Melbourne Law School - Theses
Permanent URI for this collection
Search Results
1 - 2 of 2
-
ItemIslamising Indonesian laws? : legal and political dissonance in Indonesian shari'a, 1945-2005( 2006)This thesis seeks to offer a different perspective to account for growing demands among Muslims in Indonesia for the incorporation of religious law into the modem nation-state legal system. To this end, this study presents three cases: (1) unsuccessful efforts of Islamic parties to constitutionalise shari'a by amending Article 29 on Religion; (2) the nationalisation of shari'a by the state through the enactment of Zakat Administration Law; and (3) the ulama and the Mahkamah Syar'iyyah in the local implementation of shari'a in Aceh. Through these case studies, the thesis examines the interaction between shari'a and the nation-state and tests the hypothesis that the implementation of shari'a in Indonesia is fundamentally dissonant, in the sense that its implementation is characterized by a continuum between tensions in meanings at one end and direct contradictions in terms at the other. My research has identified a large range of examples of this dissonance at the constitutional level; at the level of political ideology and at the level of subordinate regulations. These dissonances essentially arise because of the difficulty in reconciling the centrality of shari'a for pious Muslims on the one hand, with, on the other hand, the fundamental importance of multi-faith tolerance for the plural religious system that is the heart of the conception of the Indonesia secular national state. The Islamisation of laws in Indonesia has not resulted in the introduction of the shari'a in any real sense. What on the surface may appear to be the Islamisation of laws in Indonesia is in reality a symbolic token for the most part. Although provisions refer formally to shari'a, the whole procedure to carry it out seems an almost irreligious activity, in the sense that it is essentially a secular endeavour. For this reason, instead of seeing the issue solely as an Islamisation of the Indonesian legal system, I argue that it is as much as an Indonesianisation of shari'a law that is currently taking place.
-
ItemEthnic federalism in Ethiopia : a case study( 2001)Ethno-territorial self-identification is the salient feature of sub-Saharan African societies. Yet, the organization of state power in these societies has been predicated upon the assumption that resort to a centralised unitary system of government is essential for unity and development. In doing so it has disregarded and suppressed the diversities permeating the societies. This has generated the political mobilisation of ethnic communities, giving rise not only to conflicts organised and waged along ethnic lines but also to the decomposition or near decomposition of states in Africa. My thesis is grounded in the federal idea that unless the issue of ethnicity is confronted by resorting to institutional mechanisms that ensure equality and political space for ethnic communities while facilitating co-operation and compromise among them, peace and stability will continue to be elusive. The main focus of my thesis is my own country, Ethiopia, which is the only African country that confronts directly the challenges of ethnic diversity by adopting a federal system organised on the basis of the recognition and institutionalisation of the right of ethno-territorial communities to self-determination. The examination of Ethiopia's experience may be of considerable relevance for many African countries and generates significant insights into the potential as well as the problems of reconstituting state power by adopting a federal system organised along the lines of ethno-territorial communities. Although Ethiopia's experiment with ethnic federalism is a crucial institutional means for ensuring ethnic self-autonomy and inter-ethnic shared rule, I will argue that its viability and success hinges upon its dissociation from the Westminster style democracy with which it is currently linked and on the extent to which it advances power-sharing democracy.