Legal Justice in Aceh’s Gala Agreement for Local Economic Empowerment
Keywords:
Economic Empowerment, Gala Agreement, Islamic Economics, Local WisdomAbstract
The gala concept is a traditional agreement practiced by the Acehnese community to support economic empowerment based on local wisdom. Despite its continued use, limited research has examined the gala agreement in relation to Aceh’s special autonomy under Act No. 11 of 2006 concerning the Government of Aceh and its compatibility with Islamic economic principles. This study aims to analyze the form and implementation of the gala agreement within the framework of Islamic economics as a socio-economic practice that continues to operate in Acehnese society. This research adopts a socio-legal approach by drawing on both primary and secondary data. The analysis is carried out normatively to evaluate the consistency of gala practices with the principles of contract law, and sociologically to examine the evolving notions of justice within society. The results indicate that the implementation of economic empowerment through the gala model reflects the philosophical principles of Islamic economics, particularly mutual assistance (ta‘āwun) and social solidarity. However, in practice, the gala system still contains elements resembling interest due to the use of collateral and certain benefit arrangements by the gala provider, which creates inconsistencies with Shariah economic principles. Nevertheless, gala practices embody important social values such as justice, welfare, equality, trust, and religiosity within Acehnese society, while community leaders play a crucial role in maintaining their legitimacy. The novelty of this study lies in its reinterpretation of the gala agreement as a community-based financial model that integrates local wisdom, Islamic economic values, and Aceh’s special autonomy framework, while proposing its conceptual development toward a more structured and Shariah-compliant contract system.
Downloads
References
Adefare, Tomisin, et al., “Empowering Women Agriculture Entrepreneurs: Banks’ Role in Achieving Sustainable Development Goals,” International Journal of Bank Marketing 42.4 (2024): 692-724. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJBM-03-2023-0128.
Analia, Fitra, Achmad Abubakar, and Halimah Basri. “Konsep Pemeliharaan Harta Dalam Perspektif Maqasyid Syariah .” El-Mal: Jurnal Kajian Ekonomi & Bisnis Islam 4, no. 5 (2023). https://doi.org/10.47467/elmal.v4i5.3161.
Aref, Ahmed. “Methodologies And Smart Techniques Recommended In Analyzing Qur”Anic Principles For Islamic Economics And Finance.” In Teaching and Research Methods for Islamic Economics and Finance, 2021. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003252764-19.
Arif, Hermita, Asharin Juwita Purisamya, and Mohammad Mahbubi Ali. “Islamic Sharecropping Practices: Evidence from Indonesian Local Communities,” Riset: Jurnal Aplikasi Ekonomi Akuntansi dan Bisnis 7.1 (2025): 045-060. https://doi.org/10.37641/riset.v7i1.2589.
Armia, Ph.D, Prof. Muhammad Siddiq. “Question Career Path Aceh Sharia Police.” Dusturiyah: Jurnal Hukum Islam, Perundang-Undangan Dan Pranata Sosial 13, no. 1 (2023). https://doi.org/10.22373/dusturiyah.v13i1.17766.
Ashraf-Khan, Mohammed Veqar, and Mohammad Shahadat Hossain. “Governance: Exploring the Islamic Approach and Its Relevance for the Modern Context.” International Journal of Islamic Khazanah 11, no. 1 (2021). https://doi.org/10.15575/ijik.v11i1.10433.
Asriadi, Ari, M. Yasir Nasution, and Sugianto Sugianto. “The Characteristics Of Property And Ownership In The Islamic Economy.” Academy of Education Journal 14, no. 2 (2023). https://doi.org/10.47200/aoej.v14i2.1547.
Chambert-Loir, Henri, “Islamic Law in 17th Century Aceh,” Archipel. Études Interdisciplinaires sur le Monde Insulindien 94 (2017): 51-96. https://doi.org/10.4000/archipel.444.
