3 ABSTRACT KHARIROH, KHARIROH, M.A., June 2010, Southeast Asian Studies The Women's Movement in Indonesia's Pesantren: Negotiating Islam, Culture, and Modernity (165 pp.) Director of Thesis: Loren D. Lybarger This thesis explores the women’s movement in Indonesia’s pesantren and their contributions to develop gender equality in the traditionalist Muslim communities, particularly in Java, after the downfall of the Suharto regime 1998. By looking at two pesantren as instructive case studies, it provides the historical and sociological context of the women’s movement in pesantren and the issues for which they are striving, such as women’s advocacy against domestic violence, women’s leadership, and reinterpretation of religious texts. This study also examines the internal and external factors influencing the movement to provide deeper understanding about women in pesantren, and how they negotiate gender roles in the light of Islamic tradition, local culture and a modern context. This thesis argues that the women’s movement in pesantren constitutes an independent development that explicitly breaks with the secular premise that grounds their ideologies. Secular feminism gains resistance within pesantren circles. The rise of Islamic feminist criticism among pesantren women, by contrast, directly challenges the patriarchal structure of these communities on religious grounds. Approved: _____________________________________________________________ Loren D. Lybarger Assistant Professor of Classics and World Religions 4 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This thesis could not have been possible without the assistance, patience, motivation, encouragement and kindness of my professors, colleagues, friends and family. The list of those to whom I have become indebted in the process of the writing of this thesis is too long to be presented in full here. I am grateful to all of them, first and foremost to my family. My mother and my father have supported me in many ways since the beginning of my studies, and they deserve so much more than I could ever possibly repay. My husband, Ali Sobirin, and our children Saka and Sophia, that my utmost appreciation is due. Their love, patience, and understanding have made my intellectual journeys possible. Without their present during my study at Ohio University, my life would be miserable. This work, I must admit, was only possible because of the encouragement of my committee members: Dr. Loren D. Lybarger, Professor Elizabeth Fuller Collins, Dr. Ann Tickamyer, who have exerted extraordinary amounts of time and energy in teaching me and supporting my research. They not only supervised the writing of the thesis from the beginning, but also inspired my approach to the subject. I am particularly grateful for the benefits gained through the discussions with other professors at Ohio University, particularly Dr. Gene Ammarell, Dr. Risa Whitson, Dr. Haley Duschinski, Dr. William Frederick, Dr. Harry Aveling, and Dr. Patricia Stokes. From them, I learned that seeking knowledge and wisdom is a never-ending process. Special mention should be made to librarians in the Southeast Asian collection of Alden library, especially Lusi, Jeff Shane, and Keng We Koh, who helped me a lot to find the references for my work. 5 I have also been extremely fortunate in having had a number of friends and colleagues that deserve my acknowledgement. I need to mention some of them here: Fahrina So, Eric Viani, Cesar Dequintas, Alexander Supartono, Huong Nguyen, Kurara Nakano, Yuki Nakama, Widya Lystiowulan, Faishol Adib, Tolhas Damanik, Siti Aishah, Dyah Arin, Adila Prasojo, Anthony Medrano, Phirom Leng, Nurcahyati Karsono, Pittaya Paladroi, Ashley Arzy, Sinoun, Bethany, Preston Silvey, Molly Ruth, Kate, Ben, Elizabeth, Heyam, Marina, Abbey, and Jenny as well as my Indonesian fellow PERMIAS members whose names could not be mentioned here, also deserve my sincere thanks. I would like to express my sincere gratitude to my participants who became key sources of information for this thesis. They are Kyai Husein Muhammad, Faqihuddin Abdul Kodir, Nyai Lilik Nihayah, Masruchah, Nur Rofi’ah, Aan Anshoriyah, Nyai Ruqayyah, Najlah Naqiyah, Teh Enung, and Nyai Djuju’ Juwariyah. Without their generous information, I could not write this thesis. Lastly, my study at Ohio University would not been possible without the scholarship from Ford Foundation with its International Fellowship Program (IFP). I would like to thank IIE New York and IIEF Jakarta for their kind assistance and hospitality. 6 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT 3 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 4 ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS 8 GLOSSARY 10 CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 14 A. Research Questions 22 B. Methods 25 C. Historical Background and Theoretical Framework .27 1. The Muslim Women's Movement: A Brief Survey .27 2. Literature Review 33 CHAPTER 2: WOMEN AND PESANTREN: THE DIALOGUE OF MODERNIZATION AND TRADITION . 39 A. The Role of Pesantren in Indonesia 39 B. Pesantren and Modernization 47 C. The Status Of Women in Pesantren 52 D. Women in the Classical Islamic Texts (Kitab Kuning) 56 CHAPTER 3: THE INVOLVEMENT OF PESANTREN IN DEVELOPING WOMEN'S RIGHTS (TWO CASE STUDIES) . 64 A. The Role of Governmental Organizations (NGOs) 64 7 B. The First Case Study: Pesantren Dar al Tauhid, Cirebon . 71 C. The Second Case Study: Pesantren Cipasung, Tasikmalaya 79 D. Evaluation and Analysis 86 1. Pesantren-Based Women’s Rights Advocacy . 87 2. Women’s ‘Ulama and Interpretation of Islamic 91 3. Women’s Leadership 99 CHAPTER 4: ISLAMIC FEMINISM IN PESANTREN: THE INTERSECTIONS OF ISLAM, CULTURE AND MODERNITY . 109 A. Discussing Islamic Feminism: A Brief Survey 109 B. Indonesian Muslim Women, International Feminism and Democratization .117 C. The Women’s Movement in Pesantren and Islamic Feminism .123 D. The Challenges of the Women’s Movement in Pesantren 131 1. Religious Legitimacy .131 2. Polygamy 134 3. Capital Resources 138 CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION 141 REFERENCES 151 APPENDIX A: SEMI-STRUCTURED INTERVIEW .161 APPENDIX B: INFORMANT BACKGROUNDS 163 8 ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS CEDAW : Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women FK3 : Forum Kajian Kitab Kuning (the Forum to Discuss Islamic Classical Texts) IAIN : Institute Agama Islam Negeri (The Islamic State Institute of Higher Learning) ICIP : International Center for Islam and Pluralism IPPNU : Ikatan Pelajar Putri Nahdhatul Ulama (The Female Student Union of Nahdhatul Ulama) ISIS : Institute for Social and Institutional Studies KOMNAS Perempuan: Komisi Nasional Perempuan (the National Commission on Violence against Women) KUII : Konferensi Umat Islam Indonesia (the Congress of the Indonesian Muslim Community) LAKPESDAM NU : Lembaga Pengkajian dan Pengembangan Sumber Daya Manusia NU (Nahdlatul Ulama Institute for Human Resource Study and Development) LKiS : Lembaga Kajian Islam dan Social (Institute for Islamic and Social Studies)