Internally from domestic organizations, and externally from foreign observers, Aceh’s Qanun Jinayat (Islamic Criminal Law) has been criticized for being unconstitutional, discriminatory, and anachronistic. However, an attempt to revoke the Qanun through judicial review by domestic civil society organizations at the Indonesian Supreme Court had failed. A socio-legal study, this paper examined the judicial review in detail, as well as the social and legal developments which occurred around the time of review. It was found that Islamic criminal law in Indonesia has only obtained a temporary triumph, and most probably would face many more trials in the rapidly changing regional, national, and global legal environment.