'Pocong' oath a unique religious way to settle disputes

'Pocong' oath a unique religious way to settle disputes

By Sumanto

GROBOGAN, Central Java (JP): Tension gripped some 1,000 people
taking part in the pocong oath procession held at Baitul Makmur
mosque in Purwodadi here one morning.

After being bathed, Subari, from Werdoyo village in Grobogan,
was wrapped up in an unbleached shroud just as though he was a
Moslem corpse ready for burial.

A shrouded corpse is locally known as a pocong; the pocong
oath is a vow which one takes to prove one's innocence.

Subari took his oath under the intense stare of villagers
from Grobogan and its surroundings. Also observing were the head
of Grobogan administration's social-political division Nono
Sukardo, the head of the local office of the Ministry of
Religious affairs H. Masngad, deputy chief of Grobogan police
precinct Maj. Soebari and a number of local religious elders.

"By the grace of Allah, I swear that I, Subari the son of
Busro, truthfully on Dec. 14, 1992, in Jentir hamlet, Werdoyo
village, Godong district, Grobogan regency, handed over Rp 4
million to Ngadi the son of Kahono as full payment for the plot
of land owned by Ngadi the son of Kahono registered in the
village book C under No. 178, plot No. 114 of Category S.IV/36
measuring about 5,550 square meters and situated at Werdoyo
village, Godong district, Grobogan regency with the following
boundaries:

"Kasrin's plot of land to the north, Jupri's/Kardi's to the
east, Suwardi's/Muhadi's to the south, and Jajar Lama river to
the west. The said sum of money has in all truth been received by
Ngadi the son of Kahono," Subari swore on Aug. 8.

After the oath was sworn, Sururi, an official from the
religious court in Purwodadi, read the confirmation of the oath,
followed verbatim by Subari.

"If I am in breach of my oath, I will be cursed by Allah the
Glorious and Almighty. And if I am right, Mrs. Sadinem will be
cursed by Allah the Glorious and Almighty."

"Oh...Allah...," an old man in the crowd shrieked and then
fell down, losing consciousness. A number of women screamed in
horror after listening to the pocong oath.

All these events started with a lawsuit filed by Mrs. Sadinem
against Subari, who is one of her neighbors, regarding a Rp 4
million transaction related to a plot of land measuring 5,550
square meters in Werdoyo village. The late Ngadi, son of Kahono
and husband to Sadinem, sold the land to Subari in 1992.

Clash

When Ngadi died in 1993, a dispute arose between Subari and
Sadinem. Sadinem said that Subari still owed her Rp 1.8 million
but Subari insisted that he had paid the whole amount.

The two sides both planted trees on the disputed land and then
each of them later destroyed the plants grown by the other side.
They were almost involved in a physical clash.

Sadinem rejected the mediation efforts offered by village
administration officials and brought the case to Purwodadi court.
One of Sadinem's four lawyers, Sukamto, suggested that she sell
her remaining plot of land to cover the expenses which would be
incurred in the legal process. Sadinem agreed and sold the
remaining plot of land for Rp 7 million. She paid her lawyers Rp
2.1 million.

"Calm down, madam. If you sue Subari and ask him to swear a
pocong oath, you are sure to win the case," Sadinem said,
repeating Sukamto's suggestion.

The court held several sessions. Witnesses and evidence
confirmed that Subari had made full payment for the land.

"I have paid the whole amount. There is a receipt made in the
knowledge of the village head and the village secretary," Subari
said.

"Although I don't have proof, I am convinced that Subari has
paid only Rp 2.2 million," Sadinem insisted.

In the 10th session of the court, Sadinem asked Subari to
swear a pocong oath. She told the presiding judge that she did
not mind losing the case as long as Subari agreed to swear this
oath.

A pocong oath is a decisive oath, which Javanese people from
generation to generation have believed can settle a case. If one
swears a pocong oath, one leaves the decision to God.

