Asia

“Marital property in California and Indonesia: Community property and harta bersama”

One of the more notable features of Indonesian Islamic law is its recognition of the concept of jointly owned marital property which bears a striking similarity to the community property system in California. In both systems the marital estate consists of property acquired during the marriage through the efforts of either of the spouses.

“Islamic inheritance law in Indonesia: The influence of Hazairin's theory of bilateral inheritance"

Islamic inheritance law has long been a source of controversy in Indonesia. The controversy has generally been framed in terms of a supposed conflict between Islamic inheritance doctrines and the customary law or adat of the country's many ethnic communities. This article argues that recent developments in Indonesian Islamic inheritance law have narrowed the differences between Islamic and customary approaches to the distribution of property on death.

“Inching toward equality: recent developments in Indonesian Inheritance Law”

Indonesia the largest Muslim country in the world, has witnessed what may be interpreted as a continued Islamisation of its Family Law, including the absorption & subsumption of prevalent practices into a logic of codification and reform according to particular interpretations of Muslim laws. But in the light of the Government’s 1988 Compilation of Islamic law, some limited changes in the inheritance laws favourable to women have taken place. The paper by Cammack examines the intricacies of this process in Indonesia.

“Rural women’s land rights in Java, Indonesia: Strengthened by Family Law, but weakened by land registration”

In Java, Indonesia, only about one-third of land title certificates reflect ownership by women. This lack of registered land ownership can potentially harm women by depriving them of influence within the household and leaving them vulnerable in cases of divorce or a spouse’s death. This Article argues that effective land registration mechanisms and legal and social recognition of women’s property rights all play a critical role in protecting women’s ownership interests.

“Women, land, and labor: negotiating clientage and kinship in a Minangkabau peasant community”

One of the central dynamics shaping agrarian change, and one seldom highlighted, is the structure and ideology of kinship and clientage in peasant communities. This article examines the importance of kin ties in the maintenance of nonwage labor relationships in a wet-rice farming community in West Sumatra, Indonesia. In this village patron-client ties are primarily organized on the basis of matrilineal kin ties through and between women.

"Access to justice for women: The role of religious courts”

This paper discusses the role of Indonesian religious courts in giving access to justice for women. It will analyze the role with the perspective of procedural and substantive justice. The discussion on access to procedural justice encompasses client service, prodeo case, and circuit court, while access to substantive justice will focus on three selected areas: polygamy, divorce and joint marital property.

“The summer pastures of Afghanistan”

Afghanistan’s 30 million hectares of pasture lands represent 45 percent of the total land area and are key to livelihood and water catchment in the exceedingly dry country. This is one of the case studies in this report which addresses the tenure fate of three commons in conflict affected states (the other two are Liberia and Sudan). The report, however, does not address women’s access to this valuable resource.

Looking for peace on the pastures: rural land relations in Afghanistan

This paper draws together findings from three rural field studies in Bamyan, Faryab and Badakhshan provinces. The first two were rapid appraisal studies but concurred in a main finding that pastureland tenure needs priority attention. The third focal report on pasture issues in Badakhshan built upon in-depth and longitudinal research by its author. Sec 2.2.4 (p. 26) tackles the issue of female land ownership albeit far too briefly.

“Land rights in crisis: restoring tenure security in Afghanistan”

This study concludes that long years of misdirected policy have entrenched deeply inequitable and often unjust land ownership relations among tribes, between agricultural and pastoral systems and among feudally arranged classes of society. Attempts to remedy these have been poorly executed.

Afghanistan:national reconstruction and poverty reduction -- the role of women in Afghanistan’s future

This report was intended to serve as an input for the government’s efforts to address gender disparities. It synthesized existing information and identified critical areas in which gender-responsive actions are likely to enhance growth, poverty reduction and human well-being including in the area of property and inheritance. The report provides information on the current laws and cultural practices in relation to inheritance and property.