DAYAK DIVORCE

Divorce is not a very nice subject to contemplate but then it occurs all the time. This particular article was published before but I am publishing it again in case some of us missed it. It will enrich our knowledge about the Iban pysche. It was observed by my granduncle Revd. William Howell when he was serving as a priest (around 1890s) at Sabu, three miles away from Simanggang town.

DYAK DIVORCE

REV. WILLIAM HOWELL

Much as the Dyak marriage ceremony seems to be binding yet when it comes to the question of divorce it reveals the whole secret, and lowers its rite before the eyes of civilization.The divorce is of two kinds, a temporary and a permanent one.

      A temporary divorce is effected through an ill-omen or a bad dream.A permanent divorce is brought about by incompatibility of temper, inhospitality, ill-temper and adultery.

      A temporary divorce is called by Dyaks belega or beluit.The marriage will be renewed again after a short interval.

      A permanent divorce cannot be effected before it is brought before the chiefs or elders.The guilty party is amerced.The innocent party takes the fine and divides it with the chiefs or elders and friends who witness the settlement of the case.If the husband is the guilty he pays a fine not only to the woman but towards the up-keep of the children also if he has any.The woman’s fine is called pekain and the up-keep of the children is called pelanja.The man’s fine is called pesirat.

      The fine is imposed according to the offence.If both parties will not submit to the settlement of the chiefs or elders, or even if one party will not, it is to be settled by a diving contest.In so doing not only the fine is first settled but the stake also.The losing party will have to meet not only the loss but the shame also.

      The temporary divorce which is called belega or beluit may sometimes bring about a permanent divorce, if so, it is not a finable offence.The news or occurrence of death in the neighbourhood of the newly married couple may result in a permanent or temporary divorce.It is generally more tabooed if a death occurs up-river from where the couple are living.

      The Dyak religion or superstition seems to be an advantage to them in creating a plea to exculpate them from amercement.If a man says he has had a very bad dream or an ill omen, with that plea he is justified in putting away his wife.In view of such religion or superstition a great many of them have simply invented a story and have had divorces with impunity.The same thing has been also practised by women.Such a plea is not recognised in the Government Court of Judicature.

      The binding nature of a Dyak marriage seems to depend on the child.The child seems to be everything.It is never punished and is allowed to take any amount of liberties even at the expense of the parents.Before it comes to the age of puberty it wanders about like a chicken, goes wherever it likes.

      Once, a most amusing case occurred.The wife of a certain man had already misconducted herself three times but her husband forgave her.The fourth time she did so with a relation and her husband swore by the gods of his ancestors that he would put her away.The case was brought before the Court of Justice, the man divorced his wife and the wife was fined, but the children all agreed and said to their father that unless he lived again with their mother they would have nothing to do with him,The father gave in and took his wife back and paid her fine for her.

      Once by mutual consent a couple divorced.The man after a short time married a wife and likewise the woman married a husband.After a year’s time the man had an ill dream and divorced his second wife.In the same month also the woman was visited by an ill vision and she also divorced her second husband.Hardly a week had elapsed when the former couple who had been divorced again married one another.They lived together happily for several years and were blessed with wealth and health.The wife only died a year ago through an accident and the husband mourned her death deeply.

      One day a man came to me at the height of his rage and said that he was one of the most unfortunate of all mortals.He had once divorced his wife because she was jealous.After an interval of six weeks she came back to him with his child in her arms and he wept over his child and received his wife back.Now he said she practised the same game of jealousy and cut him off from everybody.He went on and told me half a dozen other stories.Finally he said he came down to divorce his wife and to pay up the fine.I asked him if he had any other children than the one that he told me of.He said he had another child.I brought him to reason by asking him whether it would not be better for him to be cut off from women friends and relations than from his own wife and children.

      There are cases of divorces amongst people who have children but still they are not very common.If a man or woman does thus behave,it is taken as proof that he or she has already made love with someone else.

      A ring or a bracelet given by the party that brings about the divorce, if it is received by the other party is an ample sign of divorce.Before a person can consider himself or herself properly divorced according to the Dyak point of view, such a person must take away all his or her belongings from the room where they lived together.