SHARIAsource

This presidential instruction ordered the Minister of Religion to ensure the dissemination of the Compilation of Islamic Laws (Kompilasi Hukum Islam) and the application thereof by government agencies.

Nizar Bin Syaf'i passed away due to illness on 17 September 2013. He was survived by his wife (second applicant), mother (first applicant), and siblings (third-seventh applicants), all of whom were beneficiaries under his will.

The applicants successfully sought a stipulation from the court that the deceased, Nizar Bin Syafi'i, had indeed passed away, that the applicants were legitimate beneficiaries under the deceased's will, and that the fourth applicant had power of attorney to transfer the deed of title to the land of the deceased to the National Land Body (Badan Pertanahan Nasional) of Lhokseumawe. The court ordered the applicants to pay court costs (IDR 141,000).

This Supreme Court pronouncement states that while a non-Muslim wife who survives her Muslim husband cannot be considered a beneficiary (ahli waris), she remains entitled to inherit her portion of his estate as his wife, pursuant to a wasiat wajibah (obligatory will).

In this case, the cassation applicant had challenged the decision of the Makassar High Religious Court (59/Pdt.G/2009/PTA). As the lawful wife of the deceased, who had passed away on 22 May 2008 (they were married on 1 November 1990), the Court stated that as the deceased and cassation applicant had been married for 18 years, and as the defendant had devoted herself to the deceased while he was alive, it was immaterial that she was a non-Muslim. Moreover, that she was entitled to receive a portion of the estate of the deceased, as well as a portion of their joint assets as husband and wife.

The appellant sought to challenge the decision of the Makassar Religious Court (lower court), which had granted her one-half of the assets she had owned jointly with the deceased. The appellant had married the deceased on 1 November 1990, and they had remained married until the deceased passed away on 22 May 2008. The lower court had stipulated as the deceased's beneficiaries his mother and four siblings (the respondents), and two properties and IDR 50 million in life insurance as the joint assets of the appellant and deceased.

The lower court had ordered the appellant to transfer to the beneficiaries the other half of those joint assets, which constituted the estate of the deceased. In dismissing the appeal, the court cited arts 96 and 97 of the Compilation of Islamic Laws as a legal basis for the division of the assets, as well as the fact that, as the deceased was Muslim, his assets were to be distributed pursuant to Islamic law, despite one of the parties to the dispute being a Christian/non-Muslim. The appellant was ordered to pay court costs (IDR 86,000).

The four applicants filed an application with the court on 26 June 2015, stating that their father (the deceased) had passed away on 6 May 1994, and that their mother had passed away on 23 November 2014. The applicants' grandparents had also all passed away. The applicants requested from the court a stipulation that they were the beneficiaries (ahli waris) of the deceased, in order that they could withdraw from Bank Syariah Mandiri the deceased's hajj savings, and deal with a deed of title filed with the National Land Body (Badan Pertanahan Nasional) in the name of the deceased.

The court acceded to the applicants' request based on the grounds that they met the requirements to be considered beneficiaries, per art 171(c) of the Compilation of Islamic Laws.

The deceased passed away on 20 August 2014 from illness. His wife had passed away on 14 October 2010, and his parents were both deceased. The applicants (the deceased's five children) sought from the court a stipulation that they were the lawful beneficiaries under the deceased's will, in order that they could withdraw his pension from Bank BRI.

The court acceded to the applicants' request based on the grounds that they met the requirements to be considered beneficiaries, per art 171(c) of the Compilation of Islamic Laws, and ordered them to pay costs (IDR 466,000).

The deceased passed away on 31 May 2015. He was survived by his wife and three children (the applicants), who sought from the court a declaration stipulating that the deceased had passed away on 31 May 2015 at Harapan Bunda Kota Banda Aceh hospital, that the applicants were the lawful beneficiaries of the deceased's will, and that they needed to access the deceased's bank savings and pension.

The court acceded to the applicants' request based on the grounds that they met the requirements to be considered beneficiaries, per arts 171(c) and 174 of the Compilation of Islamic Laws, and ordered them to pay costs (IDR 391,000).

The deceased passed away on 2 February 2015. He was survived by his wife and three children (the applicants), who sought from the court a declaration stipulating that he had passed away, that the applicants were the lawful beneficiaries of the deceased's will, and that they needed to access the deceased's bank savings, and to transfer his pension.

The court acceded to the applicants' request based on the grounds that they met the requirements to be considered beneficiaries, per arts 171(c) and 174 of the Compilation of Islamic Laws, and ordered them to pay costs (IDR 466,000).

The parties' deceased parents owned a 5.25 ha property. On 20 December 1971, the parties' parents executed a document transferring ownership of that property to the defendant, who was their oldest child. The plaintiffs submitted that, around the time the document was executed, the parties' parents had explained that ownership of the property had been transferred to the defendant because he was deemed competent, willing and able to fulfil their wishes and share the property with his siblings if and when the parties' parents passed away. On 17 October 1995, the parties' father executed a document for the equal division of the property to the parties and, prior to his passing, divided the property accordingly. The plaintiffs submitted that the defendant's subsequent conduct ignored their father's dying wishes, and sought from the court a ruling declaring the defendant's conduct unlawful, and distributing the property in accordance with the 17 October 1995 document.

The defendant submitted that he had owned the property since 1968, after providing consideration of IDR 400,000 to its previous owner.

