PRESERVATION AND DEVELOPMENT OF CUSTOMARY LEGAL VALUES
IN THE LIFE OF THE PEOPLE IN MALUKU[1]
Margie.EMTahapary
Introduction
Indonesia, as a nation, boasts a diverse culture spread from Sabang to Merauke, yet its people live side by side with respect for each other's diversity. This cultural diversity informs communal life, with customary law values still deeply embedded in the lives of indigenous communities. These customary law values, inherited from our ancestors, need to be preserved and developed. The preservation and development of customary law values are tailored to the characteristics of these indigenous communities.
Among the island provinces in Indonesia, Maluku is known as the Province of a Thousand Islands, with its islands scattered across diverse regions, boasting cultural diversity rooted in the diverse values of its customary law communities. The diversity of values within the customary law communities in Maluku is a legacy from our ancestors that has the potential to be harnessed to support community life.
The preservation and development of customary legal values aims to preserve and develop the cultural values inherent in community life. Cultural values within a community do not always have a positive impact on the community, but this does not mean that the values inherent in community life are necessarily negative.
Assessing the good and bad of a value that grows in communal life is not an easy thing, but it needs to be considered as a form of critical action that weighs the good and bad of a value for the survival of a community and is adapted to the current development conditions that are experiencing progress in the fields of technology and information.
The development and advancement of technology and information, along with higher levels of education, have impacted the preservation and development of customary law values within communities, particularly in Maluku Province. This impact is felt in the sense that some values within customary law communities are beginning to experience changes. These changes can range from small changes to very large changes that can have a significant impact on community activities and behavior. Changes that cover narrow aspects only include changes in behavior and mindsets, while major changes include changes in the level of community structure that can later influence community development in the future (Nanang Martono, 2011: 1).
However, the values that live in customary law communities as cultural values inherited from ancestors are strongly believed to be true as a benchmark for action and a benchmark for the behavior of customary law communities at all times so that they cannot change immediately but through a process so that there are still values that are maintained but there are also those that have begun to disappear from the lives of the community.
The impact on the validity of values in the life of the community is very noticeable so that it is necessary to think about preserving and even developing customary legal values, especially for the people of Maluku.
Based on what was stated above, the problem that needs to be written is, how are efforts to preserve and develop customary legal values in society in Maluku?
Discussion
Preservation and development are two different things, preservation is maintaining or maintaining the permanence of something while development is something that is made better, more advanced and developed so that it is much better than the condition in the previous period. Preservation and development of customary law values in society in Maluku means that the values inherited from ancestors are maintained or maintained for their permanence so that these values are further preserved while in relation to development, cultural values which are heritage bring more changes in a good direction for the sake of the continuity of the life of customary law communities in the future. Values are interpreted differently, including:
a. According to Lasyo (Elly Setiadi et al: 2009; 123), values for humans are the foundation or motivation for all their behavior or actions.
b. According to Arthur W. Comb; (Ibid; 123), values are generalized beliefs that function as guidelines for selecting goals and behaviors that will be chosen to be achieved.
c. According to Jack R. Fraenkel, (Ibid; 123), Values are ideas - concepts - about something that is considered important by someone in life.
d. According to Charles R. Knikker (Ibid; 123), Values are a group of attitudes that drive actions or decisions that deliberately reject actions.
e. According to Dardji Darmodihardjo (Ibid; 123), values are something that is useful for human life, both physically and spiritually.
f. According to the British Encyclopedia (Ibid;123), Value is the quality of an object that concerns the type of appreciation or interest.
Mark (value) usually used for something abstract, which can be interpreted as valuable (worth) or goodness (goodness). For humans, values are used as a basis, reason, or motivation in attitudes and behavior, whether consciously or not. Louis O. Kattsoff (in Dardji Darmodihardjo: 2002; 234) distinguishes values into two types, namely: (1) intrinsic value and (2) instrumental value. Intrinsic value is the value of something that has value from the beginning, while instrumental value is the value of something because it can be used as a means to achieve a goal.
Radbruch (Notohamidjojo in Dardji: 2002; 234) stated that there are 3 (three) values that are important for law, namely: First; Individualwerte, personal values that are important for realizing human personality, Second; Community of People, societal values, values that can only be realized in human society,Third; Workers, values in human works (science, art) and in general in culture.
Values serve as a foundation or motivation for action, so that the behavior of a community reflects the values they believe in and live together, bringing goodness and prosperity to the community. The values of customary law within a community reflect the values believed to bring goodness and prosperity to the life of a customary law community.
The diversity of values believed by the people of Maluku can bring goodness and prosperity to them, values that provide direction in behavior where as an Island Province, Maluku has an area divided into nine regencies and two cities, namely Central Maluku Regency, Southeast Maluku Regency, Southwest Maluku Regency, Aru Islands Regency, Buru Regency, South Buru Regency, West Seram Regency, East Seram Regency, Ambon City, and Tual City.
