Punishment For Perpetrators Of Domestic Violence And Disobedience During The Colonial Period Of The Dutch East Indies In The Archipelago

Domestic violence illustration. (Photo: Paxabay)

The leadership of Jan Pieterszoon Coen was famous as a moral guardian in Batavia. As a devout Calvinist, he fights all forms of disobedience. Anyone who engages in immoral activities will be punished. From sadistic punishment to prison. Domestic violence (KDRT), one of them. The perpetrators of domestic violence are the ones who are being tried the most. The Dutch trading airline VOC never tolerated domestic violence. There is no mercy for the perpetrators who perpetuate domestic violence, especially in an outrageous manner.

Governor General Governor General of the VOC twice ---1619-1623 and 1627-1629— Jan Pieterszoon Coen was the most well-known figure in the Dutch colonial period in the archipelago. He laid the foundation for colonialism in the archipelago. He played a major role in conquering Jayakarta and building a new city in 1619. Batavia is his name.

His power made him dream of making the archipelago a source of Dutch glory in the future. However, the dream was soon slapped by a painful reality. The city of Batavia, which he dreamed of as a dignified colony, was not completely filled with civilized Europeans.

Coen realized that the Dutch who could go to the colony had a lot of negative charges. Because, most of them do not come from noble or educated families. They usually come from low-educated and poor families. Moreover, many of them are Dutch who can be too lazy and stupid.

Punishment for perpetrators of domestic violence and disobedience during the Dutch East Indies. (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)

Because of that, the colonies only made them as a means of releasing worldly desires. The immorality is perpetuated: prostitution, infidelity, homosexuality, concubines, and others. While religious values are considered lonely. Coen is not playing. The narrative does not match his dream of building Batavia as a city that adheres to religious values.

“Initially there was little that could be done to control the situation. Soldiers and sailors have been uprooted from their homeland, short of women, and placed in remote trading offices in areas of foreign civilization.”

“They heard rumors of a harem stemming from the senior merchants' initial meetings with the daughters of Asian nobles, while their own superiors took slaves for personal use. In such circumstances, the moral values that they brought from their homeland begin to fade and can no longer be applied, “said Jean Gelman Taylor in the book Social Life in Batavia (2009).

Indiscriminate

Coen's rampant disobedience soon patched up. He issued an important rule. The regulation was addressed to VOC soldiers, then in the following years it was extended to all citizens of Batavia, regardless of their position.

They are prohibited from perpetuating immoral activities. The regulation had to be issued by Coen considering the condition of Batavia which was not doing well. aka sinful. Mainly because of the increasing cases of abortion, domestic violence, and female slaves who try to kill their masters.

The rule was even continued by Coen's successors. Whoever violates the disobedience will be given a strict punishment. Even tend to be cruel. Even without discrimination, male or female. The case of Catrina Casembroot in 1639 is an example.

Catrina who is known as a widow is accused of adultery with many men. The act was done when her husband was still alive. The court also accused Catrina of using black magic to attract men. As a result, the court decided to sentence Catrina to death.

Prison during the Dutch East Indies. (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)

This decision is not much different from the affair done by Annika da Silva. The affair opened a new veil that many women in Batavia were victims of domestic violence. However, Annika da Silva was first found guilty because she was accused of poisoning her own husband.

“Then what is the punishment for the adulterers and poisoners? after carefully considering the letters and evidence presented at the trial, especially the evidence presented by the Legislative Council. So the punishments imposed on them included being immersed in a barrel filled with water or tied to a pole and then strangled to death. Their faces were then branded and all their property confiscated,” wrote Achmad Sunjayadi in the book [Not Tabu in the Archipelago (2018).

Punishment for perpetrators of domestic violence

Domestic violence is another immoral violation that many Batavia courts try. Historian Hendrik E. Niemeijer agrees with this. Almost every day cases of domestic violence occur. The causes are varied. Most of the domestic violence is done because of the problems of poverty, mounds, and infidelity.

The case of domestic violence carried out by Moses Thomasz, for example. This dispute between husband and wife was triggered because Moses often drank and played with women. His wife could not stand and hate her husband. Therefore, Moses Thomasz dark eyes.

He even tied his wife's hands under his feet and held a stick between his hands. A form of bond that is usually done to carry pigs. After that, his wife was beaten badly: beaten and kicked.

Illustration of a court in the Dutch East Indies. (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)

Local residents who heard of the dispute immediately reported Moses' domestic violence to the relevant authorities. The Batavian Court also moved. The judge immediately sentenced Moses to caning and eight days in prison. The punishment was given so that Moses could regret his harsh treatment.

The majority of domestic violence perpetrators will get a mixed sentence and eight days in prison. As happened to Moses. However, it's a different story when harsh treatment of a partner continues in the future. The Batavian Court will not hesitate to give a very heavy sentence.

Jacob Isaakxz, for example. Initially, Jacob, who was known as a resident of Mardjker, was sentenced to the same sentence as Moses. Unlike Moses, Jacob did not even repent. His harsh treatment of his wife, Anna Jansz, was even more intense. Especially when Jacob was influenced by liquor.

His wife will be battered. But Jacob was too late. His wife's head was hit by a blunt object so that she fell unconscious. He has not repented. The rough treatment continued until other days. There was no other choice for the Batavian court but to sentence Jacob to six years in prison.

“This time the charge against him is that one fine day he drew his sword and attacked his wife. Anna Jansz and her children still managed to run out of their tenement while her husband razed the furniture with an ax.”

“The man, who had gone mad, was arrested by the authorities, sent by the head of the neighborhood, while he was busy burning his wife's clothes and his own prayer book. This time, the patience of the court judges had run out and Jacob was thrown into prison for six years,” said Hendrik E. Niemeijer in the book Batavia of the Colonial Society of the XVII Century (2012).

*Read other information about HISTORY or read other interesting articles from Detha Arya Tifada.