Asian Transformations in Action - Api-fellowships.org

98 BLURRED BORDERS AND SOCIAL INTEGRATIONSto a borderzone (Ulaen 2003, 49). Needless to say,local people were not consulted or made part of thisprocess and only had a poor appreciation of thesetransformations.It is, therefore, not surprising that the flow of people toand from Mindanao never ceased through the centuries,especially among those engaged in barter trade. Withthe changing direction of the winds, it is said that eachmonsoon season encouraged people to travel betweenislands to find new trading opportunities and evenfuture spouses. There are numerous legends and royalgenealogies that attest to these exogamous practices(Hayase, Non and Ulaen 1999; Tiu 2005). It is due tothis history of migration and intermarriage, trade linksand religious ties, that anthropologist and historian AlexUlaen likens the islands of the Sulawesi-Sulu Sea to anentity such as the Mediterranean, a contiguous area ofland and sea with common socio-cultural traits.Cullamar (1998, 19) interviewed Sangirese settlers onthe Philippine islands of Balut and Sarangani who recallthat those who arrived before 1935 thought the virginislands were theirs by virtue of occupation. Indeed,there were no signs to warn them that they had enteredinto “foreign” territory, as immigration laws were onlyintroduced when the Philippines and Indonesia becameindependent republics. Crossing the border withoutproper papers only became a crime in the second half ofthe twentieth century.As the Philippine frontier around General Santos wasopened, there was a great demand for labor in theagricultural and fisheries sectors. Migrant workersfrom Nusa Utara, fleeing the political and economicinstability on the Indonesian side in the 1950s dueto rebellions and unrest, filled this need. While somesettled in Mindanao permanently and raised theirfamilies there (Tiu, undated), others chose to commuteback and forth.Since neither the Indonesian nor Philippinegovernment was able to regulate this “illegal” flow, theBorder Crossing Agreement of 1956 was institutedin the context of the repatriation and/or legalizationof overstaying visitors. Successive guidelines, jointdirectives, agreements and amendments have sinceexpanded and constricted opportunities for habitualborder-crossers through the years. These regulationsallow residents of the Indonesian-Philippine borderarea, as defined, to obtain border crossing cards (inlieu of passports) that allow them to travel to the otherside of the border for up to 59 days for the purposesof family visits, religious worship and pleasure. Fishingcrew members are given 29 days. Individuals are allowedto bring with them USD250 worth of goods for crossbordertrade, families are granted USD1,000.The reality, however, is that these amounts are oftenexceeded. In such cases, traders must negotiate overadditional levies with border-crossing officers atdesignated border crossing stations on both sides of theborder. Sometimes, people prefer to bypass these stationsaltogether and pass through the border “illegally.” Thisnot only makes their journeys more cost-efficient, butalso shortens travel time, since the Indonesian bordercrossing stations on the islands of Marore, Miangas andTarakan are quite remote and inaccessible. Fishermenwho “illegally” sell their catch across the border arereferred to as “strikers.” Another problem is that theborder trade is only allowed among residents of theofficially defined immediate border area, consisting ofthe sparsely populated outer islands. Goods bound formarkets on the main island are therefore brought inclandestinely.By all indications, the Sangihe and Talaud islandcluster as a whole is not a prosperous region. Povertyis exacerbated by the lack of adequate transportationand communication infrastructure and poor socialservices. Crops are prone to pests; many coral reefsand mangrove forests are damaged. The area is alsovulnerable to natural disasters. Any cross-border tradetaking place—both legal and illegal—is not animatedby profit, but survival. Whether traded “legally” or“illegally,” there is no difference in the assortment ofgoods. For the most part, goods brought in from thePhilippines, such as rubber slippers, kitchenware andnylon sleeping mats as well as alcoholic beverages andCoca-Cola, fill the everyday needs of people. Fishingequipment and materials for the upkeep of outriggermotorboats (bangka in Filipino) are also almostexclusively sourced from the Philippines. Fish, copraand Indonesian laundry detergent are the top “export”products to the Philippine market.Admittedly, there have been cases of Filipinos gettingcaught for smuggling firearms and fake dollar billsand engaging in illegal mining across the border. Theconnivance of Indonesian law enforcement officials insmuggling activities remains much harder to prove.Nevertheless, accomplices in these crimes are outsiders,not people of the borderzone. The same is true forsuspected terrorist movements. Nusa Utara is far frombeing a terrorist hotbed—as my informants from allwalks of life emphasized.In this regard, it is important to understand the relativeAsian Transformations in ActionThe Work of the 2006/2007 API Fellows