Baweanese and Black Magic

Black Magic has always been associated with the Baweanese. Mentioned the word ''Boyanese'' the next words will be ''Be careful! They are good at Black Magic!''. Even though the notion of practicing Black Magic directed to the Baweanese still exist today, it is not as bad as in the past where they are being labeled as powerful sorcerers.

I remember during my childhood days in the early 1970s when I was alienated by my classmates due to my race. I was in primary four, when a group of Muslim friends in school suddenly distanced themselves from me after knowing about my racial background through the school register. They told the rest of the class that I came from a very bad race – ''A race that practices Black Magic''. I overheard their conversations about that their parents had warned them not to befriend with the Baweanese to avoid black magic to be performed on them. From that day onwards I kept to myself and not bothered with what they thought of my people. During this incident, I came to realise that I was not Malay by race, as I used to think, but a Baweanese, speaking the Malay language, living in the Singapore Malay community like the other Indonesian Muslim descents from different ethnic groups such as the Javanese, Bugis, and Banjarees.

My Muslim classmates continued to say hurtful things. I felt sad but angry - angry for being accused of something that I had not done and no knowledge of. Never in my life during the period living in Pondok Kalompang Gubuk, that I came across the pondok residents practicing Black Magic. Instead what I saw were a group of devout Muslims, trying to please Almighty Allah. I saw them performing Sholat, fasting in the month of Ramadhan, giving out Zakat and most of them, especially the elderly ones, had performed Haj.

It was not long ago that I befriended a Muslim woman who was judgmental towards the Baweanese. Without knowing my racial background, she criticized my people and told me to be extra careful with them. When I asked for her reasons, she answered that the 'Boyanese' practiced Black Magic, performing it to harm others. After she had finished with her little story, I politely highlighted to her that those who practiced black magic, inflicting harm to others were evil and this group of people existed in every race. I disclosed my racial background and related to her my near death experience being a victim of black magic performed by a Non-Baweanese. Feeling embarrassed, she immediately apologised to me.

Today, the Baweanese are still being feared by others for possessing Black Magic. It seems to me most people in the society that I am living in, failed to accept the fact that Black Magic comes from evil people existed in every races. However recently, I received a pleasant comment from a Non-Baweanese who visited the Bawean Island organised by PBS (Baweanese Association of Singapore) in mid June, this year. She said, "Oh, rupanya orang-orang Boyan ini banyak yang alim-alim" which means ''Oh, in reality the majority of the Bawean people are devout Muslims". In Singapore itself, there are several Baweanese religious educators. There are also many others with tertiary Islamic education who either work or active with MUIS (The Muslim Council of Singapore), Madrasah, Mosque and other Muslim bodies.