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Unregistered Marriages in Sabah: Indonesian Migrant Workers at the Crossroads of Faith, Law, and Livelihood

Journal of Human Rights, Culture and Legal System · Vol. 5 No. 2 (2025) · hlm. 608–629

DOI
10.53955/jhcls.v5i2.702
ISSN
2807-2812, 2807-2979
Terbit
2025-09-08
Penerbit
Yayasan Pendidikan Contrarius Indonesia
Bahasa
eng
Lisensi
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

Abstrak

The immigration policy of Malaysia prohibits migrant workers from marrying during their employment contract, whether with fellow migrant workers or Malaysian citizens. However, despite this prohibition, the practice of marriage between Indonesian migrant workers, often referred to as kawin kampung (village marriage), has been prevalent for many years in Sabah, Malaysia. This marriage practice occurs without the involvement of the state and is not officially registered, thus classified as an unofficial or nikah sirri (secret marriage). Nevertheless, such marriages are recognized socially within the community, even though they are not legally acknowledged (illegal but licit). This research aims to explain the structure and agency involved in marriage practice among Indonesian migrant workers. Taking the floor in Sabah, Malaysia, data were gathered through interviews with related parties in the field. This research employs Giddens' theory of structuration. This research argues that the practice of kawin kampung (village marriage) among Indonesian migrant workers (PMI) in Sabah, is a multifaceted issue influenced by a combination of religious, legal, economic, and social factors. Their religious belief constitutes an essential foundation for sustaining life within the oil palm plantations. Although their marriages cannot be categorized as legally valid under the Malaysian state law, they are many times underhand allowed by the company and can gradually and annually be submitted for official validation (isbat nikah) at the Indonesian representative office. Inconsistent law enforcement against undocumented immigrants has enabled their continued entry, thereby perpetuating the practice of unregistered marriages (kawin kampung) among Indonesian migrants.

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23 penulis · 51 tautan kepenulisan bersama · 33 lintas organisasi

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  • Sebelas Maret University
  • Universitas Islam Negeri Ar-Raniry
  • Universitas Gadjah Mada
  • Sunan Kalijaga State Islamic University Yogyakarta
  • Universiti Tenaga Nasional
  • Universitas Muhammadiyah Malang
  • Leiden University
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Tampilkan sebagai tabel
Rekan penulisOrganisasiArtikel bersama
Abdul Kadir JaelaniSebelas Maret University5
Sholahuddin Al-FatihUniversitas Muhammadiyah Malang2
Resti Dian LuthviatiSebelas Maret University2
Yuhasnibar SyahUniversitas Islam Negeri Ar-Raniry2
M. Misbahul MujibAfiliasi tidak diketahui1
Hartini HartiniUniversitas Gadjah Mada1
Dita Elvia Kusuma PutriUniversitas Gadjah Mada1
Faiz RahmanLeiden University1
Yulkarnain HarahabUniversitas Gadjah Mada1
Iskandar IskandarUniversitas Islam Negeri Ar-Raniry1
Rahul HusniUniversitas Islam Negeri Ar-Raniry1
Rona MaulidarUniversitas Islam Negeri Ar-Raniry1
Ahmad SiboyUniversitas Islam Malang1
Hilaire TegnanWilliam & Mary1
Lego KarjokoSebelas Maret University1
Henning GlaserThammasat University1
Anila RabbaniSebelas Maret University1
Adul Rahim HakimiAfiliasi tidak diketahui1
Muhammad Adib AlfarisiInstitut Agama Islam Negeri Pontianak1
Andi HermanUniversitas Sembilanbelas November Kolaka1

Afiliasi berasal dari OpenAlex; metadata OAI-PMH jurnal tidak memuatnya. Penulis tanpa ID OpenAlex dicocokkan berdasarkan nama, sehingga dua orang bisa tergabung atau satu orang bisa terpisah.

Sumber metadata: OAI-PMH (metadata jurnal) https://www.jhcls.org/index.php/JHCLS/oai, pertama di-harvest 10 Nov 2026, terakhir terlihat 10 Nov 2026.
Metadata asli (oai_dc) 
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	<dc:title xml:lang="en-US">Unregistered Marriages in Sabah: Indonesian Migrant Workers at the Crossroads of Faith, Law, and Livelihood</dc:title>
	<dc:creator>Wahib, Ahmad Bunyan</dc:creator>
	<dc:creator>Hayat, Muhammad Jihadul</dc:creator>
	<dc:creator>Awang, Nurulbahiah</dc:creator>
	<dc:subject xml:lang="en-US">Migrant Workers; Marriage; Nikah kampung; Isbat nikah;</dc:subject>
	<dc:description xml:lang="en-US">The immigration policy of Malaysia prohibits migrant workers from marrying during their employment contract, whether with fellow migrant workers or Malaysian citizens. However, despite this prohibition, the practice of marriage between Indonesian migrant workers, often referred to as kawin kampung (village marriage), has been prevalent for many years in Sabah, Malaysia. This marriage practice occurs without the involvement of the state and is not officially registered, thus classified as an unofficial or nikah sirri (secret marriage). Nevertheless, such marriages are recognized socially within the community, even though they are not legally acknowledged (illegal but licit). This research aims to explain the structure and agency involved in marriage practice among Indonesian migrant workers. Taking the floor in Sabah, Malaysia, data were gathered through interviews with related parties in the field. This research employs Giddens' theory of structuration. This research argues that the practice of kawin kampung (village marriage) among Indonesian migrant workers (PMI) in Sabah, is a multifaceted issue influenced by a combination of religious, legal, economic, and social factors. Their religious belief constitutes an essential foundation for sustaining life within the oil palm plantations. Although their marriages cannot be categorized as legally valid under the Malaysian state law, they are many times underhand allowed by the company and can gradually and annually be submitted for official validation (isbat nikah) at the Indonesian representative office. Inconsistent law enforcement against undocumented immigrants has enabled their continued entry, thereby perpetuating the practice of unregistered marriages (kawin kampung) among Indonesian migrants.</dc:description>
	<dc:publisher xml:lang="en-US">Yayasan Pendidikan Contrarius Indonesia</dc:publisher>
	<dc:date>2025-09-08</dc:date>
	<dc:type>info:eu-repo/semantics/article</dc:type>
	<dc:type>info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion</dc:type>
	<dc:type xml:lang="en-US">Peer-reviewed Article</dc:type>
	<dc:format>application/pdf</dc:format>
	<dc:identifier>https://www.jhcls.org/index.php/JHCLS/article/view/702</dc:identifier>
	<dc:identifier>10.53955/jhcls.v5i2.702</dc:identifier>
	<dc:source xml:lang="en-US">Journal of Human Rights, Culture and Legal System; Vol. 5 No. 2 (2025): Journal of Human Rights, Culture and Legal System; 608-629</dc:source>
	<dc:source>2807-2812</dc:source>
	<dc:source>2807-2979</dc:source>
	<dc:source>10.53955/jhcls.v5i2</dc:source>
	<dc:language>eng</dc:language>
	<dc:relation>https://www.jhcls.org/index.php/JHCLS/article/view/702/123</dc:relation>
	<dc:rights xml:lang="en-US">Copyright (c) 2025 Ahmad Bunyan Wahib, Muhammad Jihadul Hayat, Nurulbahiah Awang</dc:rights>
	<dc:rights xml:lang="en-US">https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0</dc:rights>
</oai_dc:dc>