making of the Civil Codes: A Twenty-First Century Perspective. Singapore: Springer Nature Singapore, 2022. 51-63.
Desimaliati, Desimaliati. "Legality of registration for international religious marriage based on court decisions according to law and regulations in indonesia." Cepalo 6.2 (2022): 69-82.
Dutta, Sagnik. "Divorce, kinship, and errant wives: Islamic feminism in India, and the everyday life of divorce and maintenance." Ethnicities 21.3 (2021): 454-476.
El Demery, Ahmed Mohamed. "Protecting Women and Children under Egyptian Family Law: A Journey of Increasing Rights." Human Flourishing: The End of Law. Brill Nijhoff, 2023. 631-674.
Faizal, Liky, Abd. Qohar, Ali Abdul Wakhid, Is Susanto. "Age Limit for Marriage in Indonesia from The Perspective of Maqashid Sharia." Analisis: Jurnal Studi Keislaman 22.2 (2022): 297-318.
Febrianty, Yenny, Sulastri Sulastri, and Zulfiani Zulfiani. "Existence of Registered/Unregistered Marriage Clauses in Family Cards from a Family Law Perspective." Pena Justisia: Media Komunikasi dan Kajian Hukum 22.3 (2023): 598-611.
Hariri, Achmad, Satria Unggul Wicaksana, and Samsul Arifin. "A Critical Study of Legal Positivism As a Legal System in a Pluralist Country." KnE Social Sciences (2022): 563-572.
Hasanah, Neneng. "Maqashid Syariah Imam Al-Ghazali." Panorama Maqashid Syariah 26 (2021).
Hassan, Ahmad, Muhammad Ahmad Qadri, and Muhammad Saleem. "The Muslim Family Law Ordinance 1961: Pioneer of Women Empowerment in Pakistan." Journal of the Research Society of Pakistan 58.1 (2021): 210.
Hendy, Rana. "The State of Marriage in Egypt." The Handbook of Marriage in the Arab World. Singapore: Springer Nature Singapore, 2024. 263-305.
Jauhari, Moh. "Legal instruments for the fulfillment of the rights of women and children post-divorce in the Indonesian legal system." Journal of Namibian Studies 34 (2023): 3494-3512.Mir-Hosseini, Z., Al-Sharmani, M., Rumminger, J., & Marsso, S. (2022). Justice and Beauty in Muslim Marriage: Towards Egalitarian Ethics and Laws. Simon and Schuster.
Khatun, Murshida, and Amirul Islam. "Ancient Civilizations and Marriage: A Comparative Study of Customs, Traditions, and Rituals in Sumerian, Babylonian, Persian, Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Chinese, European, African and American Cultures." International Journal of Social Sciences & Humanities (IJSSH) 8.2 (2023): 27-53.
Komnas Perempuan. (2021). Annual report on violence against women in unregistered marriages. National Commission on Violence Against Women.
Kurnia, Lilawati, and Nurbaity. "Online Halal Dating: AyoPoligami and the Contestations of Polygamy as the “New Normal” in Indonesia." Gender, Islam and Sexuality in Contemporary Indonesia. Singapore: Springer Nature Singapore, 2024. 105-121.
Lowder, J. Bryan. "Matching Relationship Law to Reality." More Than Marriage: Forming Families After Marriage Equality (2023): 108.
M. Quraish Shihab, M Quraish Shihab Menjawab 101 Soal Perempuan Yang Patut Anda Ketahui [M Quraish Shihab Answers 101 Women's Questions That You Should Know], Tangerang Selatan: Penerbit Lentera Hati. 2010
Mahkamah Agung. (2022). Annual report on marriage disputes. Indonesian Supreme Court.
Marita, Marita, and Yustisia Pratiwi Pramesti. "Feminist Legal Theory as a Review of Legal Philosophy: Its Relation with Gender Equality in Indonesia." Journal of Transcendental Law 5.2 (2023): 82-90.
Md Salleh, Anis Shuhaiza, Najah Inani Abdul Jalil, Nor Ashikin Md Nasir, Syahmi Awang "islamic family law on polygamous marriage in malaysia: between roses and thorns." Jurnal Pembangunan Sosial 27 (2024): 25-49.
