June 8, 2026 | Hüseyin Büyüközer
Dr. Hüseyin Kâmi BÜYÜKÖZER
Indonesia’s Halal Product Assurance Agency (BPJPH) has announced that a new and uncompromising era of halal obligation will begin in the country as of October 17, 2026. This move, which claims to rewrite the rules of global trade, positions the concept of halal as “a quality standard of the 21st century” and an element of commercial access. Yet the Halal and Tayyib standard is a sacred, faith-based, and global right of the Ummah — too fundamental to be confined by the sovereign borders of states or bureaucratic regulations.
The Rising Civil Voice Since 2005: GIMDES and the Understanding of the Ummah
While the countries with the world’s largest Muslim populations today seek to impose their own national legislation on global trade, GIMDES (Food and Need Items Inspection and Certification Research Association) has been on its path since its founding in 2005 under the motto “One Voice, One Heart.” GIMDES represents a principled civil stance that has aimed to unite all Muslims worldwide under a single roof along the axis of faith — without prioritizing the political or commercial interests of any country.
The efforts of states to monopolize halal certification carry the risk of undermining the independence at the heart of the halal cause. The Halal and Tayyib standard must remain independent of:
- Political circumstances,
- International trade wars,
- The periodic policies of governments.
Halal Standards Are Not the Property of Global Bureaucracy
The new rules introduced by Indonesia aim to present halal certification to humanity as “a clean, healthy, and green lifestyle standard applied by everyone in the world.” However, it must not be forgotten that halal is, above all, a divine commandment and an uncompromising condition of faith for Muslims. Hollowing out this concept and transforming it into a secular “quality certificate” or a bureaucratic formality through “Mutual Recognition Agreements” with foreign state institutions damages the very essence of the halal assurance system.
For any state or institution to impose its own system as the sole legitimate gateway is nothing other than an attempt to homogenize the halal market and establish a monopoly. Halal certification cannot be reduced to a mere control mechanism at the customs gates of states. This oversight must remain in the hands of competent, impartial, civil institutions that have earned the trust of the Ummah and seek nothing but the pleasure of Allah.
A Warning and a Call to Responsible Institutions
We consider it a duty to warn all state mechanisms and international institutions that seek to shape the global halal industry today:
- Halal Trade Is Not a Bargaining Chip: Positioning halal certification as a prerequisite or an embargo tool for accessing billion-dollar market shares does not befit the dignity of this act of worship.
- Civil Initiative Must Be Protected: The sole force protecting the conscience and faith security of Muslim consumers is not state-guided agencies, but independent civil structures such as GIMDES that have declared their autonomy.
- The Roof of the Ummah Cannot Be Divided: Each country establishing its own “mandatory” system does not achieve standardization unity across the Ummah’s geography — on the contrary, it leads to fragmentation.
The steps taken by Indonesia or any other country can only carry value to the extent that they respect the shared conscience of the Ummah and its civil oversight mechanisms. The Halal and Tayyib standard is a universal cause that transcends the borders of states and aims at the happiness of all humanity and the eternal salvation of Muslims. The custodianship of this cause belongs not to states, but to the Ummah itself.
