SUMMARY
Pembiayaan nafkah anak yatim selepas kematian bapanya adalah di bawah tanggungjawab ahli waris menurut hukum fiqh dan Undang-Undang Keluarga Islam di Malaysia. Namun, kefahaman masyarakat mengenai kewajipan ahli waris dalam menanggung nafkah anak yatim menjadi persoalan kerana sangat jarang tuntutan nafkah ke atas ahli waris dibuat oleh pihak anak yatim di mahkamah. Justeru kajian ini bertujuan meneliti kewajipan menafkahi anak yatim oleh ahli waris menurut perspektif fiqh dan Undang-Undang Keluarga Islam dan menilai kefahaman dan amalan masyarakat mengenai tanggungjawab ini. Kaedah kajian yang digunakan adalah mix mode method iaitu kajian dokumentasi, temu bual bersama hakim-hakim dan pengurus-pengurus pusat jagaan anak-anak yatim dan soal selidik. Seramai 400 orang responden terlibat dalam kajian soal selidik mewakili kefahaman masyarakat di Lembah Klang, Malaysia. Dapatan daripada soal selidik dianalisis menggunakan statistikdeskriptif. Hasil kajian mendapati tahap kefahaman masyarakat terhadap tanggungjawab ahli waris dalam nafkah anak yatim adalah tinggi, samada berkenaan hukum syarak mahupun peruntukan undang-undang syariah di Malaysia. Namun sokongan daripada ahli waris daripada sudut material (nafkah) dan moral selepas anak-anak yatim diserahkan ke rumah jagaan anak-anak yatim sangat tidak memuaskan, manakala kes tuntutan nafkah anak yatim ke atas ahli waris di mahkamah syariah jarang berlaku. Kajian ini berpandangan perlunya satu badan yang boleh bertindak untuk menasihat dan membantu pihak ibu dan penjaga anak-anak yatim untuk memfailkan tuntutan nafkah anak yatim ke atas ahli waris. Kempen kesedaran masyarakat terutamanya implikasi pengabaian oleh ahli waris daripada perspektif undang-undang dan hukuman perlulah disebarluaskan kepada masyarakat Muslim. Kata kunci: Pembiayaan Nafkah Anak Yatim; Syariah, Ahli Waris; Kefahaman masyarakat; Amalan masyarakat. Abstract In the absence of the father, the obligation to support an orphan financially was charged upon the heirs of the orphan’s father according to fiqh and Islamic Family Law in Malaysia. However, Muslims in Malaysia may not clearly understand this as cases reported and filed on heirs in bearing orphans is quite rare and uncommon. This study identifies obligation of heirs in financing the orphan according to fiqh as well as Islamic Family Law in Malaysia, and to analyse the level of understanding and practices among Malaysians relating to this obligation. This study adopts a mixed mode design which consist of content analysis, careful surveys, and in-depth interviews with selected judges and orphanage managers in Klang Valley. For surveys, 400 respondents were randomly selected to represent Muslim society in Klang Valley and the findings were subject to descriptive statistics. The results found that society’s level of understanding concerning the obligation of heirs in supporting the orphan is high in terms of fiqh or Islamic Family Law. Despite of this, in practice, the support received by orphans from their heirs after being orphanage is exceedingly discouraging. Meanwhile, cases filed on the heirs regarding their obligation to supporting and bearing the orphan are rarely reported. This study suggests the need for a body that can act to advise and assist the mother and guardian of orphans to file claim for the maintenance of orphans to heirs. Public awareness campaigns, particularly implication of negligence by the assignee from the perspective of the law and penalties that may be imposed by the authorities should be disseminated to the Muslim community. Keywords: Financingorphan; Syariah; heirs; social understanding, social practices.