Reforming Legal Protection for Children through Pre-Marriage Counselling Services to Prevent Child Marriage at the Office of Religious Affairs

Abstract

Child marriage remains a persistent legal and social challenge in Indonesia, despite legal reforms that have raised the minimum age for marriage. The Office of Religious Affairs (KUA) plays a strategic role in preventing child marriage through the provision of pre-marital counselling, particularly through the Marriage Counselling (Bimwin) and School-Age Youth Counselling (BRUS) programmes. This study aims to critically analyse legal protection for children through the model of pre-marital counselling service management in the context of child marriage, as well as the extent to which pre-marital counselling functions as a legal protection tool for children when evaluated through the framework of Islamic family law. The research method employed was descriptive qualitative analysis based on a socio-legal approach, with data selected from the KUA offices in Ajung, Pakusari, and Sumbersari in Jember Regency through observation, in-depth interviews, and documentary analysis. The research findings indicate that the model of pre-marital course practices at the KUA in cases of child marriage is not yet optimal in helping to fulfil children’s rights, as the substance of the material and the service management model remain general in nature and are insufficient in integrating issues of children’s rights and the protection of offspring into programmes for school-age youth guidance and marriage counselling. From the perspective of Islamic family law, this situation indicates that the realisation of the objectives of maqāṣid al-syarī‘ah, particularly ḥifẓ al-nafs and ḥifẓ al-nasl, has not been optimal. This article emphasises the need to reformulate the management of pre-marital courses so that they are preventive, contextual, and in line with the principles of child protection in Islamic family law.

Keywords: child marriage, Office of Religious Affairs (KUA), pre-marital counselling, maqāṣid al-Syarī‘ah, islamic family law.

Perkawinan anak tetap menjadi tantangan hukum dan sosial yang persisten di Indonesia, meskipun telah dilakukan reformasi hukum yang menaikkan batas usia minimum untuk menikah. Kantor Urusan Agama (KUA) memiliki peran strategis dalam mencegah perkawinan anak melalui pengelolaan bimbingan pra-nikah, khususnya dalam program Bimbingan Pernikahan (Bimwin) dan Bimbingan Remaja Usia Sekolah (BRUS). Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk menganalisis secara kritis perlindungan hukum bagi anak melalui model pengelolaan layanan bimbingan pra-nikah dalam konteks pernikahan anak, serta sejauh mana bimbingan pra-nikah berfungsi sebagai alat perlindungan hukum bagi anak ketika dievaluasi melalui kerangka hukum keluarga Islam. Metode penelitian yang digunakan adalah analisis kualitatif deskriptif berdasarkan pendekatan sosiologis-hukum, dengan data dipilih dari KUA Ajung, Pakusari, dan Sumbersari di Kabupaten Jember melalui observasi, wawancara mendalam, dan studi dokumentasi. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa model praktik kursus pra-nikah di KUA dalam kasus pernikahan anak belum optimal dalam membantu memenuhi hak-hak anak karena substansi materi dan model pengelolaan layanan masih bersifat umum dan belum memadai dalam mengintegrasikan isu-isu hak anak dan perlindungan keturunan dalam program bimbingan remaja usia sekolah dan bimbingan pernikahan. Dari perspektif hukum keluarga Islam, kondisi ini menunjukkan bahwa realisasi tujuan maqāṣid al-syarī‘ah, khususnya ḥifẓ al-nafs dan ḥifẓ al-nasl, belum optimal. Artikel ini menekankan perlunya mereformulasi pengelolaan kursus pra-pernikahan agar bersifat preventif, kontekstual, dan sesuai dengan prinsip-prinsip perlindungan anak dalam hukum keluarga Islam.

Kata kunci: pernikahan anak, Kantor Urusan Agama (KUA), konseling pranikah, maqāṣid al-syarī‘ah, hukum keluarga islam.