Umi Hanisah

In the province of Aceh, where conservative Islam has historically had a strong hold, Umi Hanisah has successfully advocated for and increased the number of female religious leaders, and through them, has managed to advance and protect the rights of women and children in Indonesia.

Umi is creating a space for women to hold important roles in Acehan society. Through her work, an increasing number of women ulamas (religious leaders) are using their unique position to address fundamental social problems in the region, such as gender inequality and child welfare. By increasing the number of female ulamas, Umi is ensuring women have a stronger voice in their society, and their own lives.

Umi is also working to advance women’s rights by addressing male and female relationships within marriage; in Islam women do not have the same rights as men in a marriage. Nikah siri, or marriage without legal consent is commonplace in conservative Islam regions, leaving women with no legal rights. Umi has succeeded in persuading the provincial government to pass a mandate that requires premarital consultations with the Office of Religious Affairs for the potential husband and wife and the province is opening opportunities for women and children to have a voice in the family.

The movement that has started in Aceh has become part of a broader movement that has reached all parts of Indonesia. Women ulamas outside of Aceh, although still limited in numbers, have more freedom to speak and more influence in their society. These women ulamas have opened relationships with the women ulamas of Aceh, and together they have held several trainings to produce even more women ulamas throughout Indonesia.

Aceh is the only province in Indonesia that uses sharia law (Islamic law), making the roles of ulamas very important. An ulama is an Islamic scholar who has completed several years of training and study of Islamic disciplines. They are highly regarded and hold important roles not only in the decision-making process of the province, but also over social activities. Ulamas in Indonesia congregate through a forum called Majelis Ulama, traditionally dominated by male ulamas. During the Prophet Mohammad’s time, women and men were considered equal. There were several women who held important roles in society, especially through their role as ulama. Unfortunately, a few centuries after the Prophet passed away, women’s position in Islamic society declined to pre-Islam. Women were relegated to their homes and their only role was to serve their husbands and raise their children. Women were seen as objects to be owned and women ulamas were again almost impossible to find. Indonesia’s male-dominated culture has continued to interpret the role of women through this perspective. Ulama positions in Indonesia are still dominated by men and as a result, very few women become ulamas due to a myriad of challenges. These women are now fighting against the discrimination that they have had to face for many years.

The challenges and discrimination women face are not just social, but in the home, and in their marriages. In Islam, marriage without the consent of the law is prohibited, but has become common practice in regions of Indonesia where the majority is Muslim. According to Islam, a man is allowed to have up to four wives. Without equal legal status in marriage, women are without their legal rights as a wife, leading to a high number of domestic abuse and rape cases in the province. Many Islamic countries have reformed their laws, i.e. banning polygamy practices. Indonesia is one of the few Islamic countries that has not reformed their sharia laws. Since Aceh is the only province in Indonesia where sharia law is still applied, a movement of religious women leaders from this region advocating for women’s rights and social change, would have far more credibility and force.

Umi realized that stronger voices from women leaders and ulamas were needed in a male-dominated culture and religion, in which women are traditionally seen as second-class citizens and their voices are suppressed. Umi understands that teaching about gender equality needs to be at the forefront of female ulama’s agendas. She opened her pesantren, Diniyah Darussalam, in 2000 in her hometown of Meulaboh, Aceh. In the beginning, her pesantren was opened for both boys and girls, but after the tsunami in 2005, she had more girls in the school than boys. From then on, girls were taught in the daytime and boys would come at night to learn how to read the Quran and listen to Dakwah (Islamic preachings). Umi taught her students the teachings from the Quran that enlightened women’s roles to counter societal views that men are greater than women; womens’ place is in the home; and women are not entitled to higher education. Realizing that the root of the problem is much deeper, in 2005 Umi formed Forum Ulama Perempuan (Women Ulama Forum) which highlights the importance of preaching about gender equality. She now has more than 400 women ulamas in this forum that regularly tour villages around Aceh. Umi then approached the wives of village heads, empowering them to be local leaders to form a local Majelis Taklim, gatherings for religious teachings and performance among Muslims. At these gatherings Umi has employed women ulamas to preach not just about gender equality but to also discuss other womens’ issues, such as female reproductive health, an issue not normally discussed in religious circles. Realizing that gender equality is not just a “women’s issue,” Umi has also engaged fifty male ulamas to help spread these teachings. She understood that women having a stronger voice in society would mean more than just prominence in their villages, she also wants women to be a part of the decision-making process. Umi approached the provincial government and demanded that the Majelis Ulama should consist of at least 30 percent female ulamas to represent women. This was agreed and was made a law. Not stopping there, Umi has approached the Majelis Ulama Indonesia, and has made the same demands, so that women’s voices are represented throughout Indonesia.

