Rapid Ecological Assessment - Indo-Pacific Images

Chapter 2 - Socio-Economic Conditions in the Raja Ampat Islands
As is the case in the Pacific, which has experienced various waves of transmigration over the millennia, new
arrivals have limited rights of access to natural resources. Subsistence fishing or harvesting is always free to
everyone. Decisions regarding patterns of resource use, including seasonal closure of fishing areas or taboos
on the harvest of certain species, are made by the clan hierarchy and must be adhered to by all that reside in,
or transit through, an area that is subject to custom ownership and management. Activities of a commercial
nature must be approved by the clan hierarchy and this might entail some form of compensation should
permission be granted. Continuity of residence and association with a particular area and its people through
generations is at the root of the allocation of access rights. Intermarriage and various forms of patrilineal and
matrilineal lineage usually contribute to the extent of access rights afforded to an individual. Customary
ownership of resources is an evolutionary phenomenon. It is adaptable by necessity, but like other forms of
property rights structure, it must be adequately enforced.
Several characteristics of the tenure rights and cultural regulations governing resource use in Raja Ampat
have been identified as follows:
• Resources are owned communally rather than individually;
• The sasi system is part of the culture of the Raja Ampat communities. Sasi is mechanism designed to
regulate use of natural resources. Based on advice from community members, the clan hierarchy might
decide to utilize (buka sasi) or conserve (tutup sasi) particular resources or areas. Sanctions are imposed
on those that do not comply with such dictates;
• Access rights granted to third parties are conditional and non-permanent;
• The granting of access rights to resources requires community consensus but the final decision rests with
the customary head of the clan;
• The concept of “right to use but not to own” was becoming more popular among the indigenous people of
Raja Ampat. This is likely a response to increasing population and commercial activity threatening a
long-standing status quo;
• Raja Ampat communities recognize and respect traditional ownership of natural resources and the
concomitant rights of access to those resources; and
• Raja Ampat communities expect reciprocity to be practiced when resources are exploited. On a small
scale, this might include transiting fishermen sharing subsistence catch. On a commercial scale, it entails
the sharing of wealth through the provision of social services and infrastructure.
It must be noted that the system of custom tenure and access rights to natural resources is strong from the
community viewpoint, expressed particularly by older members of the community. However, some younger
people reject the limitations on resource exploitation imposed by customary measures designed for
moderation. This is exacerbated by the disregard for customary rights exhibited by people who come from
outside Raja Ampat to exploit resources without permission or compensation with complicity from figures of
authority.
2.11 Influence and Involvement of Outside Parties on Resource Use
A question asked repeatedly of communities throughout the REA involved the current status of marine
resources compared to that of bygone times. Overwhelmingly, villagers replied that resources had been
significantly depleted. Villagers spoke of the minimal effort required to catch a fish for a meal, or to collect
sea cucumber and molluscs for sale. The reasons offered by villagers for such depletion unanimously pointed
to the exploitation of marine resources by people from outside of Raja Ampat.
This section will explain the involvement of some of those outsiders. The logging and the pearl farming
companies have already been explained in previous sections. To a certain degree, these industries are
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