“How do you perceive your identity as being indigenous in present days, when modernization, especially information technology and digitalisation have further changed the way we interact with our surroundings, and have further influenced the way we see things, including to contribute to the stigma attached to indigenous communities and those depending on natural resources?” “Do you think you are still indigenous when you use technology that your parents and elders did not use in the past times?” “What do you think that makes you indigenous and what does it mean?”
Drawing from daily lives of indigenous youth, these kinds of questions are carefully designed in a project titled “Being and Becoming Indigenous” to provide space for youth from four indigenous communities to discuss their own perception on their indigeneity in the midst of modernity. Some of these questions are actually reflected from questions that are often being asked by the non-indigenous persons to the youth, questioning their identity as part of indigenous communities. These kinds of questions have left these youth confused as these kinds of seemed-to-be-contradictions are rarely discussed. As these crossroads between indigeneity and modernity of indigenous youth’s identity is rarely discussed, the directions of changes that are likely to happen are not well-planned.
Indigenous Youth of Mollo, in South Central Timor Regency, East Nusa Tenggara Province. Resource: Lakoat Kujawas
The “Being and Becoming Indigenous” is a project to empower indigenous youth by creating a space for them to understand their roots and the meaning of their traditions, especially on natural resources governance, in the midst of modern life. This project also aims to contribute to strengthening the youth’s perception on indigeneity that implies to these youth’s participation in reproducing their community’s communal-based livelihoods practices in the long run. Youth of four indigenous communities namely Kasepuhan Pasir Eurih in Lebak Regency, Banten Province, Mollo in South Central Timor Regency, East Nusa Tenggara Province, both located in Indonesia, and Agta-Dumagat-Remontado in the Philippines will experience the opportunity to define their identity as being part of indigenous communities whilst living and be connected, including digitally, to the modern world. Co-learning space will be enjoyed by these youth to understand the meaning of being and becoming indigenous in the next eight months.
This project is led by RMI-the Indonesian Institute for Forest and Environment in collaboration with Asian Farmers Association for Sustainable Rural Development (AFA). Acting as local implementers are Lakoat Kujawas in Indonesia, and PAKISAMA in the Philippines. “Being and Becoming Indigenous” is a project supported by VOICE programme.
Please the process of these indigenous youth in perceiving their identities as part of global youth culture whilst also rooting in to their traditions!
Maybe some of us know that there used to be a national superior rice named IR 64. IR 64 is one of the many names of rice that was launched in 1986 by President Soeharto. IR rice, government rice, superior rice are other names for IR 64.
Apart from that, there is also rice which is called Pandan Wangi. Pandan Wangi is a local variety of rice from Cianjur, which has been developed since the 1970s. In addition, there are also Rojolele, Padi Ketan (glutinous rice), and other types of rice.
In fact, there are so many types of rice that it cannot be counted with ten fingers. As in Kasepuhan alone, you can find at least 34 rice varieties that are physically available (at the Pare Gede Festival in Kasepuhan Cirompang, October 2015 held by RMI). Through discussions with customary figures, they mentioned that there are at least 40 types of local rice there called pare gede (characterized by its tall plant shape).
Each of these varieties also has its own advantages because it has adapted well to its environment. Some are resistant to certain pests, some have different colours (black, red, white, brown), some are drought resistant, some have different flavours, and many more. Another advantage is that this variety of unhulled rice can be stored for a very long time in the traditional barn of the Kasepuhan community called the leuit (rice barn).
When visiting Kasepuhan, occasionally, we are treated with local rice which has been stored for around 20 years. The taste is still delicious, only differs in a deeper brown colour or maybe the origin of the variety is indeed brown rice.
The people of Kasepuhan added, that government superior rice (also known as pare leutik by local people) planted in the same location can only last a maximum of one year if stored because it will spoil. The seeds fall out immediately after harvesting. Its high productivity comes at a price for its inability to be stored.
These local rice varieties are a very valuable source of biodiversity. They are not the past but a hope for the future. These local rice varieties are still here because they are preserved by the Kasepuhan community, therefore indigenous peoples and their cultures need to be recognized, protected, and be fulfilled of their rights.
