Customary Negotiation and Islamic Environmental Law: Human-Nature Relations in the Batak Angkola Community, South Tapanuli, Indonesia

Suheri Harahap, R. Hamdani Harahap, Mohd Roslan Moh Nor — Tue, 30 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This research analyses the negotiation between Batak Angkola customary norms and Islamic environmental law in shaping human-nature relationships in South Tapanuli, North Sumatra, Indonesia. This research addresses the limited scholarship on how traditional values and Islamic teachings shape community-based environmental governance. The research employs a qualitative approach, drawing on phenomenological and ethnographic methods. Data were obtained through participatory observation, in-depth interviews with traditional leaders, religious leaders, and communities, and document analysis. The data were then analyzed thematically through the lens of Fiqh al-Bī'ah and Jacques Derrida’s theory of deconstruction. This research shows that environmental conservation is achieved through the integration of Islamic values, such as khalīfah fī al-arḍ, amānah, the obligation to preserve the environment, and the prohibition of fasād fī al-arḍ, into the Batak Angkola customary system. The integration results in environmental governance through the protection of customary areas, community-based natural resource management, customary rituals, and environmental conflict resolution processes. The human-nature relationship is understood as reciprocal, placing humans as an integral part of the ecosystem and making them responsible for maintaining its balance. This research concludes that negotiations between customary law and Fiqh al-Bi’ah produce an ecological governance model that is adaptive, sustainable, and socially and religiously legitimate. Its novelty lies in formulating a normative negotiation model between social and religious legitimacy through Fiqh al-Bī'ah, explaining the construction of human–nature relationships to strengthen environmental governance based on local wisdom in Indonesia.

Religious Conversion in Minangkabau People: An Analysis of Islamic and Customary Law Perspectives in Indonesia

Jufri Naldo, Maraimbang, Azhari Akmal Tarigan, Ismail, Syahrial Arif Hutagalung — Tue, 30 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This research aimed to examine the tensions between Islamic and Minangkabau customary law in relation to contemporary people in Indonesia who converted to Christianity, despite the long-standing historical identity as a predominantly Muslim community deeply rooted in Islamic traditions and cultural values. Specifically, three questions were addressed, namely 1) the interaction of Islamic and Minangkabau customary law, 2) the factors influencing religious conversion from Islam to Christianity among contemporary Minangkabau people, and 3) the challenges experienced by converts in the relationships with family members, local communities, and the broader social structure. A case study approach was adopted using a qualitative design grounded in the socio-anthropology of religion based on in-depth interviews with eight key informants. Furthermore, this research provided a broader understanding of a complex and often contested phenomenon. The results showed that the social lives of Minangkabau converts from Islam to Christianity were characterized by adaptability and tolerance. Most converts continued to maintain positive relationships with families, local communities, and customary institutions, in contrast to the widespread assumption that religious conversion transformed social attitudes and disrupted communal relationships. However, these people were not completely detached from Islamic values and cultural dispositions before accepting Christianity. The theoretical contribution of this research is in the attempt to bridge the relationship between agency and social structure in explaining religious conversion. In Minangkabau context, religious conversion constitutes a socio-legal event that challenges the normative relationship between Islamic and customary law, reporting the ongoing negotiation between personal religious agency and collective cultural obligations.

Ijtihad : Jurnal Wacana Hukum Islam dan Kemanusiaan

Customary Negotiation and Islamic Environmental Law: Human-Nature Relations in the Batak Angkola Community, South Tapanuli, Indonesia

Religious Conversion in Minangkabau People: An Analysis of Islamic and Customary Law Perspectives in Indonesia