Legitimacy of Aceh’s qanun jinayat in Indonesia’s legal system: Prospects for regional adoption

Authors

  • Zaky Anggara UIN Sunan Gunung Djati Bandung, Indonesia
  • Sopi Laeli Fitri Rahmawati UIN Sunan Gunung Djati Bandung, Indonesia
  • Sita Jahrotun Nisa UIN Sunan Gunung Djati Bandung, Indonesia
  • Deden Najmudin UIN Sunan Gunung Djati Bandung, Indonesia

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.35719/aladalah.v28i1.626
legal pluralism, Islamic criminal law, Qanun Jinayat Aceh, Indonesia’s legal system, regional adoption

This article examines the constitutional validity of Aceh’s Qanun Jinayat within Indonesia’s plural legal order and assesses its feasibility as a reference point for criminal-law development beyond Aceh. Drawing on normative legal research informed by socio-legal insights, the study integrates constitutional analysis with Third World Approaches to International Law (TWAIL) to critically engage universalist human-rights objections. The findings confirm that the Qanun Jinayat operates as a valid lex specialis rooted in Aceh’s special autonomy, yet its institutional replication elsewhere is constitutionally constrained. Rather than framing diffusion as normative imitation, the article identifies three constitutional pathways for broader adoption: asymmetric decentralisation, which offers strong authority but requires high political capital; national codification, which absorbs substantive Jinayat-related norms through national legislation; and the living-law mechanism under the 2023 Criminal Code (Law Number 1 of 2023), which provides a pragmatic yet bounded route for normative accommodation. Feasibility depends on selecting the appropriate pathway and embedding strict safeguards, particularly accountable enforcement and maqasid-oriented criminal policy. These findings reposition Aceh as a constitutional laboratory for managing legal pluralism in a modern nation-state.

2025-12-30

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2025-12-30

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How to Cite

Legitimacy of Aceh’s qanun jinayat in Indonesia’s legal system: Prospects for regional adoption (Zaky Anggara, Sopi Laeli Fitri Rahmawati, Sita Jahrotun Nisa, & Deden Najmudin , Trans.). (2025). Al’Adalah, 28(2), 127-148. https://doi.org/10.35719/aladalah.v28i1.626