Maslahah Mursalah as a Foundation for Implementing Hybrid Islamic Mediation to Prevent Divorce among Generation Z

Abstract

This study aims to analyze the construction of maslahah mursalah as a normative parameter for the implementation of hybrid mediation in divorce cases involving Generation Z. Technological developments and the distinctive characteristics of Generation Z require adaptive dispute resolution mechanisms, while the use of electronic mediation in family disputes necessitates a normative foundation capable of safeguarding public benefit and preventing potential mafsadah (harm). This study employs normative legal research using statutory and conceptual approaches. The primary legal materials consist of regulations governing court-annexed mediation, particularly Supreme Court Regulation Number 1 of 2016 and Supreme Court Regulation Number 3 of 2022, while the secondary legal materials include literature on maslahah mursalah, maqasid al-shariah, islah, mediation, and electronic dispute resolution. The analysis is conducted qualitatively and prescriptively through the identification of the principles of maslahah mursalah, the mapping of benefits and potential harms arising from hybrid mediation, an assessment of its conformity with maqasid al-shariah, and an examination of its compatibility with Indonesian positive law. The findings demonstrate that maslahah mursalah can be constructed as a normative parameter for determining the appropriate use of face-to-face, electronic, or combined mechanisms in the mediation of divorce disputes. Such a construction requires that the use of technology in mediation does not conflict with nass, supports the objectives of maqasid al-shariah, particularly hifz al-nasl, hifz al-nafs, and islah, and generates benefits without creating greater harm. Accordingly, hybrid mediation may be positioned as a context-responsive model of family dispute resolution with normative legitimacy under Islamic law, provided that it satisfies the parameters of maslahah and complies with the applicable provisions of Indonesian positive law. This study is not intended to empirically demonstrate a reduction in divorce rates; rather, it seeks to establish a normative foundation for the development of hybrid mediation as a preventive instrument in resolving divorce disputes involving Generation Z.