Mungkin sebagian dari kita mengetahui bahwa dulu ada padi unggulan nasional bernama IR 64. IR 64 hanyalah salah satu dari nama-nama padi yang diluncurkan pada tahun 1986 oleh Presiden Soeharto pada tahun 1986[1]. Padi IR, padi pemerintah, padi unggul. Begitu sering disebut oleh semua orang. Selain itu ada juga padi yang bernama pandang wangi[2]. Padi pandan wangi adalah jenis padi …
Sejak pandemi Covid-19 terjadi di Indonesia, gerakan anak muda dampingan RMI, Relawan 4 Life, aktif melakukan kegiatan sederhana dan bermanfaat, seperti Diskusi Daring (Disaring). Sebagai kegiatan yang mendukung gerakan #physicaldistancing, diskusi ini dilakukan secara online, baik melalui aplikasi Zoom dan siaran langsung di Youtube Relawan 4 Life, atau siaran langsung di instagram @relawan4life. Disaring dilakukan untuk saling bertukar pikiran terkait isu-isu yang terjadi di lingkungan dan sosial.
Pada 21 dan 28 Juni 2020 diadakan Disaring 5. Disaring 5 ini dilakukan dua sesi, sesi pertama dengan topik “Konsep Gender Dalam Agama Islam”, dan sesi kedua dengan topik “Model Pergaulan Dalam Islam Apakah Sudah Final?”. Untuk baca artikel lengkapnya, silakan klik link berikut https://relawan4life.wordpress.com/2020/07/08/gender-dan-model-pergaulan-dalam-islam/
The Sundanese indigenous people, or better known as the Kasepuhan indigenous people, have local wisdom in protecting their forests. They still depend a large part of their livelihood on the forest and develop habits to live in harmony with their surroundings. Forests and the Kasepuhan customary community are two things that cannot be separated.
Kasepuhan Cibedug is one of the Kasepuhan located in West Citorek Village, Cibeber District, Lebak Regency, Banten Province. Kasepuhan Cibedug is located in the Halimun Mountain ecosystem. The trip to Kasepuhan Cibedug is generally done by motorbike for 30 minutes, after the paved road runs out in Cibengkung Village, Citorek (3.5 hours from Bogor City by motorized vehicle). The location is quite isolated because to reach there we need to travel up and down hills. Fog often falls when the air cools down in the morning or early evening.
Kasepuhan Cibedug is one of the Kasepuhan groups that is still persistent in maintaining a harmonious relationship with nature, while many other indigenous groups have experienced drastic changes. The role of strong customary institutions, geographical isolation and socio-cultural capital is some factors that support this strength.
In terms of cultural philosophy, there are several proverbs that are believed by the Kasepuhan Cibedug indigenous people (as well as other Kasepuhan), which relate to local wisdom in managing or regulating their territory.
“Gunung teu meunang melebur, leuweung teu meunang diruksak”, (mountains must not be destroyed and forests must not be destroyed. This proverb implies a natural resource management system in accordance with local wisdom, which implies that humans are part of the natural system. If natural resources are damaged, human life will also be disturbed. Another saying is ‘penyangga kahirupan supaya hurip’, (life support to live), meaning that Kasepuhan Cibedug indigenous people believe that forests and water are life support that must be preserved.
In regulating forest areas (leuweung), the Kasepuhan Cibedug indigenous people divides the forest into several parts, namely leuweung kolot, leuweung titipan, leuweung cadangan, and leuweung garapan.
The Kasepuhan Cibedug indigenous people explained that leuweung kolot is a forest area that should not be disturbed, because there are springs in the area. Leuweung titipan is a leuweung kolot in which inside it there are locations that are considered sacred, marked for example by the presence of historical buildings (for example at the location of the Cibedug site in the form of punden berundak, as well as at locations where boundary markers are found). Leuweung cadangan is a form of land reserved by the community for the future, while leuweung arable is an area where there are fields, gardens, and lembur (villages).
The Kasepuhan Cibedug indigenous people believe that there is a supernatural power that helps guard their leuweung, therefore they believe that if they destroy the leuweung they can receive misfortune / disaster, or often termed kebendon. Deforestation in customary areas (wewengkon), for example, is believed to cause nature to be angry and prevent rain from falling. Kabendon can also come down in other forms such as crop failure due to pest attack, fires, and accidents. This can happen to individuals, or in a larger form (community).
The Kasepuhan Cibedug Indigenous People view the forest and its surroundings as a life-giving and need to be protected. The relationship between the community and nature needs to be reciprocal so the community does not only benefit from the forest, but also maintains it through the wise use of agricultural land. In rice fields for example, rice cultivation (pare gede or large rice) is carried out only once a year to give the land time to rest. During this period of rest, the hay is put back into the soil (malik jarami) without being burned to restore soil fertility. The land (Mother Earth) is respected in the kasepuhan culture, as can be seen in the nibakeun ritual which was carried out before sowing the seeds in the fields, the community asked Nu Bogana (God) for permission to spread the seeds in the fields.
