COMPARATIVE STUDY OF ALI YAFIE’S AND SITI MUSDAH MULIA’S THOUGHTS ON THE CONCEPT OF QIWAMAH IN THE FAMILY

Abstract

This study examines a comparative analysis of Ali Yafie's and Siti Musdah Mulia’s thoughts on qiwamah (household leadership). Ali Yafie posits that the husband serves as the head of the family (qawwam) responsible for providing mandatory maintenance. Conversely, Siti Musdah Mulia argues that the role of family head can shift between either spouse. This research addresses two primary questions: the biographies and conceptual frameworks of both figures, and their respective views on qiwamah. Accordingly, this qualitative library research aims to evaluate their intellectual backgrounds and analyze their conceptualizations of household leadership. The findings indicate that Ali Yafie conceptualizes the husband as the family head through functional, welfare-based leadership, whereas Musdah Mulia advocates a flexible-progressive model rooted in gender equality. Furthermore, Ali Yafie measures family welfare by the fulfillment of basic individual and collective needs, while Musdah Mulia emphasizes the fulfillment of family functions and tawhid (monotheism) awareness. These divergences stem from their distinct conceptual frameworks. This study concludes that while both figures differ in their leadership paradigms, their views exhibit both convergences and divergences regarding the status of spouses and standards of family welfare.