KEDUDUKAN DAN PERLINDUNGAN HUKUM SINGLE MOTHER DALAM PERSPEKTIF HUKUM KELUARGA ISLAM: KAJIAN ATAS ISU KEKINIAN DI INDONESIA

Abstract

The transformation of family structures in Indonesia has led to a growing number of female-headed households, contemporarily referred to as single mothers. This phenomenon arises from divorce (talak or cerai gugat), the death of a husband (cerai mati), or childbirth outside legally recognized marriage. This article examines the legal status, rights, and protection afforded to single mothers within the perspective of Islamic family law, highlighting contemporary issues such as the economic double burden, social stigma, hadhanah (child custody) rights, post-divorce child maintenance (nafkah), and guardianship (wali). Employing a normative-juridical method with conceptual and statutory approaches, this study combines primary Islamic legal sources—the Qur'an, Hadith, and the Compilation of Islamic Law (Kompilasi Hukum Islam)—with contemporary secondary literature. The findings indicate that Islamic family law normatively provides substantial protection to single mothers, particularly through the principle of hadhanah, which prioritizes the mother as custodian of a child who has not reached mumayyiz, and through the obligation of maintenance that remains binding upon the former husband or biological father. Nevertheless, implementation on the ground still faces structural challenges, including weak enforcement of maintenance rulings, minimal socio-economic protection, and persistent social stigma against divorced women. This article recommends strengthening the execution mechanisms of Religious Court rulings, optimizing the state's role through social security, and contextually reinterpreting classical fiqh through maqashid al-shari'ah and mubadalah approaches to achieve substantive gender justice for single mothers and their children.

Keywords: single mother, Islamic family law, hadhanah, child maintenance, maqashid al-shari'ah