Sharia and Democracy: Efforts to Synergize the Demands of Faith with the legal System in Indonesia

Since the fall of the New Order's authoritarian regime, Indonesia as a country with the largest Muslim population in the world is often praised as a country that has proven that Islam, democracy and modernity can grow and develop together. However, democracy in Indonesia does not escape the challenges associated with the return of the spirit of religion in political life. The problem is the return of religion to politics – and to public life in general – is a serious challenge to the rule of democratically enacted law and the civil liberties that go with it. Islamic activism or Islamism although they use freedom provided by democracy, actually rejects the principles of democracy and human rights which they see as contrary to the sharia and the absolute sovereignty of God. In the past thirteen years there has been a tendency for rising aspirations for Indonesia to be regulated by sharia law. The purpose of this research is to look for the meaning of sharia and democracy for Muslims, the theological foundations for Muslim to support democracy, and the challenges and alternative solutions that can be offered so that sharia can be transformed to Indonesia legal system. By assuming that sharia has a purpose and that Islamic law can change, evolve in line with developments and challenges of the times, the author argues that the synergy between sharia and democracy can occur in Indonesia as long as Muslims in Indonesia can accept plurality in understanding the sharia and are not bound to one model in understanding sharia. The author believes that sharia can be applied in democratic countries such as Indonesia, because the purpose of the sharia and the purpose of the state are the same, namely the achievement of social justice for all without discrimination