http://www.voanews.com/english/Sharia2006-06-28-voa62.cfm
Linking Terrorism and Sharia in Aceh
By Nancy Amelia Collins
Banda Aceh, Indonesia
28 June 2006
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Hard line conservative Islamists are implementing Sharia, or Islamic law, in
Indonesia's tsunami ravaged province of Aceh. But many Acehnese oppose
religious laws, fearing they are undermining the province's traditions of
tolerance and pluralism, and may attract militants to the region.
A man sentenced to seven strokes of the whip for gambling. He placed a bet
worth less than a dollar. It is a scene more reminiscent of conservative Saudi
Arabia, not of Aceh province. The caning here would have been shocking less
than a year ago, but is now becoming all too common as religious police, known
locally as Wilayatul Hisbah, implement Sharia law.
Islam in Indonesia
Faud Mardhatillah is an Islamic scholar in Aceh. He thinks the introduction of
Sharia is not in keeping with the local culture. "This is the culture of Arabic
I think, not the culture of the Acehnese before. They don't have any jilbab,"
says Faud.
Woman detained for not wearing headscarf
Under Sharia, women must cover their bodies from head to foot and are forbidden
from appearing in public without a headscarf, called a jilbab in Indonesia.
Alcohol, adultery and intimacy between unmarried couples are banned.
Although men must also cover their bodies, the rule is seldom enforced and men
are seen all around Aceh wearing shorts while Sharia police look the other way.
But for women, the implementation of Sharia has had a profound effect on their
lives. They can no longer go out at night without a male relative, and are
subject to random checks by the Sharia police.
A Sharia policeman blows his whistle to pull over two women on a motorcycle at
a busy intersection in Banda Aceh because they are not wearing a jilbab under
their helmets. Sharia police commander, Raja Radan, waits until police have
pulled over several dozen women -- most for not wearing a jilbab -- before
lecturing them in a small park near the street. He tells the women they are not
following the rules of Sharia and must cover their bodies to follow Islam
properly or they face punishment, possibly caning.
Syarifah Rahmatillah, from the Acehnese women's group Flower Aceh, is upset at
what is happening in the province. She says women should be respected and no
woman should be forced to wear a jilbab. With a population of more then 220
million people, Indonesia is home to more Muslims than any nation on earth.
But it is a secular state, where most people follow a moderate form of the
faith.
A devastated village in Banda Aceh after the 2004 tsunami
But in Aceh, Sharia was introduced after a special autonomy plan was agreed to
for the formerly separatist province. It took effect last year but was slow to
be implemented because Aceh -- the region worst hit by the December 2004 Indian
Ocean tsunami -- was devastated. Some 169,000 people died and survivors were
too busy rebuilding to worry about Sharia. But now, more than a year and a
half after the tsunami, Sharia police have become a fixture in the daily lives
of Acehnese.
Some Moderate Muslims Resist Sharia
Aceh Islamic scholar Faud says the tsunami actually helped conservatives usher
in Sharia, as they lectured a traumatized population that the disaster was
punishment for immoral behavior. "They don't have any substantial understanding
of Islamic teaching. So anything that they call Sharia law is only related to
private affairs, to the private business, something like that. They don't have
any understanding in social life for example, in economic life, in political
life," says Faud.
The morality crackdown is drawing fire from Muslim moderates here who say Islam
is being replaced by an "Arabized" or conservative form. Warzai, a spokesman
for the Free Aceh Movement, which ended 30 years of conflict by signing a peace
agreement with the government last year, also opposes Sharia law as abusive.
"Actually this kind of Sharia law is against Islam itself. And we stand that
we are not asking for sharia law and we are not demanding Sharia law. And we
don't want anybody from outside Aceh to tell us how to practice our religion,"
says Warzai.
Banda Aceh, Indonesia
While many Acehnese may disagree with Sharia, most remain wary of speaking out
publicly for fear it will be interpreted as not supporting Islam. And with
conservative Muslims holding sway in Aceh at the moment, some fear the province
could become a breeding ground for militant extremism. It is a worrying
scenario in a country that has experienced several major terrorist attacks by
Islamic militants over the last several years and is home to Jemaah Islamiyah
-- a Southeast Asian affiliate of the al-Qaida terrorist organization.
This story was first broadcast on the English news program,VOA News Now. For
other Focus reports click here.
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