The Halal Project in Indonesia: Shariatization, Minority Rights and Commodification

Summary

INTRODUCTION

Discussions on halal are not newly invented in the context of Indonesia only since the formalization of the halal issue in the 1990s. The matter has been recognized since the coming of Islam to the archipelago. As with other religions such as Judaism, Islam also has regulations on the lawfulness and the unlawfulness of consuming and producing goods, which are classified as halal (permissible) and haram (impermissible or forbidden). In addition, halal and haram are considered important distinctions in Islam. Because halal and haram have doctrinal positions in Islam, all Muslims are committed to upholding that difference in their daily life. Other than taking part in mandatory prayers, Muslims are regulated in what is permissible and impermissible in eating, drinking and other behaviours. Those who do not obey are categorized as sinful Muslims. Propagators of this doctrine, such as the Council of Indonesian Ulama (Majelis Ulama Indonesia, or MUI), have proposed that what constitutes halalness and haramness for Muslims should be made transparent. They consider access to information on halal and haram on the labels of products to be a right for Indonesian Muslims. Based on this, they have long lobbied for the formalization of halalness in the legal and public sphere of Indonesia.

Jokowi's push for halal formalization is understandable, given the economic and market benefits that Indonesia would potentially gain. His government has however not given sufficient consideration to the fact that halal formalization can generate injustices and discrimination against non-Muslims. State Law No. 33/2014 on Halal Product Assurance hints that Indonesia has agreed to use sharia as part of the national law, and this phenomenon can be perceived as Indonesian partiality to that tradition. In this regard, marginalization and subordination of non-Muslims could result. In short, the Jokowi government seems to have only considered the political-economic interests rather than the national interests of Indonesia. The formalization of halal can cause social segregation and polarization for those Indonesians who hold different faiths and consumption patterns.

In classical fiqh, halal is often understood as permission to consume goods mostly associated with food and drinks. In the modern era, the halal status is defined to extend to other sectors such as cosmetics, hotels, tourism and fashion. The expansion of the definition of halal also means the expansion of religion in determining consumption patterns in different spheres of life.