Guard of Meratus Forest
Ayal Kosal
Ayal Kosal is not young anymore. He is 75 years old. However, his eagerness to protect the Meratus Forest has never slackened. He says the forest needs to be preserved forever.
Greeted at his house at the end of March, Ayal Kosal, who is a damang (elder) of the indigenous people of South Kalimantan province, looked modest. At the time, Damang Ayal – as he is called – had just finished taking a bath after coming home from the forest. He bathed in the Wani-Wani River, which flows in front of his house. The water in the stony river is still very clear.
“Where else can you find a river with water as clear as it is here? That is because there are no longer any forests. Here, the forest is taken care of,” said Damang Ayal, starting the conversation before asking the guests to take a seat.
A warm conversation then continued while sitting on the floor on the terrace of his house.
The house of Damang Ayal is located in Malaris, Loklahung village, Loksado district, Hulu Sungai Selatan regency, South Kalimantan. From the center of the district, his house is only 2 kilometers away. However, from Kandangan, the capital of Hulu Sungai Selatan regency, the distance is 44 kilometers. From Banjarmasin, it is 178 kilometers away.
Ayal said the forest was closely connected to humans. Without the forest and land, the indigenous people would not be able to survive. Therefore, the Meratus Forest must be taken care of and preserved forever for the sake of the life of future generations.
As a Damang Adat (cultural elder) Ayal feels a responsibility to preserve the Meratus Forest for the sake of the indigenous people. He considers himself the caretaker of the Meratus Forest.
“We have a customary law and we still hold on strongly to the law. If a customary law is breached, there will be customary fines or sanctions,” said the former Loklahung village chief.
Ayal said he always asked the indigenous people to preserve the Meratus Forest because without the forest and the land, they will not survive.
“Basically, not everyone can earn money using their intelligence. For those that are not intelligent, they need to have land to work. The land can be jointly managed but can also be managed individually,” said the father of four.
In making use of the forest, the indigenous people use local wisdoms for practices such as cleaning land and farming. In farming, the people use the gilir balik (taking turns) system. The land cultivated this year is the land that was cultivated five to 10 years ago. The same pattern will apply for future cultivations.
We have a customary law and we still hold on strongly to the law. If a customary law is breached, there will be customary fines or sanctions.
“We implement the gilir balik system because we do not touch certain forest areas at all and that cannot be meddled with. If some people try to cultivate on it, they will face customary sanctions,” he said.
On the cultivated land, the indigenous Meratus Dayak people who live on Mount Meratus generally adopt intercropping agriculture. A piece of land will not only be planted with rice, but also vegetables. After the rice and vegetables are harvested, the land will be planted with rubber, cinnamon and candlenut trees.
With such cultivation patterns, the people are able to survive and not be seduced by offers from mining investors or big-scale plantations. “If calculated, the income of every family from working on the land is around Rp 40 million to Rp 50 million a year,” he said.
Tempted
As the Damang Adat, who has considerable influence among the indigenous people, Ayal up to this day has persisted in preserving the Meratus Forest. His efforts are never far from temptation and threats from parties that wish to take over the forest area for big-scale mining and plantation purposes.
“There are always tempting offers from big investors. Nonetheless, however much is offered, I do not want to let the Meratus Forest go and be turned into a big-scale mining and plantation site. Therefore, we often have conflicting opinions with the government,” he said.
The government, Ayal said, should support what has been done by the indigenous people in their efforts to preserve the forest, because what the indigenous people have done has had a positive impact on many people.
“The ones that benefit from our work is not only those of us who live on the mountain, but also all the people of South Kalimantan,” he said.
Mount Meratus, which extends from the southeast and turns to the north, all the way to the borders of East Kalimantan, looks as though it splits South Kalimantan province in two. On the mountain, there is a water source for the whole of South Kalimantan. “If the forest is not taken care of, the water source could end up drying up,” he said.
If the forest is ruined, the impact will be huge, from upstream to downstream.
Many people will be victims. It will not only affect the Meratus Dayak indigenous people, but also the people along the river basin area that starts from Mount Meratus. When it rains, the people will be hit by floods and when the dry season comes, the people will be hit by drought.
Yes. Meratus Forest has also been stolen from us, like those in the areas of Banjar regency, Tanah Bumbu and Tanah Laut. In those areas, mining (companies) have made it in.
Though its condition is still well-preserved, some of the forest area on Mount Meratus has also been encroached on and damaged. Ayal does not deny this condition. He said the indigenous people were sometimes powerless in facing pressure from various sides.
“Yes. Meratus Forest has also been stolen from us, like those in the areas of Banjar regency, Tanah Bumbu and Tanah Laut. In those areas, mining (companies) have made it in,” he said.
Because some parts of Meratus Forest have been encroached upon, Ayal does not want the remaining part of the forest that is now protected by the people to also be sullied. “Do not mess around with Meratus Forest because there are still people on Mount Meratus, there is a history and it is still on the map. The government should support us,” said the grandfather of eight grandchildren.
According to the executive director of the South Kalimantan branch of the Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi), Kisworo Dwi Cahyono, around 50 percent of South Kalimantan’s total area of 3.75 million hectares has been burdened with mining and palm oil plantation permits. Using the analogy of a house, only South Kalimantan’s roof remains intact because its floor and walls have been damaged. South Kalimantan’s roof is Mount Meratus.
“Pak Ayal is one of the community leaders who has played an important role in preserving Mount Meratus Forest. If there were no determined community leaders like him, South Kalimantan’s roof would definitely have been destroyed” said Kisworo.
Ayal said the lives of most of the Meratus Dayak indigenous people still heavily relied on Meratus Forest. Therefore, he hopes the government will quickly establish Meratus as a cultural forest area.
“If (the status of) cultural forest area is not established, this country will never be peaceful because land disputes will continue to happen,” he said.
AYAL KOSAL
- Born: Malaris (Loksado), March 3, 1942.
- Education: Elementary school
- Profession: South Kalimantan Damang Adat (2010-present)
- Wife: Jumiyah (60 years old)
- Family: 4 children, 8 grandchildren and 1 great-grandchild
- Address: Loklahung village, Rt 01/Rw 01, Loksado village, Hulu Sungai Selatan regency, South Kalimantan
