Religion in Indonesia

Gender Equality

Gender inequality has become a pervading challenge in Indonesian society. However, in contrast to other countries struggling with gender equality, religion has played a critical role. Referencing Qur’anic text that both man and woman are created equal, the constitution of 1945 attempted to preserve this right into public life. Nevertheless, contrary to these efforts, women are found underrepresented in all aspects of society. Opposition to women achieving equal status is openly pursued; this includes headliners within Muhammadiyah and NU, groups feminists are directly involved in. Called into question by the Marriage Law of 1974, notions of Islam on gender roles are brought into the light. By placing the role on the husband as the “head of the family” and with the wife as the “housewife,” the concept of equality among gender is easily lost.

Moreover, the first woman to challenge gender inequality in Indonesia is accredited to Raden Ayu Kartini. Hailed as the first feminist in Indonesia, Kartini was born in 1879. Throughout her life Kartini struggles with society’s unequal gender construction and later is accredited for instigation Indonesia’s women’s movement. Conversely, over the year Kartini’s memory has been refabricated through Islamic culture to match the country’s male-dominated status quo.

During Indonesia’s colonial era, Kartini is remembered as a scholarly, rebellious woman who fought for gender equality and the education of women. However, Islamic culture influenced a change under Suharto’s New Order and left Kartini’s image as a domesticated woman, glorifying her role in the home. Today, the importance of Kartini’s role change over time is recognized as the rise and fall of the women’s emanc...

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Conclusion

Seeing how through women’s education of religion and the Qur’an, as given through the preceding analysis, women were finally given the opportunity to fight for equality and show they deserved it. The feminist movement is one of which has been fought for many years, affecting various aspects of Indonesian society, but it was only through Qur’anic education when the social barriers were lifted that women were given an overdue chance. Boarding schools, called pesantrens, gave women the ability to take control of their own education and – if not unintentionally – use this religious knowledge to make their own interpretations of the Qur’an, separate from their male counterparts. In conclusion, these are the aspects of the feminist movement that are responsible for the advancement of women’s social and political positions in Indonesian society.