In many pesantren and majelis taklim (religious study groups), the ideal akhwat is expected to marry early to an ikhwan (brother) to protect her chastity. If she works? Her income legally belongs to her husband ( Nafkah ). If she wants a divorce? The stigma is crushing.
However, the state also fears her. The fear is not the jilbab , but the ideology —the quiet desire to replace the Negara Kesatuan Republik Indonesia (NKRI) with Khilafah . While most akhwat are not terrorists, the slow "creeping conservatism" (e.g., demands to ban Mirasantika alcohol sales or close massage parlors) threatens the pluralistic tourism and night economy of Bali and Jakarta. In many pesantren and majelis taklim (religious study
Following the fall of Suharto in 1998, religious expression flourished. The percentage of Muslim women wearing the hijab skyrocketed from roughly 5% in the late 1990s to approximately 75% by 2021. If she wants a divorce