I refer to a letter titled '€œLet Aceh be with its sharia law,'€ (The Jakarta Post, June 18) by Rizki Ananda.

The majority of Acehnese have long believed and practiced a faith based on persuasion rather than top-down enforcement of a restrictive interpretation. Sharia cannot be imposed simply because it is God'€™s law. On a philosophical level, it needs to be understood that sharia is interpreted through humans who are imperfect.

According to the Islamic scholar Khaled Abou El Fadl: '€œSharia as conceived by God is flawless, but as understood by human beings who are imperfect and contingent. Regardless of how clear and precise the statements of the Koran and Sunnah are, the meaning derived from these sources is negotiated through human agency. But the law of the state, regardless of its origins or basis, belongs to the state. Under this conception, no religious laws can or may be enforced by the state. All laws articulated and applied in a state are thoroughly human and should be treated as such.'€

For state authorities to claim that they have the authority to interpret and implement sharia could, from a certain perspective, be seen as a form of shirk (associating others with God), one of the greatest sins in Islam as it gives humans power to act in the name of God.

A second area that must be challenged relates to the particularly conservative and intrusive interpretation of sharia that is being implemented. The fact is that there is no justification either in the Koran or the hadith (oral traditions relating to the words and deeds of the Prophet) for the government enforcing head covering for women or for punishing those who drink intoxicants by caning.

The Qanun passed by the Aceh Legislative Council (DRPA) also fails to acknowledge contemporary realities or make necessary adjustments to some of the legal rulings and interpretations of Islamic jurists (fiqh) dating from pre-modern times.

Aceh'€™s sharia laws do not differentiate between sharpie and fiqh and in formulating them there seems to have been little effort to carry out independent reasoning or interpretation on the sources of law (known in Islam as ijtahad). Unfortunately the sharia laws of Aceh do not seem to have taken into account the importance of the overriding values and foundational goals (maqasid) of sharia.

Aceh'€™s sharia laws have made the private sphere public, as they are mainly concerned with personal issues like dress, drinking alcohol, gambling and men and women being in close proximity. In a democratic and Islamic society, the authorities have no business interfering in the private lives of consenting adults.

HF Wilmot
Jakarta

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