ABSTRACT
The freer political environment in post-tsunami Aceh has helped women activists to engage in debates about how best to interpret the Islamic doctrines as the basis to form Islamic law. Women's movements demand that religious leaders and government institutions include women in rereading the sources of Islamic law, so that Qanun will not discriminate against women but instead guarantee equality. Gender equality, women's rights and the need for a reinterpretation of Islam did, in fact, become a standard part of public discussions among Acehnese at that period of time. Local women activists have, in fact, been able to organize into women's movements by creating two key women's networks, the Jaringan Perempuan Untuk Kebijakan (JPUK) and the Gender Working Group (GWG). Both of these networks have attempted to introduce wider Acehnese society to the need to participate in politics and understand their rights in Islam.