The existence and role of the Kasepuhan Cibedug Indigenous People in protecting nature is not only protecting the environment, but also protecting their culture. Like carrying out the nibakeun ritual, which is a custom for the group to ask permission to start sowing seeds in the fields.
The expansion of the Mount Halimun Salak National Park (TNGHS) in 2003 made almost all of the wewengkon in Kasepuhan Cibedug fall into the core area of the national park. The national park has prohibited the activities of the Kasepuhan Cibedug Indigenous People because the national park think that they are destroying the forest. For example, farming activities on dry land (ngahuma) are prohibited. From this ban, in research conducted by RMI in 2020, around 10 rice varieties (pare gede) have disappeared (not found to be planted by the community).
In 2019, the Kasepuhan Cibedug Indigenous People demanded that the wewengkon claimed by the country to be returned to indigenous groups, through the Customary Forest scheme.
On World Environment Day, which is celebrated every 5 June each year, we need to take a step back and see that the contribution of the Kasepuhan Cibedug Indigenous People is very large in protecting the environment. Therefore, the country should return the forest management rights to those entitled, the Kasepuhan Cibedug Indigenous People, so that it can be ensured that the forest is managed fairly and sustainably, for the welfare of the Kasepuhan Cibedug Indigenous People.
Jika mendengar istilah ‘Masyarakat Adat’, masyarakat umum akan merujuk kepada sekelompok orang yang tinggal di perkampungan mengenakan baju adat, dan kerajinan tangan “etnik” yang menjadi cindera mata saat berkunjung ke daerahnya. Seromantis dan sesederhana itukah?
Terkait dengan definisinya dalam pandangan semantik, normatif, dan politis, ada perdebatan panjang tentang apa dan siapa itu Masyarakat Adat.
Namun secara konseptual, sulit dipungkiri bahwa Masyarakat Adat dikenal oleh khalayak umum (terutama mereka yang lahir, besar, dan tinggal di wilayah urban) sebagai kelompok masyarakat yang terbelakang, terkungkung, dan minim akses layanan publik, namun sekaligus sebagai simbol pariwisata, hidup bahagia sentosa tanpa konflik yang berarti.
Bukan pula fakta yang asing bahwa masyarakat kebanyakan tidak menganggap keberadaan masyarakat adat memberikan dampak signifikan terhadap keberlangsungan keanekaragaman hayati ibu bumi. Tidak ada yang betul-betul menyadari peran dari Masyarakat Adat sehingga mereka sering kali terpinggirkan dalam berbagai rencana pembangunan bernuansa neo-liberalisme yang dilakoni pemerintah saat ini.
Padahal pada kenyataannya, praktik pengelolaan Sumber Daya Alam (SDA) oleh Masyarakat Adat, selain berkontribusi terhadap kelestarian lingkungan hidup, juga dapat memberikan kontribusi ekonomi. Riset yang dilakukan AMAN (2018) menunjukan bahwa nilai ekonomi pengelolaan sumber daya alam (SDA) di enam wilayah adat menghasilkan Rp 159,21 miliar per tahun, dan nilai jasa lingkungan mencapai Rp 170,77 miliar per tahun, dan hal ini berpotensi mendorong perekonomian di daerahnya.
Bahkan Konvensi ILO No.169 tahun 1986 sudah mengakui bahwa:
Mereka (Masyarakat Adat) bertekad untuk memelihara, mengembangkan, dan mewariskan daerah leluhur dan identitas etnik mereka kepada generasi selanjutnya; sebagai dasar bagi kelangsungan keberadaan mereka sebagai suatu sukubangsa, sesuai dengan pola budaya, lembaga sosial dan sistem hukum mereka.
Meskipun keberadaaan Masyarakat Adat Sudah diakui oleh negara melalui berbagai perangkat hukum, namun pengabaian hak terhadap Masyarakat Adat masih kerap terjadi, yang kemudian menyebabkan timbulnya kekerasan dan pengucilan di dalam banyak ruang hidup.
Policy Brief RUU Masyarakat Aday berikut disusun oleh Koalisi Kawal RUU Masyarakat Adat, yang menganalisa bahwa setidaknya ada enam hak Masyarakat Adat yang terus-menerus terlanggar, di mana hak-hak tersebut satu sama lain tidaklah dapat terpisahkan (indivisibility) dan melekat (inheren). Dokumen ini juga merekomendasikan mengenai hal-hal yang harus diakomodasi dalam Undang-undang Masyarakat Adat yang masuk ke dalam Program Legislasi Nasional 2020, demi penghormatan, perlindungan, dan pemenuhan hak-hak Masyarakat Adat.