The diversity of customary law values held by the community greatly enriches the cultural heritage of the people of Maluku. This diversity of values can be found in the lives of indigenous peoples at all times. The values held by indigenous peoples have positive impacts but also negative ones. For example, a positive value is the value of togetherness that upholds the attitude of mutual cooperation, better known as "Masohi" from the Central Maluku indigenous peoples, where the community in building houses of worship (both churches and mosques) always together with their brothers who have "Pela" ties of other religions. This shows that there are positive values that can be emulated from the attitude of the Central Maluku indigenous peoples who do not differentiate between religions and ethnicities. In fact, this religious diversity further strengthens the bonds of brotherhood among the indigenous peoples in Central Maluku. In addition to the positive aspects that can be emulated from the attitudes of the Central Maluku indigenous peoples, there are also negative aspects of indigenous peoples as a result of technological and information developments that have led to the loss of the use of regional languages in the lives of indigenous peoples in Maluku, especially among the younger generation.
The values that are believed to be the foundation and benchmark for behavior are very rich and varied, including:
a. The value of togetherness in kinship relations in the Kisar traditional community is still very strong, where with the togetherness they have, they can solve every problem, for example, if one family is going to hold a wedding celebration, then all costs are covered by the extended family while the family does not bear any costs.
b. The establishment of "Sasi" can be found in indigenous communities in Central Maluku. "Sasi Lompa" is one of the customary law community's efforts to preserve natural resources (lompa fish). As a form of prohibition on the extraction of natural resources during certain periods and in certain areas, so that natural resources are maintained sustainably. This positive cultural value is still maintained by the community.
c. The customary law community of Tual City; traditional nuances are still strong in the community of Tual City, for example the determination of "Sasi".
d. Ambon City's customary law community: in the Soya customary land, the "Cuci Negeri" traditional ceremony is still held to this day as a form of cleansing both the Soya customary land and the members of the customary land so that their land is cleansed/sanctified again. The implementation of cultural values is still upheld by the Soya customary land and shows that they still uphold positive values.
Positive customary law values certainly need to be preserved and even developed in the communal life of indigenous communities, for example, the determination of "Sasi" needs to be regulated in Regional Regulations so that positive cultural values are preserved and even developed for a better life for indigenous communities, but for values that bring negative impacts, it is better to think about eliminating them from community life.
Efforts to preserve and develop customary legal values are not solely the responsibility of the community itself; they also require the government's involvement to ensure that positive cultural values are preserved and developed. Efforts to preserve and develop values within a community can be viewed from the following perspectives:
e. Society in various ways, for example, getting the younger generation used to using regional languages, getting the younger generation used to participating in traditional activities or ceremonies, and various forms of activities that instill positive values in the younger generation.
f. Government; the role of the Government is very large in supporting efforts to preserve and develop values in indigenous communities, for example through assistance with indigenous community empowerment programs, the creation of Regional Regulations that accommodate the aspirations of indigenous communities.
Conclusion
Efforts to preserve and develop customary law values are not only the responsibility of customary law communities but also the government and can be carried out in various ways, namely:
a. Society in various ways, for example, getting the younger generation used to using regional languages, getting the younger generation used to participating in traditional activities, and various forms of activities that instill positive values in the younger generation.
b. Government; the role of the Government is very large in supporting efforts to preserve and develop values in indigenous communities, for example through the creation of Regional Regulations that accommodate the aspirations of indigenous communities and assistance in indigenous community empowerment programs.
As a follow-up, it is recommended that:
a. For indigenous communities, positive values must be preserved in communal life so that the ancestral heritage is maintained, but negative values must be changed or even eliminated so that communal life in the community is better maintained.
b. The government needs to pay more attention to communities that have rich values and culture so that community empowerment programs can be further improved for a better life.
READING LIST
Elly Setiadi et al., Basic Social and Cultural Sciences, 2007, Kencana Prenada, Jakarta
Darji Darmodihardjo and Sidharta, 2004, The Main Points of Legal Philosophy What and How is Indonesian Legal Philosophy, Gramedia Pustaka Utama, Jakarta.
Nanang Martono, 2011, SSociology of Social Change: Classical, Modern, Postmodern and Postcolonial Perspectives, Radjawali Press, Jakarta.
RZTitahelu, 2005, “"Maluku Customary Law in the Context of Legal Pluralism: Implications for Maluku's Natural Resource Management", Inaugural Speech of Professor of Law, Universitas Pattimura, Ambon.
Ziwar Effendi, 1987, Ambon-Lease Customary Law, Pradnya Paramita, Jakarta.
[1] This article was published in a book COMPILATION OF THOUGHTS ON THE DYNAMICS OF LAW IN SOCIETY (Commemorating the 50th Anniversary of Universitas Pattimura in 2013), 2013