The court found that the plaintiffs' claim failed, however, because it did not clearly state the religion of the deceased and beneficiaries, nor did it state when the deceased had passed away.

The deceased passed away on 29 September 2007 in Balikpapan due to illness, leaving in his will seven properties. The plaintiffs were the nieces and nephews of the deceased, their fathers (also deceased) being the biological brothers of the deceased. They submitted that they had not been included in the will of the deceased as beneficiaries, and that, therefore, the will should be declared null and void. The first defendant was the wife of the deceased, and the third-fifth defendants were her adopted children. The second defendant was also a biological sibling of the deceased.

The plaintiffs submitted that the defendants had sold the bequeathed properties for a collective IDR 6.8 billion, without distributing to the plaintiffs their share of the proceeds. As there was no familial or blood relationship between the deceased and the third-fifth defendants, the plaintiffs submitted that they had no claim to the proceeds of sale.

The court found that the plaintiffs' claim failed, however, because it did not identify when the properties were sold. Moreover, while their claim did acknowledge that the properties had been sold, the plaintiffs still sought to have the properties stipulated as estate of the deceased that should be distributed in their favour. Rather, they should have requested that the proceeds of sale be stipulated as estate of the deceased. In addition, the court found that it was not authorised to invalidate a previous court determination handed down on 10 January 2012, which had found that the plaintiffs were not beneficiaries because their parents had passed away before the deceased.

The applicants submitted that their sister, Hj. Halakatani, A. Ma, had passed away on 2 June 2011, as evidenced by the issuance of her death certificate, dated 30 June. The deceased had never married and both her parents had passed away. The applicants requested that the court stipulate them as the beneficiaries of the deceased in order to access her funds.

The court acceded to the applicants' request on the grounds that they were the siblings of the deceased and were, therefore, eligible to be her beneficiaries.

On 18 May 2006, the applicant's husband passed away. He was survived by the applicant and their four children. The deceased had a plot of land in Gampong Gampa, which the applicant and one of the applicant's children wished to use to leverage a bank loan. The notary they had engaged required a stipulation from a shari'a court that the applicant and her children (the children were underage) were indeed beneficiaries under the will of the deceased.

As the applicant had met all the formulaic requirements of the application, and information provided by witnesses had corroborated with that of the applicant, the court acceded to the applicant's request.

The applicant was an only child from the deceased's first marriage. The deceased had remarried and had three other children. The deceased also left behind a property in East Jakarta, as well as a pension, having been a state high school teacher. The applicant requested that the court stipulate the passing of her father, and that she was the only beneficiary under her father's will. The applicant, however, in court, requested that the claim be withdrawn as she had neglected to include the names of the other beneficiaries under the will of the deceased. The court acceded to the applicant's request.

This fatwa permits a person to bequeath their corneas after they have passed away, provided that:

1. they have given their consent and the provision of such consent was witnessed by their beneficiaries; and
2. the operation is conducted by a surgeon.

This fatwa states that an only daughter is entitled to one-half of her deceased parents' estate if she has no brothers. Male relatives are entitled to the remains of the estate of the deceased after the only daughter has received her share (one-half).

This fatwa recommends that inherited plots of land that are not particularly expansive remain as one plot, rather than being divided between the relevant beneficiaries. This should be achieved by the beneficiaries working together in a cooperative fashion. If this is not feasible because one or more of the beneficiaries needs the financial proceeds that would be obtained through the sale of such land, it is preferable that one of the other financially-secure beneficiares purchase from any beneficiary in financial need their interest in the land. If this is not feasible, the fatwa preferences sale of the inherited land to the owner of one of the neighbouring plots of land. If this is not feasible, efforts should be made to sell the land to another Muslim who lives in the same kampung or village so that the plot of land may one day become the object of infaq/sadaqah or zakat, thereby furthering the general well-being of other Muslims, as per Islamic teachings.

On 26 March 2014, the applicants' mother passed away due to illness. The applicants' father had already passed away in 2002. The applicants requested from the Court a stipulation that the deceased had passed away and that they were indeed the beneficiaries under her will. Such a stipulation would enable the applicants to deal with the estate of the deceased, which included her financial savings stored with Bank Mandiri Syari'ah.

Pursuant to arts 171(9)(c) and 174(1)(a) of the Compilation of Islamic Laws, the Court acceded to the applicants' request on the grounds that they were indeed the biological children of the deceased, as corroborated by their own evidence and that provided by witnesses.

The six applicants withdrew their inheritance-related application. The court acceded to the withdrawal and ordered them to pay costs (IDR 91,000).

The deceased, Burhadi Bin Muhammad Jamil Lahir, died on 24 August 2015 due to illness. He was survived by the first applicant (his wife), the second applicant (his mother), and his three sons. The deceased's father had already passed away and he had no other unstipulated beneficiaries. He also had seven bank accounts (with savings and loans attached) and six properties. The applicants requested that they, and the first applicant's three children, be stipulated as the deceased's beneficiaries.

The court acceded to the applicants' request, finding that sufficient documentary evidence had been produced to establish their submissions.

This English-language summary issued by the Acehnese government explains the all-encompassing role of sharīʿa in Aceh. It clarifies that sharīʿa does not apply to non-Muslims, and that its implementation in no way repudiates human rights standards, including freedom of religion.