[1] The origins of this force can be traced to 2001 when a special autonomy law was promulgated to allow for the state of Aceh to implement more elements of sharia law, which the Indonesian government see as a useful way of decreasing local fervor for Acehnese independence.
[4] The units were formed in response to an increase in "unmarried couples, Muslim women without headscarves or those wearing tight clothes, and people drinking alcohol or gambling,” which authorities perceived to have become more common following contact with Western ideas after foreign aid was provided after the 2004 Indonesian tsunami.
Its public image deteriorated heavily in 2010 after three officials were found to have raped a girl that was being detained by them in West Aceh Regency.
[4] In another instance, an officer was found to be engaging in sex with his girlfriend in a Banda Aceh bathroom.
139/2016, structured the force as follow:[8] As apparatus of Aceh province, the commander of Wilayatul Hisbah reported to Governor of Aceh,[8] but the institution consolidated and consulted to the Directorate General of Territorial Administration of the Ministry of Home Affairs.