The Legal Fate of Indonesian Muslim Women in Court Divorce and Child Custody

This chapter discusses the experiences of Muslim women in Indonesia's Religious Courts (Pengadilan Agama) and how they are treated in divorce and post-divorce cases, in particular those involving custody of children. It investigates why women in these courts now have better access to justice in divorce cases but less success in asserting their post-divorce rights. It maintains that although judges see women as having equal rights to men in deciding the fate of their marriage, they continue to issue decisions that disadvantage women where custody of children is concerned. While judges' decisions on the issue of custody are usually expressed as being based on the notion of the 'best interests of the child', this chapter argues that notion is an abstract one and is too often interpreted according to the subjective views of the judges involved. It also maintains that although the law relating to custody has been modified, it has not benefitted women in practice, as many judges continue to refer to classical Islamic legal doctrines that give preference to men