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Baduy people living between tradition and modernization
Curious minds: Baduy community members enjoy an art exhibition at Taman Ismail Marzuki cultural center in Central Jakarta
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Curious minds: Baduy community members enjoy an art exhibition at Taman Ismail Marzuki cultural center in Central Jakarta.
Advancements in communication technology resulting in a faster flow of information have brought about changes in people’s social lives, prompting some young people to forgo the traditional values of their ancestral culture.
Sapri, 24, is an ethnic Baduy Dalam (inner Baduy) youth from Cibeo hamlet at the foot of the Kendeng mountain range in Kanekes village, Lebak regency, Banten. Sapri, known as Baim, has chosen to leave the Baduy Dalam community and live among the Baduy Luar (outer Baduy).
Baim said he left Baduy Dalam as he wanted to use his cell phone to communicate with relatives and friends outside the hamlet.
Although Baduy Dalam’s traditions strictly forbid the use of electronics, the majority of youths have in fact been exposed to gadgets when spending time outside the community. Being influenced by the outside world is unavoidable as every weekend, many urbanites tour the three Baduy Dalam hamlets of Cibeo, Cikertawana and Cikeusik.
“I’ve said goodbye to my parents and siblings and taken leave of the jaro [hamlet head] and pu’un [customary chief], who gave their consent,” Baim said.
Although he has left his community, Baim still reveres the traditions of Baduy Dalam. He is an active member of the Alliance of Indonesian Traditional Communities (AMAN) based in East Tebet, South Jakarta. He informs his relatives in Baduy Dalam and Baduy Luar whenever AMAN organizes an event.
Meanwhile, a number of Baduy Dalam people have tried to tackle the language barrier they face when they mingle with people from outside the community. Only a handful of Baduy Dalam men can communicate with strangers in Indonesian.
“Until the age of 20, I couldn’t speak Indonesian because in Baduy Dalam we all speak Sundanese in the Sunda-Banten dialect. Later, I often followed my older brother’s group, walking to Jakarta to see acquaintances who had visited Baduy Dalam and to learn Indonesian,” said Safriyadi, 25, a father of three and now a fluent Indonesian speaker.
Baduy Dalam people have no written literature so their customs, beliefs and folklore are handed down orally. Baduy Dalam and Baduy Luar consider formal education to be opposed to their traditions. They have rejected government proposal to build schools, leaving most Baduy people illiterate.
However, with the numerous visitors to Baduy Dalam and vast developments in communications and technology, the younger people of Baduy Dalam and Baduy Luar have begun to learn calculation, writing and reading skills.
Before cell phones became commonplace, Baduy Dalam youths had to walk for around 40 kilometers to Rangkasbitung to reach a public telephone booth.
“When I lived in Cibeo, Baduy Dalam, I always called people who had visited Baduy Dalam from public phones,” said Erwin, 42, who left Baduy Dalam 16 years ago.
Erwin quit Baduy Dalam to avoid breaching local traditions because he was interested in doing business, which is banned in his community. Since he moved to Baduy Luar, Erwin has traded various goods.
When there is not much agricultural work to do, Baduy Dalam residents are also fond of wandering on foot to nearby big cities. Usually, they go in small groups of three to five people to the homes of their former guests in Baduy Dalam, offering honey and handicrafts.
Young and thirsty: A group of youths from the Baduy Dalam community pose for a photograph at the Tembayang bamboo bridge, which links Baduy Dalam and Baduy Luar. The bridge was built using bamboo and ropes, with nearby trees and stones as foundations.
Baduy Dalam people are forbidden from using footwear and taking public transportation, leading to them walking barefoot for three days from Baduy Dalam to Jakarta, for instance. Along the way, dressed in black-and-white woven clothing with white headbands, they spend nights at mosques or local people’s houses.
On the other hand, visitors to Baduy, some 120 kilometers from Jakarta, can visit and even spend the night in a Baduy Dalam community as long as they respect the local customs, which include prohibitions on photography, electronics, soap, shampoo or toothpaste, littering, tree felling, drinking alcohol and smoking cigarettes.
Nonetheless, the region of Baduy remains a forbidden zone for foreign citizens. The Baduy community is prohibited by local custom from meeting with foreign nationals.
The name “Baduy” is said to have come from Dutch researchers, who seemed to liken Baduy people to the nomadic Arab Bedouin group. Another possible origin is the Cibaduy River and Mount Baduy located in the northern part of the region.
The Baduy community prefers to be called urang or orang Kanekes (Kanekes people) derived from the name of Kanekes village, or any name referring to their other villages, such as urang Cibeo or orang Cibeo.
Baduy Dalam people do not use construction tools such as saws, hammers and nails, so they build houses using traditional materials gathered from forests and do the work through mutual assistance. The doors of their houses must face north or south, except at the house of the pu’un, which is unrestricted.
They follow land contours in building their homes and growing crops. They do not plow fields or make terraces, only using pointed bamboo stems to plant seeds. For centuries Kanekes people have been dry-field paddy growers as well as fruit and honey sellers.
Kanekes Dalam or Baduy Dalam recognize two systems of government: the national system following Indonesian government legislation, and their traditional system observing local customs. Both are combined or acculturated in such a way that no conflict has ever occurred.
To show their obedience to the authorities, the Baduy community conducts annual Seba ceremonies, in which agricultural produce is delivered to the governor of Banten. Baduy Dalam and Baduy Luar people also travel to Serang to meet with provincial administration leaders after visiting the regent of Lebak, about a six hour walk.
The last time Indonesian president visited Baduy was in 1970s when Soeharto, as told by former West Java Governor Solihin GP in his biography book “Solihin GP: Gubernur Rakyat” (Solihin GP: People’s Governor), visited the community. Previously, Pikiran Rakyat newspaper reported that Sukarno visited Banten in 1951 and met with Baduy representatives. Two representatives from Baduy came to Bogor Palace later in 1954 to talk about protection of their area and preservation of their culture.
Baduy people are now waiting for President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, who are known for his impromptu visits or blusukan, to come and take a closer look at their community.
— Photos by JP/PJ Leo
