This article addresses the dilemmas and compromises in legal practice around the issue of child marriage in Indonesia. Although the government set development goals that include ending child marriage and complying with human rights standard, it is facing considerable resistance. We researched the state legal system and law in practice to understand this resistance, finding that: (1) law-making in family law involves conflict between progressive and conservative ideas; (2) consequently there is friction within current family law and laws regarding human rights; (3) judges use their discretion to achieve compromises between state laws and local norms; and (4) state law is creatively interpreted and applied at village level. The resistance at all these levels, arising from the religious concerns of conservative Muslims in a rapidly modernizing Indonesian society, is a formidable obstacle for the government to achieve its development goals. Adolescent sexuality is at the heart of these tensions.

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Although the prevalence of child marriage in Indonesia is still high, adat law studies on child marriage have not received as much attention as land-related studies. This research concerning a century of political debate on child marriage proves that child marriage can only be understood if examined from the perspective of the dynamic relationship between national law, religious law, and adat law. A comparison between the results of an antrophological case study on West Java (Sundanese and Islam) and a historical case study on North Sumatra (Toba Batak and Christian) shows that the legal culture of the community and the role of religious leaders are important determinants of the acceptance or rejection of child marriage.

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