On May 6, 2025, 35 students from the Islamic Economic Law Study Program (HES), accompanied by Program Head Rio Erismen Armen, Lc., MA., Ph.D., Secretary of the HES Program Sansan Abdul Malik, S.H., and lecturer Ahmad Izzah, S.E., LL.M, conducted a study visit to the Supreme Court of the Republic of Indonesia, specifically to the Directorate General of Religious Courts (BADILAG) located on Jl. Jend. Ahmad Yani, Central Jakarta. The visit was received by Drs. Arief Hidayat, S.H., M.H., the Secretary of BADILAG, and his team.
This activity aims to introduce students to the religious court system directly as future practitioners of Islamic economic law.
The meeting began with an introductory statement from Rio Erismen Armen, Lc., MA., Ph.D., as the Head of the HES Program and representative of SEBI. In his speech, Dr. Rio expressed hope that this event would open doors for students to explore the religious court system further and opportunities for collaborative development through MBKM programs and seminars with SEBI lecturers.
During the main session, Secretary of BADILAG, Drs. Arief Hidayat, S.H., M.H., presented on the structure, roles, and the digitalization of religious courts in Indonesia. He emphasized that graduates from the Faculty of Sharia, including those from the HES program, have great opportunities to pursue careers as judges in religious courts, regardless of their university background.
Several interesting facts were shared, including:
- Indonesian religious courts handle over 624,000 cases each year.
- Currently, there are 1,537 active judges, with an ideal need of 7,849 judges.
- BADILAG has implemented an electronic court system since 2018, covering registration, payments, summons, and mediation.
In the Q&A session, students raised concerns about competition from larger universities. However, Drs. Arief Hidayat reassured them that there is no discrimination in judge recruitment; it depends solely on competence and the selection process.
The event concluded with a prayer, a documentation session, and renewed enthusiasm for students to continue learning and contributing to a fair and modern national legal system.