20-7-2023 (JAKARTA) The Indonesian Supreme Court has issued a circular prohibiting lower courts from legalising interfaith marriages as a requirement for registration at the civil registry office. The circular was issued on Monday and ordered judges to uphold Article 2 of the 1974 Marriage Law, which mandates that a marriage can only be considered legitimate if it is done according to the religion followed by both bride and groom. The Supreme Court’s circular came in response to a district court’s decision to grant a marriage registration request from a Christian man and Muslim woman, and is being seen as a setback for interfaith couples seeking legal recognition of their marriage.
According to the 2006 Civil Administration Law, married couples can register their marriage at the religious affairs office for Muslims and the civil registry office for non-Muslims. The law stipulates that interfaith couples can also register their marriage with the registry office after obtaining authorisation from the court. However, the Supreme Court’s circular has effectively closed this legal loophole and prohibited lower courts from granting any request for registration of marriages between people of different religions and beliefs.
The Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) has lauded the Supreme Court’s prohibition for providing legal certainty and closing legal loopholes for interfaith marriage. However, human rights group Setara Institute has criticised the circular for closing any progress made by the state’s judicial institutions in guaranteeing the rights of citizens from various backgrounds. The Constitutional Court had previously rejected a petition to challenge the interfaith marriage provision in the 1974 Marriage Law.
Nine justices of the court unanimously rejected the petition filed by E. Ramos Petege, a Papuan who challenged the law for not accommodating the union between people from different faiths. The justices argued that the Marriage Law treats marriage solely from a religious perspective, and that since Indonesia is not a theocratic state, marriages can only be sanctioned by a religious institution.