To face and help women’s discrimination and struggle in marriages, Umi approached both civil and religious leaders at the provincial level in Aceh. Working with the provincial government, Umi passed a local regulation for premarital consultations to be mandatory for both the husband and wife before any wedding in the province. The consultations would last for three months before the planned date of marriage, and during these consultations, expectations of both husband and wife as well as their respective rights, are discussed. Every marriage has to be registered in the Office of Religious Affairs to legalize the marriage. Umi aims for this to become a mandate not just in the province of Aceh, but in all of Indonesia and for all religions. To further this vision, Umi is working with the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Ministry of Women Empowerment & Child Protection in Jakarta.

When Umi was still a student in the pesantren (Islamic boarding school), she was one of few star students who took part in a cultural exchange. These students had the opportunity to visit other pesantrens in Indonesia. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Umi started building a network of female ulamas. Working with Fahmina Institute in Cirebon and the Centre for the Advancement of Research and Policy Studies on Islamic Education and Socio-Religious Development in Jakarta, Umi has reached out beyond Aceh. She has created an alliance not just in Indonesia but also between women ulamas in Indonesia and other Islamic countries in Southeast Asia, such as Malaysia, Philippines, and Thailand. The ulamas held a meeting in Aceh in which each country sent two ulama representatives and two representatives from government. A key takeaway from this meeting is an agreement to bring the discussion around the 30 percent quota back to their countries.

Umi comes from a big family of eighteen children. Her father was a soldier who later became a farmer and her mother was a farmer and housewife. Coming from such a large family, each child was responsible for earning their own pocket money. In the fourth grade, Umi worked in a rubber plantation after school. After graduating elementary school, she wanted to study in a pesantren, but her parents did not allow this because she was still too young. Instead, Umi enrolled in a junior high school without her parent’s knowledge. She had to travel six kilometers through the jungle every day to reach school. After graduating from junior high school, Umi’s father finally agreed she could study in a pesantren far from her hometown of Meulaboh. She spent seven years away and endured many hardships because her parents could not afford to send her money. In the pesantren, when teaching female students, male teachers had to have a hijab (curtain) put between them and the students. Umi found this to be impractical, because on the other side of the curtain, her friends were not listening. Most of them were asleep, and some even left the classroom. Umi pulled at the curtain so that she and her peers could be more engaged and her teacher was outraged. She was sent to the principal. Umi was persuasive in explaining her actions. The principal was understanding, and agreed to banish all the curtains. This policy then spread to other pesantrens in Aceh. After her studies, Umi received a scholarship to study at an Islamic university in the capital of Aceh. During her studies, she was a religion teacher in several schools to support herself.

Umi’s experience visiting other pesantrens broadened her understanding of Islam. Her visit to the Dayah Diniyah pesantren for girls in Padang, West Sumatra, inspired her to open her own pesantren. Umi funded it with the money she received from preaching. Her attention was first brought to domestic abuse when she met a girl running away from home because she was forced to marry an already married man by her family. Umi took the girl to her pesantren and talked to the parents. Despite her actions causing many different reactions, Umi’s pesantren has become a safe house for domestic abuse cases, protecting many women and children. Throughout her career working with women, Umi has faced many failures and rejection, but none has deterred her from her mission to empower women.

In step with Umi’s strong belief in gender equality, she continues to invite women to join the fight for equality regardless of region or religion. She aims for the women’s movement in Indonesia to be based on intellect and reason, while maintaining personal religious beliefs.