Duhriah, et al., “Institutionalization of Islam and Adat: The Legal System of Hak Langgeih in Aceh,” JURIS (Jurnal Ilmiah Syariah) 23.1 (2024): 41-53. https://dx.doi.org/10.31958/juris.v23i1.7482.
Faizal, Liky, and Fristia Berdian Tamza, “The Practice of Transferring Land Ownership to a Pawn Agreement from the Perspective of Sharia Economic Law,” ASAS: Jurnal Hukum Ekonomi Syariah 15.2 (2023): 47-57. https://doi.org/10.24042/asas.v15i02.16583.
Fajri, Ikhsan, Eddy Gunawan, and Teuku Meldi Kesuma, “Gala (Ar-Rahnu) as Micro Financing Instruments in Islamic Financial Institution in Aceh,” Journal of Islamic Finance 8.2 (2019): 43-49. https://doi.org/10.31436/jif.v8i2.299.
Fatima, Samza, “Employability of a Research Method and Methodology in a Socio-Legal Study,” Global Social Sciences Review 8.1 (2023): 341-351. https://doi.org/10.31703/gssr.2023.
Gaitenidis, Nikolaos, “Indigenous Peoples, Cultural Heritage, and Traditional Knowledge: Untying the Gordian Knot of Human Rights and Intellectual Property in International Law,” International Journal on Minority and Group Rights 1.aop (2025): 1-45. https://brill.com/view/journals/ijgr/aop/article-10.1163-15718115-bja10226/article-10.1163-15718115-bja10226.xml.
Glass, Nancy, Nancy Perrin, Mendy Marsh, Amber Clough, Amelie Desgroppes, Francesco Kaburu, Brendan Ross, and Sophie Read-Hamilton. “Effectiveness of the Communities Care Programme on Change in Social Norms Associated with Gender-Based Violence (GBV) with Residents in Intervention Compared with Control Districts in Mogadishu, Somalia.” BMJ Open 9, no. 3 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2018-023819.
Hadi, Muhammad Yusran, and Utari Silvia Roja, “ The Application of Hybrid Contract System in Gala Bank Financing According to Fiqh Muamalah: A Study on KSPPS Baitul Qiradh Abdya,” Al-Mudharabah: Jurnal Ekonomi dan Keuangan Syariah 6.1 (2025): 45-61. https://doi.org/10.22373/al-mudharabah.v6i1.7659.
Hakola, Raimo, “The Production and Trade of Fish as Source of Economic Growth in the First Century CE Galilee: Galilean Economy Reexamined,” Novum Testamentum 59.2 (2017): 111-130. https://brill.com/view/journals/nt/59/2/article-p111_1.xml.
Hasbi, Yusrizal, et al. “Criminalising Women, Silencing Victims: Human Rights and Sharia Enforcement in Aceh.” De Jure: Jurnal Hukum dan Syar’iah 17.1 (2025): 175-203. https://doi.org/10.18860/j-fsh.v17i1.29635.
Hariyanto, Erie, Harisah, Hidayatullah, Moh Hamzah, Fatekhul Mujib, and Cut Linda Marheni. “In Search of Ummah Welfare Model: The Revitalisation of Sharia Economic Law in Indonesia.” Sriwijaya Law Review 7, no. 2 (2023). https://doi.org/10.28946/slrev.Vol7.Iss2.1080.pp244-261.
Helvacıoğlu, Mustafa, Mehmet Bulut, Mohamed Cherif El-Amri, and Mustafa Omar Mohammed. “A Critical Analysis of The Economic Dimensions of SDGs Based on Islamic Economics Perspective.” In International Conference on Sustainable Development Goals, Vol. 1, 2021.
Ibrahim, A. “Gala Dan Rahn: Analisis Korelasi Dari Perspektif Ekonomi Islam (Gala and Rahn: A Correlative Analysis from Islamic Standpoint).” SHARE Jurnal Ekonomi Dan Keuangan Islam, 2012.
