The Rimba Raya Biodiversity Reserve REDD Project

Reportedly comprising 21,000 hectares, the village hascategorized its land into the following land uses: settlement,swidden agriculture, and graveyard. Most land is privatelyowned by families, with the exception of a plantation plantedwith jelutung (Dyera costulata) and rubber that belongs to thevillage (200 ha). This land was distributed to 100 families, eachgiven two hectares, by the Indonesian government. The familiesare only authorized to manage the piece of land that they weregiven and they do not have ownership rights to the land. These200 ha are not concentrated in one area, but rather scatteredthroughout the village. This plantation development is part ofthe National Reforestation Program that was managed under theSeruyan District’s DAK-­‐DR (Dana Anggaran Kabupaten-­‐DanaReboisasi, the District Budget from the Department of Forestry’sReforestation Fund).Reportedly, there are no conflicts among villagers. They are saidto respect each other, and respect the boundaries of each other’sproperty. They know which ladang (swidden area) belongs towhom without the use of physical marks on the ground. Whenconflicts arise, they prefer using discussion in lieu ofconfrontation to resolve them. At present, the ownership of landis registered through Surat Kepemilikan Tanah (SKT), issued bythe Village Head. However not all villagers have used this SKT toclaim their land officially.Most of the villagers have multiple sources of income, but themain source at present is from fishing. In the past, they alsocollected rattan and used forested areas for their needs. Since oilpalm licenses were issued from Seruyan District and plantationsdeveloped on nearby land, however, the villagers claim that allthe forests are gone. According to the village secretary, there is apotential conflict brewing with the oil palm license holder PT.Wana Sawit Timur. The company has yet to visit the village todiscuss the license area or other issues of oil palm operation.Villagers generally meet their basic needs through a cash-­‐basedeconomy, purchasing carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals, someprotein, and medicines. They meet their protein needs largelythrough fishing.Both formal and informal institutions are present in the village.Formal institutions are managed through government structures,typically comprising a village head, village secretary, other staff ofthe village office, and a BPD (Badan Perwakilan Desa, VillageRepresentative Body). Bahaur does not have a village office.Currently the administration operates out of the village head’shouse. Informal institutions include a women’s group (e.g., PKK,Program Kesejahteraan Keluarga, Family Welfare Program), aweekly Islam study group, a youth group, and a farmer group. Toorganize meetings, Bahaur uses written invitations delivered aday in advance. The villagers prefer to have something in writingto inform them, although the verbal communication system stillfunctions.Villagers apply national and Islamic laws to regulate most aspectsof their lives. Historically, they used Islamic law, which providesmen twice the proportion that women receive, to determineinheritance. Yet they have modified this law and today sons anddaughters receive equal portions. They have a local term, “cutfish” (potong ikan), meaning equal division among children.There appears to be an equal division between villagers whosupport oil palm plantation development and those who supportforest conservation. Some believe that oil palm can bring a newsource of income for them, improving their livelihoods, whileothers are confident that forests contribute most to their33