9 Protection of Rights of Community of Bajo Tribe from the Impacts …
179
is their guide. The Bajo are widely spread across the archipelago, both Indonesia, the
Philippines, and Malaysia and Brunei Darussalam. They used to spend their lives on
boats and sail from one place to another. Now, the Bajo have settled in the coastal
areas, but their homes must remain on the side of the sea, not on the land side.
Although the Bajo are geographically separated, there are similarities in the rules of
custom, culture, and value systems that apply. So that the Bajo can be classified as
a separate ethnic group with the same ancestry. Their culture encompasses various
rules of life from their experience and spirituality by relying entirely on nature. This
ethical, custom, and cultural system is interesting to study because it is proven to be
able to make the Bajo community survive and live in harmony with the coastal and
oceanic areas into their livelihoods. The Bajo people have wisdom in maintaining
and utilizing coastal areas in a sustainable manner.
Bajo people move around in groups to different places according to the choice of
fishing location. Sea is used as a source of life (panamamie ma di lao). They (read
Bajo tribe) have the principle that pinde kulitang kadare, bone pinde and kadare
which means moving the Bajo to the land as well as moving turtles to land or in
other words taking away his life. Even their heads will get dizzy if they do not hear
the sound of the waves. Bajo is a concept given by other ethnic groups. The Bajo are
born and live in the sea. They have the toughness to navigate the ocean as part of their
history and identity. It absorbs and is inherent in their daily lives about traditions and
local wisdom to manage marine ecosystems in any part of the archipelago, including
in Southeast Sulawesi Province.
The Bajo (Bajo people) generally live in the coastal areas of Southeast Sulawesi
spread in almost all coastal areas of Southeast Sulawesi, including in Konawe Kepulauan Regency (Wawonii), on the coast of North Konawe Regency (Lemo Bajo
Village), Wakatobi Islands Regency, Muna Regency, Buton Regency North, and
several other coastal areas in the district/city of Southeast Sulawesi. They (the
Bajo tribe) dwell, gather, move and interact with the marine environment, up to
several generations of their offspring. Their nuances of life are very familiar with
the coastal/marine realms. Local culture/local wisdom obtained from generation
to generation is inherited from one generation to the next, being the provision of
their knowledge in utilizing natural resources as well as in the management of
coastal/marine areas so that sustainability is maintained.
The dependence of the Bajo people in various places regarding the use of resources
on the coast has almost the same characteristics. In general, they live as their ancestors, namely living from the sea. In addition to the head of the family, teenagers
are obliged to help parents who work as fishermen. While the role of housewives in
addition to helping husbands sell their marine catches to the market is guiding and
educating their children in teaching about local wisdom, honesty, manners, courtesy,
planting religious values and responsibilities, especially to children still under five.
Examples of the ways in which resources, customs, and community organizations
are used will be explained in a number of different cases in the Bajo community
below:
179
is their guide. The Bajo are widely spread across the archipelago, both Indonesia, the
Philippines, and Malaysia and Brunei Darussalam. They used to spend their lives on
boats and sail from one place to another. Now, the Bajo have settled in the coastal
areas, but their homes must remain on the side of the sea, not on the land side.
Although the Bajo are geographically separated, there are similarities in the rules of
custom, culture, and value systems that apply. So that the Bajo can be classified as
a separate ethnic group with the same ancestry. Their culture encompasses various
rules of life from their experience and spirituality by relying entirely on nature. This
ethical, custom, and cultural system is interesting to study because it is proven to be
able to make the Bajo community survive and live in harmony with the coastal and
oceanic areas into their livelihoods. The Bajo people have wisdom in maintaining
and utilizing coastal areas in a sustainable manner.
Bajo people move around in groups to different places according to the choice of
fishing location. Sea is used as a source of life (panamamie ma di lao). They (read
Bajo tribe) have the principle that pinde kulitang kadare, bone pinde and kadare
which means moving the Bajo to the land as well as moving turtles to land or in
other words taking away his life. Even their heads will get dizzy if they do not hear
the sound of the waves. Bajo is a concept given by other ethnic groups. The Bajo are
born and live in the sea. They have the toughness to navigate the ocean as part of their
history and identity. It absorbs and is inherent in their daily lives about traditions and
local wisdom to manage marine ecosystems in any part of the archipelago, including
in Southeast Sulawesi Province.
The Bajo (Bajo people) generally live in the coastal areas of Southeast Sulawesi
spread in almost all coastal areas of Southeast Sulawesi, including in Konawe Kepulauan Regency (Wawonii), on the coast of North Konawe Regency (Lemo Bajo
Village), Wakatobi Islands Regency, Muna Regency, Buton Regency North, and
several other coastal areas in the district/city of Southeast Sulawesi. They (the
Bajo tribe) dwell, gather, move and interact with the marine environment, up to
several generations of their offspring. Their nuances of life are very familiar with
the coastal/marine realms. Local culture/local wisdom obtained from generation
to generation is inherited from one generation to the next, being the provision of
their knowledge in utilizing natural resources as well as in the management of
coastal/marine areas so that sustainability is maintained.
The dependence of the Bajo people in various places regarding the use of resources
on the coast has almost the same characteristics. In general, they live as their ancestors, namely living from the sea. In addition to the head of the family, teenagers
are obliged to help parents who work as fishermen. While the role of housewives in
addition to helping husbands sell their marine catches to the market is guiding and
educating their children in teaching about local wisdom, honesty, manners, courtesy,
planting religious values and responsibilities, especially to children still under five.
Examples of the ways in which resources, customs, and community organizations
are used will be explained in a number of different cases in the Bajo community
below: