Participatory Legal Empowerment in Religious Asset Disputes: The Muhammadiyah Singosari Case

Abstract

Land disputes involving religious organizations in Indonesia often become complex due to fragmented legal documentation and historical claims. This community service project focuses on resolving a land ownership dispute between a private heir and the Muhammadiyah organization in Singosari, Malang Regency, concerning land used for educational purposes by the Aisyiyah Bustanul Athfal 3 Kindergarten. The objective is to provide legal assistance to Muhammadiyah through a non-litigation approach. Employing Participatory Action Research (PAR), the team conducted legal consultations, document validation, stakeholder interviews, field observations, and multiple coordination meetings. The findings reveal dual claims: one based on a colonial-era eigendom verponding title (1948) and another based on a recently issued land certificate (SHM, 2023). Despite the overlapping claims, mediation emerged as the most viable path due to the shared institutional ties between the parties. The study concludes that the PAR approach facilitated an inclusive and empathetic engagement and recommends early legal counseling and structured non-litigation processes for religious and social institutions to mitigate costly disputes and preserve social harmony.