The Indigenous people of Ammatoa Kajang in South Sulawesi are known for their consistency in maintaining ancestral traditions. They reject modernity, without electricity, paved roads and other luxuries. They maintain their forest area of 374 hectares remains untouched nature. Taboos were entered except for their main ritual needs.
The Ammatoa Kajang area is only one of several forest areas that are still maintained by local communities, called Indigenous People's Community Conserved Areas and Territories (ICCA). Since 2011, an ICCA working group called ICCAs Indonesia Working Group (WGII) was formed in Indonesia, consisting of several institutions including PUSAKA, JKPP, NTFP-EP, AMAN, WWF Indonesia, HuMa, WALHI, BRWA, KIARA and Sawit Watch.
ICCA is a global initiative in 26 countries. At the Southeast Asian level, in addition to Indonesia, a number of countries are also encouraging ICCA documentation, such as the Philippines, Malaysia, Vietnam, Timor Leste, plus Taiwan.
Why should Indigenous Peoples be encouraged to conserve the area?
According to Taghi Farvar, president of ICCA, Indigenous people are now being driven from their own land, even though they actually have a big role to play in preserving the area and biodiversity.
“By maintaining Indigenous communities in the region, they will maintain nature and maintain biodiversity,” he said at the workshop on Knowledge Sharing and Capacity Building ICCA Regional level, in Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara, Tuesday (18/08/2015).
In Indonesia, according to Taghi, until now, after 70 years of independence, there are still many Indigenous peoples who have lost their land. “Of the 1,128 existing indigenous communities, most have yet to acquire their communal rights.”
The same thing happens in other Southeast Asian countries. From the results of presentations delivered by representatives of countries such as the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam and Taiwan, almost all discussed how the increasingly displacement of indigenous peoples from their territories, either by the state or companies. Whereas indigenous peoples are able to become guardians of biodiversity in the forests in their region of residence.
As in the Philippines, they are losing ground to private interests and extractive industries because they have not been able to face private parties or foreign companies that are sometimes supported by the central government.
"ICCA is the most viable option for Nature Conservation, livelihood sustainability, equitable distribution of socioeconomic benefits and preservation of cultural values and local identity in the Philippines,” said Masli Quilaman, Director IV of the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples Philippines.
According to him, government-driven market policies through large-scale extractive industries undermine the integrity of ICCA.
Another example, the story of the success of indigenous peoples in terms of Conservation was presented by Temenggung Grip from the Rimba tribe, who live in the Taman Bukit Dua Belas forest, Jambi. "The Jungle tribe is very dependent on nature, especially forests," he said.
The Jungle tribe maintains the forest and the environment where they live with some rules that must be obeyed by the people and immigrants in the Bukit Dua Belas forest. Violations such as felling sacred trees, punishable by fines with Indigenous cloth. "These bans and fines are made solely to safeguard our ecosystem,” he said.
Sutej Hugu, a participant from Taiwan explained that in Taiwan there are certain regulations for nature conservation, such as rules prohibiting the consumption of certain types of fish. “This is done to keep the marine ecosystem awake, because not all the fish we have in the sea is consumed,” Sutej said.
Catharina Dwihastarini, National Coordinator of the Global Environment Facility Small Grant Programme (GEF SGP) in Indonesia, explained that the purpose of this ICCA initiative is to increase capacity about ICCA in Indonesia and other Southeast Asia, to encourage collective reflection and sharing on key issues, opportunities and threats or issues for ICCA recognition and support in policy and practice.
“The main objective is to encourage recognition and support of ICCA and the promotion of their effectiveness through capacity building, with at least 26 pilot countries. In Southeast Asia, pilot areas include Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia and Vietnam,” Catharina said.
ICCA is increasingly recognised as a way of indigenous peoples and local communities, in securing collective rights and responsibilities to their land, water and Natural Resources and fostering a love of traditional knowledge
“In places where there is massive exploitation of Natural Resources and conservation, many Indigenous Peoples are increasing cooperation with the government for the development of natural resources directly. The interesting thing is the indigenous knowledge, local wisdom of the institution and the involvement between the partners. ICCA is an opportunity in conservation to be more fair and effective,” he said.
ICCA itself was first held in Indonesia is in Bogor in October 2011, through the documentation of ICCA in a number of areas, ranging from Sumatra, Kalimantan, Lombok, Maluku Islands and Papua.
Kasmita Widodo, Coordinator of WGII, who is also Coordinator of the Regional Registration Agency (BRWA) stated that this ICCA documentation is the first step towards full registration of indigenous lands in Indonesia and recognition and integration in provincial and district spatial plans.
In Indonesia, there are a number of Indonesian SGP GEF partners who have carried out ICCA conservation activities, including the Central Institute for research and development of Bumigora independent communities (LP3MMM Bumigora), which from 2009 they built productive villages in Kumbi Hamlet, Sempage Bee Village through expert watershed conservation with Non-Timber Forest Products (HHBK).
The efforts made by Bumigora, according to Catharina, because they see the increasingly dense population in the forest herd around the DAS (Watershed) which is a protected forest whose utilization is very limited because its designation is prioritized for the environment and conservation.
“This causes the community community is very dependent on forest areas as. So Bumigora encourages people around the Jangkok watershed, namely Pakuan Village and Sempage Valley, to manage productive crops such as bamboo, ketak, lombos, chocolate, coffee and honey,” added Catharina.
In addition, there is also Walhi NTB who successfully assisted the community in Aik Berik village, Batu Kliang Utara district, Lombok Tengah Regency NTB through the management of non-timber forest products for processed food products.
Murdani, an activist of Walhi NTB, explained that the thing that encouraged his party to carry out community assistance was because the condition of the Berik water area was under threat of erosion due to climate factors, topography , soil, plants and poor land management, as well as the conversion of forests into agroforestry by 24% of the natural forest area, in the last 9 years.
In East Lombok there are also Institutions recognized as having wisdom in the management of local community-based resources through regional Regulation No. 9/2006 East Lombok and No. 10/2006. This regulation, known as naman awig-awig, is an Indigenous and participatory approach to sustainable resource management.
Amin Abdullah, Director of Lembaga Pengembangan Sumber Daya Nelayan (Lpsdn), a local group of fishermen in Jor Bay, who created awig-awig as a traditional regulation for sustainable fisheries and Coastal Resource Management.
"As a fisheries co-management strategy, awig-awig still needs government support, community awareness and cooperation for our marine traditions to become viable and for conservation and sustainable livelihoods for local fishermen to flourish,” said Amin.
The ICCA consortium was established at the 4th World Conservation Congress in Barcelona, Spain, in October 2008. They agreed on a broader program by providing initial support and stimulus that brings ICCA's goals closer together.
"The initiations produced by ICCA will be promoted locally, nationally, regionally and internationally,” said Catharina.
The event itself lasted for six days, 17-22 August 2015, at Hotel Lombok Raya, organized by ICCA Indonesia Working Group (WGII), UNDP GEF SGP, ICCA consortium, with additional financial assistance from WWF Indonesia.
Source: https://www.mongabay.co.id/2015/08/25/belajar-konservasi-dari-masyarakat-adat-se-asia-seperti-apa-itu/