The panel of judges, presided over by Koenjono, granted
Sadinem's request. He said that although the law does not
regulate the procedure for a pocong oath, the request of the
plaintiff (Sadinem) for such an oath is regulated in Article 158
paragraph 1 of the Penal Code inherited from the Dutch colonial
time -- known as Het Herziene Indonesich Reglement (HIR).

Winner

The final court session was held three days after Subari said
his pocong oath. The court found in favor of Subari, who was
declared winner of the case. According to Koenjono, all witnesses
and court evidence presented by Subari confirmed and corroborated
his ownership of the land in dispute.

"His courage in saying the pocong oath has convinced us that
he must be declared the winner of the case," he said.

According to Koenjono, a pocong oath is not something new.
Purwodadi alone has since 1982 witnessed three cases involving
this oath. When he was assigned duties in Bali in 1980, he
granted a request for a pure oath, a kind of pocong oath for
Hindu believers in Bali.

Guideline

The court's ruling, however, has stirred up controversies.
Asmuni Abdurrahman, an expert on Islamic law from the State
Institute of Islamic Studies (IAIN) Sunan Kalijaga based in
Yogyakarta, was of the opinion that a pocong oath should not have
been implemented.

"There is no guideline regarding this oath in Islam," he said.

Another ulema voiced his disagreement with Abdurrahman.
Hamzah, an Islamic teacher running Mamba'ul A'la school of
Koranic studies in Purwodadi, said that a pocong oath does not
violate Islamic teaching because it begins and ends with a
prayer, which is in line with Islamic guidelines. As for the
shroud usually used to wrap a corpse, he said, this in intended
to create solemnity and modesty in saying the oath.

"Viewed from the implementation of Islamic law, the pocong
oath will not raise any doubts," he said.

Many lawyers, however, do not agree with the implementation of
the pocong oath. One of them is Garda Utama Siswadi, a senior
lawyer from Yogyakarta. He said it was unwise of the judge to
allow a pocong oath.

"In the eyes of the law, a pocong oath is just like any other
oath usually taken by the panel of judges. Such an oath is
unnecessary as long as there are sufficient witnesses and court
evidence to establish the legal truth being sought.

"So, what's the use of scaring people with such an oath?" he
asked.

Irrespective of differences in opinion among lawyers and
experts on Islam, Abdul Munir Mulkhan, a sociologist, found that
the use of a pocong oath is a reflection of the community's
distrust of the instruments of law.

"This is a form of protest launched by the community against
the modern legal institutions," said Mulkhan, a lecturer at IAIN
Sunan Kalijaga.

He said that community members know that positive laws exist
but they consider these laws simply as man-made products. When
they are confronted with a problem too difficult to solve by
virtue of positive laws, they turn to a superhuman power with
greater credibility, God.

Now that the court has agreed to the implementation of a
pocong oath, he said, this means that even legal officials do not
believe that positive laws can be used to find comprehensive
solutions to all problems.

From the point of view of religion, he went on, the practice
of implementing this oath shows that the interpretation of
religious teachings may vary. This, he said, is possible against
the backdrop of different scopes of life that each social group
possesses.

The question now is how far the curse of Allah, as contained
in the oath, finds expression in reality? The Asros, a family in
Blora, Central Java, believe that perpetrators of lies will
suffer from Allah's curse.

Once this family had a dispute with one of their neighbors
over the ownership of a plot of land. At the court, witnesses and
evidence were not enough for Asro win the case. As he believed
that he was right, he asked the court to make his neighbor swear
a pocong oath.

"Our neighbor told a lie. After saying the oath, he died of a
disease he asked for in the oath," Ahmad, one of Asro's nephews,
said.

And now neighbors of Sadinem and Subari are awaiting the
effect that the curse Allah will lay on the party who lies.
Another form of the "curse" however has been seen. Sadinem, an
old childless widow, is now ostracized by all her neighbors.

A number of villagers said that Subari, long known as an
honest chairman of a neighboring community unit, could not have
lied about the payment of the land he purchased from Sadinem's
husband.

"I am really miserable now being ostracized by my neighbors.
Even the lawyers, who previously promised me of a victory in my
lawsuit, have not dropped in," she said sadly.