Mohd, Azizah, Badruddin Hj Ibrahim, and Siti Zainab Abd Rashid. "An Overview of Selected Maslahah Based Fatwas Relating to Family Law Issues in Malaysia." IIUMLJ 29 (2021): 183.
Mukaddam, Fatima. "Compromising Legislation: Upholding the Patriarchy." Muslim Women between Community and Individual Rights: Legal Pluralism and Marriage in South Africa. Cham: Springer Nature Switzerland, 2024. 81-99.
Mumtaz Jr, Habib, Nurrohman Syarif, and Usep Saepullah. "Analisa Penyelesaian Sengketa Hak Asuh Anak Pasca Perceraian Melalui Litigasi [Analysis of Child Custody Dispute Resolution After Divorce Through Litigation]." Jurnal Locus Penelitian dan Pengabdian 2.7 (2023): 715-726.
Mutaqin, Zezen Zaenal, and Yayan Sopyan. "Forced Marriage and Sex Trafficking under the Guise of Nikah Siri in Indonesia." Studia Islamika 31.2 (2024).
Muyassar, Ya’Rakha, and Rahmad Satria. "The Reconstruction of Islamic Civil Law within the Framework of Fiqh Siyasah: Toward Food Sovereignty in Indonesia’s Vision 2045." Arus Jurnal Sosial dan Humaniora 5.1 (2025): 446-451.
Nasution, Liantha Adam, Watni Mapaung, and Arifuddin Muda Harahap. "An Analysis of Maqasid al-Shariah on Alternatives to the Death Penalty in Law No. 1 of 2023 Concerning the Criminal Code." Pena Justisia: Media Komunikasi dan Kajian Hukum 23.2 (2024): 617-628.
Nisa, Martina Purna. "Critical review of domestic violence as reason for divorce (comparison of divorce laws in Indonesia, Malaysia and the Maldives)." AL-IHKAM: Jurnal Hukum & Pranata Sosial 16.1 (2021): 1-23.
Prameswari, Zendy Wulan Ayu Widhi, Erni Agustin, and Stefania Arshanty Felicia. "A Review of Indonesian Nationality Law: Progress Toward the Achievement of SDGs For Every Child." JSEAHR 7 (2023): 45.
Rose, Sophie, and Elisabeth Heijmans. "From impropriety to betrayal: policing non-marital sex in the early modern Dutch empire." Journal of Social History 55.2 (2021): 315-344.
Rosidi, Mohd Harifadilah, Ahmad Wifaq Bin Mokhtar, and M. N. A. Majid. "The Role of Maqasid al-Shari’ah as a Fundamental Ethics in Social Media Use." International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences 12.4 (2022): 1285-1301.
Saputera, Abdur Rahman Adi. "The Controversy of Siyahi Marriage: A Maqasid Shariah Perspective and Its Relevance in Indonesia." At-Tafkir 17.1 (2024): 77-93.
Siddiqui, Sohaira. "Status of Muslim women in modern family and personal law." The Oxford Handbook of Islam and Women (2023): 181.
Wahyudani, Zulham, Jefry Tarantang, Nurrohman, Tatang Astarudin. (2023). Family Law Reform in Morocco. Al-Qadha: Jurnal Hukum Islam dan Perundang-Undangan, 10(1), 50-64.
Yilmaz, Ihsan. Sharia as informal law: lived experiences of young Muslims in Western societies. Taylor & Francis, 2024.
Yuhelson (2023). Legal review of adopted children's inheritance rights from the perspective of civil law in indonesia. Pena Justisia, 22(1), 1-12.
Yulianah, Yuyun, Taufiq Taufiq, and Cucu Solihah. "Apostasy As a Reason For the Dissolution of Marriage." Pena Justisia: Media Komunikasi dan Kajian Hukum 23.3 (2024): 700-715.
Zulaiha, Eni, and Ayi Zaenal Mutaqin. "The problems of the marriage age changing in Indonesia in the perspectives of muslim jurists and gender equality." Hanifiya: Jurnal Studi Agama-Agama 4.2 (2021): 99-108.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Asrat Nita Wati, Pagar Pagar, Hasan Matsum
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