Indainanto, Yofiendi Indah, Maulana Andinata Dalimunthe, Hasan Sazali, Rubino, and Syukur Kholil. “Islamic Communication in Voicing Religious Moderation as an Effort to Prevent Conflicts of Differences in Beliefs.” Pharos Journal of Theology 104, no. 4 (2023). https://doi.org/10.46222/pharosjot.104.415.
Iqbal, Muhammad, et al. “Reconceptualization of Gala Agreement (Custom pledge) in Aceh Society Based on Sharia,” Opción: Revista de Ciencias Humanas Sociales 27 (2020): 129. https://produccioncientificaluz.org/index.php/opcion/article/view/32539.
James, Robertson, “The Role of Local Communities in Social-Based Economic Empowerment,” Journal of Social, Culture & Humanitarian Research 1.1 (2025): 28-36. https://pub.muzulab.com/index.php/SocioCult/article/view/58.
Jamil, Tengku Muhammad, “Overcoming the Social Problems Faced by Contemporary Acehnese through the Social Political Role of Acehnese Clerics (Muslim Scholars),” Journal of Islamic Marketing 11.1 (2020): 213-233. https://doi.org/10.1108/JIMA-03-2018-0047.
Maksalmina, “Mawah Practices in Aceh: Syariah Legitimacy Based on Fatwas and Islamic Jurisprudence,” Al-Mustashfa: Jurnal Penelitian Hukum Ekonomi Syariah 9.2 (2024): 172-190. https://badge.dimensions.ai/details/doi/10.24235/jm.v9i2.18816?domain=https://www.syekhnurjati.ac.id.
Maulana, Muhammad, and Aulil Amri, “Polarization of Profit Sharing of Paddy Cultivation in the Acehnese Community as an Attempt to Alleviate Poverty: A Study of Fiqh Muamalah,” Samarah: Jurnal Hukum Keluarga dan Hukum Islam 5.1 (2021): 297-316. https://doi.org/10.22373/sjhk.v5i1.8774.
Mawar, Sitti, and Muhammad Iqbal, “Multicultural Dispute Resolution System in Aceh Before and After the Issuance of the Customary Institution Qanun,” Samarah: Jurnal Hukum Keluarga dan Hukum Islam 9.1 (2025): 560-574. https://doi.org/10.22373/sjhk.v9i1.19767.
Nurdiana, Rahmawati Muin, and Abdul Wahab, “Fundamental Principles of Islamic Economic System: Justice, Equity, and Moral Conduct,” Formosa Journal of Multidisciplinary Research 4.6 (2025): 2627-2646. https://doi.org/10.55927/fjmr.v4i6.271.
Putri, Juliana, “New Movement Local Wisdomnomic: Studi of Mawah as a Model of Community Economic Empowerment,” Jurnal Ekonomi Syariah, Akuntansi dan Perbankan (JESKaPe) 7.1 (2023): 49-66. https://doi.org/10.52490/jeskape.v7i1.1265.
Rahayu, Ayu, “The Practice of Islamic Law in Nusantara Traditional Customs,” Maqsha: Journal of Islamic Jurisprudence 2.1 (2025): 59-64. https://www.pdpijournals.org/index.php/jij/article/view/41.
Riswandi, Dedi, Mashur Mashur, and Ahmad Sibawai. “Sistem Ekonomi Islam Dalam Persepsi Tokoh Agama Desa Pagutan Kecamatan Batukliang Kabupaten Lombok Tengah.” JURNAL SOSIAL EKONOMI DAN HUMANIORA 9, no. 1 (2023). https://doi.org/10.29303/jseh.v9i1.227.
Sebayang, Asnita Frida, Ria Haryatiningsih, and Fitroh Hayati. “Local Economic Development Strategy through Mosque’s Islamic Leadership and Managerial Capacity.” In Proceedings of the 4th Social and Humanities Research Symposium (SoRes 2021), Vol. 658, 2022. https://doi.org/10.2991/assehr.k.220407.028.
