[IPSM] Indigenous people marginalized at Wasur National Park

[Macdonald Stainsby]

*Indigenous people marginalized at Wasur National Park*

*R. Kristiawan*, Contributor, Merauke, South Papua
19. 04. 2005

Wasur National Park is essential for the well-being of Merauke, South Papua.

Located 13 kilometers from the city, Rawa Biru, the **area of open water 
in the center of the park is also a water source of the city's people. 
The national park is very rich in terms of biodiversity.

/Melaleuca eucalyptus/, savanna, mangrove and lowland forest can be 
seen. In the park, 390 animal species, including 80 mammal species, are 
to be found. Tribes numbering some 2,550 people live in 14 villages. 
They have existed for hundreds of years in the park, surviving on simple 
planting and hunting.

Demographic changes in Merauke have endangered their livelihoods, as 
modern hunting and illegal logging pose a threat to Papua's richest park 
in term of biodiversity.

The park is very beautiful indeed. After turning left from the Merauke 
road, a very rich lowland forest can be seen. Eucalyptus trees stand 
tall everywhere. Many bird species, like cockatoos and parrots screech 
loudly.

Between the bushes, white ants build their mounds from soil. Unlike 
Javanese white ants, which live underground, the white ants of Wasur 
build their nests like towers. They can reach four meters in height. You 
can find the same thing in Australia.

There are many animal species in the park, including birds, deer, 
kangaroos, wild pigs and reptiles. Lying east of the Wallace Line, Papua 
has no tigers. The main predators in the ecosystem are eagles, 
crocodiles, snakes and humans.

The tribes usually hunt deer, kangaroos and wild boars to satisfy their 
protein needs. Present-day economic realities mean they also now sell 
the animals since they are the only products with a high value that they 
have to trade.

The local tribes hunt using sustainable methods. At certain times, 
people are forbidden from hunting in specified areas. Poles, to which 
coconut leaves are tied, signify forbidden areas.

The system, known as /sasi/, is aimed at providing an opportunity for 
animals to breed. The system has proved itself capable of saving animals 
from extinction.

The demographic situation in the area has changed rapidly. The New Order 
government's transmigration policy has created a new demographic 
structure, in which Papuans are in the minority in Merauke now.

Javanese are in the majority (40 percent), followed by Makassarese (20 
percent), and the Manadonese, Maduranese, Acehnese and Chinese (10 
percent). The indigenous peoples of Merauke account for only 30 percent 
of the population. The total population of Merauke is around 100,000 
people.

There are no significant ethnic conflicts in Merauke. But the influx has 
had serious consequences for the sustainability of the Wasur National 
Park. Non-indigenous people have adopted new hunting methods. They 
employ modern weaponry, not just bows and arrows as the indigenous 
people used.

According to many sources, modern hunters obtain their weapons and 
ammunition illegally, sometimes even from the police. They usually 
ignore the /sasi/ system. They also ignore hunting quotas.

As a result, there has been a significant decrease in the animal 
population.

Kristianus Dimar, 70, a leader of the Kanume tribe, said that it was now 
very difficult to obtain kangaroo, deer or wild boar. "It was once very 
easy for a group of hunters to get five animals; now it is difficult 
even to get one," he said.

The tribes usually consume the meat or sell it in the market. They make 
Rp 10,000 for a kilogram of kangaroo meat, and Rp 15,000 for a kilo of 
deer meat.

They use the money to buy rice, sugar, coffee and soap. They need Rp 
400.000 to cover the monthly cost of living of a family. When there were 
no modern hunters, they could live easily. But now it is hard for them 
to make money. They also have to eat more *rubber* than meat, since meat 
is very hard to get.

For their carbohydrate intake, they consume *rubber* /*(checking)*/ and 
sago flour. But the damage caused to the forest has left sago difficult 
to find. "I feel full when I eat sago. I don't feel that way when I eat 
rice," said Kristianus.

He and the members of his tribe are unable to do much to stop the 
illegal modern hunting methods as they have only bows and arrows while 
the hunters have automatic weapons. For large predators, modern hunting 
has also resulted in a lack of prey.

Besides ecological damage, modern hunting also threatens the lives of 
the indigenous people. Simple agriculture and hunting are the only 
skills they have. Such skills have sustained them for hundreds of years 
without modern intervention.

The modern economic system has marginalized them since the things they 
have to sell have a low value. The animals they hunt have, thus far, 
been the most expensive products they have to sell. Besides hunting, 
they also make money by selling forest products like papaya, oranges and 
candlenuts.

Most local adults are elementary school graduates. Their relative lack 
of education leaves them unable to join the modern bureaucracy.

They are smart and their grammatical skills in Bahasa Indonesia are very 
good, much better than those of many Javanese villagers. But so-called 
modernization in many aspects of their lives leaves them marginalized.

 From being hunter-gatherers, they have been forced to leave their homes 
and try to find their way within the world of trade and industry.

This is gross injustice, as Mgr. Nicolaus Adi Seputra MSC, the 
Archbishop of Merauke, notes. Modernization represents a point of no 
return, and this has greatly prejudiced the Wasur people.

Protection and appreciation for the local culture and ecology would be 
an appropriate way of liberating the Wasur people in their own homeland.

/The writer is a researcher with the SET Foundation and lecturer at Atma 
Jaya Catholic University, Jakarta
/

http://www.thejakartapost.com/detailfeatures.asp?fileid=20050419.Q03&irec=2



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Macdonald Stainsby
http://independentmedia.ca/survivingcanada
http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/listinfo/rad-green
In the contradiction lies the hope
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