<![CDATA[The paper discusses the legal protection and gender justice in the case of child custody after divorce in Aceh, Indonesia. In this study, a qualitative socio-legal approach was employed to explore the causes and consequences of custody disputes, legal protection practices, judicial considerations, gender dynamics and institutional responses. The data were collected using in-depth interviews and document analysis. The participants were 12 people in Banda Aceh, Aceh Besar and Pidie, consisting of divorced parents, judges, lawyers, mediators and advocates of child protection. The data were analyzed by thematic analysis. Findings revealed that economic hardship, domestic conflict and breakdown of communication were the major reasons for divorce and subsequent custody problems. The long-term parental conflict was found to be detrimental to the psychological and emotional health of children resulting in emotional insecurity, behavioral instability and loyalty conflicts between parents. Courts often took into account the best interest of the child, but post-divorce parenting arrangements often fell prey to patriarchal norms, with mothers usually regarded as the primary caregivers and fathers as the financial providers. Enforcement of child support obligations and other legal protection mechanisms remained inconsistent, particularly regarding meeting children's educational, health and psychosocial needs. The focus was on mediation, institutional co-operation and reducing parental conflict and strengthening child-centred protection. This study concludes that the post-divorce situation in Aceh in terms of child protection and gender justice needs gender-sensitive legal approaches, better implementation of parental responsibilities, available psychosocial support, and coordinated institutional collaboration.]]>
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