Siregar, Ahmad Sholihin, Ainiah Ainiah, and Zakiul Fuady Muhammad Daud. “Towards Usury-Free Finance in Land Pawning: Evaluating Carter and Angkat-Bloe Contracts,” Share: Jurnal Ekonomi dan Keuangan Islam 13.2 (2024): 686-702. https://doi.org/10.22373/share.v13i2.23642.
Subekti, Rahayu, Purwono Sungkowo Rahardjo, and Alya Maya Khonsa Rahayu. “The Agro-Finance Governance Of Land Pawning Institutionalism In An Asian Emerging Economy.” Corporate Governance and Organizational Behavior Review 6, no. 4 (2022). https://doi.org/10.22495/cgobrv6i4p14.
Sudarman. et.all., “Local Trade in the Kingdom of Inderapura in the 17th-18th Century Ce,” JOURNAL TSAQAFAH 16.1 (2020). https://doi.org/10.21111/TSAQAFAH.V16I1.3889.
Suhaimi, Suhaimi, Abdurrahman Abdurrahman, and Ishak Ishak. “Eksistensi Mawah (Bagi Hasil) Tanah Pertanian Dalam Masyarakat Hukum Adat Di Kecamatan Kuta Cot Glie, Kabupaten Aceh Besar.” Jurnal IUS Kajian Hukum dan Keadilan 9.1 (2021): 139-154. https://doi.org/10.29303/ius.v9i1.843.
Sulaiman, Romi Asmara, and Yusrizal, “Model Harmonization Of Islamic Law, Customary Law And Western Civil Law In Purchase Agreement,” IOSR Journal of Humanities And Social Science (IOSR-JHSS), Volume 21, Issue 11, Ver. 2 (November. 2016) PP 49-56. https://doi.org/10.9790/0837-2111024956.
Sulaiman, Sulaiman, and Faisal Faisal. “Conception of Implementing the Law of Selling in Aceh (Research Study in Lhokseumawe City and Central Aceh).” Proceedings of Malikussaleh International Conference on Law, Legal Studies and Social Science (MICoLLS) 2 (2023). https://doi.org/10.29103/micolls.v2i.239.
Taqiyuddin, Hafidz, Mus’Idul Millah, and Hikmatul Luthfi. “Instruments of Property Ownership in Islam: The Study of Inheritance Law.” Journal of Islamic Thought and Civilization 13, no. 1 (2023). https://doi.org/10.32350/jitc.131.11.
Widana, Agus, Hariman Surya Siregar, Asis Saefudin, and Hilman Mangkuwibawa. “Islam, Local Knowledge and Preservation of Land (A Case Study in Cijambu Village, Tanjungsari-Sumedang),” 2018. https://doi.org/10.2991/icie-18.2018.31.
Yahya, A. “Legal Study of Building Sharia-Based Investment in Aceh: The Challenges After the Enactment of the Qanun of Sharia Financial Institution.” Samarah 7, no. 2 (2023): 959–77. https://doi.org/10.22373/sjhk.v7i2.17653.
Yasmeen, Kausar, “Framework for Islamic Social Entrepreneurship,” Journal of Islamic Accounting and Business Research (2024). https://doi.org/10.1108/JIABR-08-2023-0256.
Yolandika, Chaterine, “Social Concepts of Traditional Tustice and Methods of Settlement of Traditional Law in Aceh, Indonesia,” Economic Management and Social Sciences Journal (2022): 15-20. https://doi.org/10.56787/ecomans.v1i1.8.
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
Copyright (c) 2026 Sulaiman, Muhammad Nasir, Yusrizal Hasbi, Jumadiah
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
The authors hold the copyright. Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal. How ever the author should affirming that the article is their original work should accompany the article via online submission form. Authors are permitted to share a Preprint of their article anywhere at any time. Link Declaration of originality (PDF)
