The economic indicator of the fishers’ sample was made up of adding scores for land ownership,
boat ownership, type of house and fishing gears (for full explanation see Section 2.5). Most
fishers (83%) are landowners and almost half (47%) have permanent housing (cement with zinc
roof). In Nolloth, the average economic score was 8.1 (with a standard error of 0.35), which is in
the lower third of the 27 villages investigated (Appendix 2). When TV ownership is factored in,
the economic score is 8.5, the lowest of the case study villages (see Appendix 3).
10.3 Market Attributes
Artisanal fishers in Nolloth generally sell their catch either directly to consumers or to small
traders. A few (17% of sample) deal with wholesalers. Most fishers (97%) say it is they or their
wives who set the sale price. The majority (70%) sell their fish in Nolloth or elsewhere on
Saparua Island (17%). The key factor in choosing the point of sale is the price. Prices vary, but
in 1997, it was usual for fishers to sell their mid-sized fish (komu, lema) for Rp1,000-Rp2,000
each while smaller species (lalosi, sardinia) could fetch Rp250.
Compared to fishers in other case study villages, Nolloth fishers sell a relatively high
percentage of their catch. Only 13% is used for family consumption. Eight fishers said they
do not eat any of the fish they catch, and none eat more than half of their catch. The shellfish
and fish gathered by women, in contrast, are not sold but used for family consumption.
The small-scale fish trade is mainly in the hands of village women, called papalele, many of
whom are wives of fishers. The female fish vendors buy and sell all kinds and sizes of fish,
both in fresh and smoked form. The post-harvest processing of fish is limited to smoking.
None of the vendors has access to ice. The price of fish depends on various factors: weather
conditions, the amount of fish in the market, the size of the trader network, and the auction
price of fish set by the fish brokers who handle commercial catches (see Section 3.2). The
profit of the retailer can approach 150-200%.
The fish vendors mostly sell their fish in the local village market or in other villages on Saparua
Island, including the town itself. The remainder ends up in urban centers i.e., Masohi, Tulehu
and Ambon city. Fish are taken to market via public transportation: bus or speedboat. The women
never travel to or from a market empty-handed and often deal in sago and vegetables as well as
fish. Fish that cannot be sold fresh before noon are smoked and either go into the stock needed
for a long distance trading trip or are peddled door-to-door in the village in the late afternoon.
Compared to the other case study villages on Saparua and Haruku, the wide range of markets
enjoyed by Nolloth traders is exceptional. The fish vendors use their long experience and a
strategy of flexibility to find the best place to sell fish for the best price. They gather information
on city market prices from bus and speedboat drivers and from people freshly arrived home
from the city. Those who choose a district or provincial market for their sales do this because:
1) the price is higher there than on the local markets, 2) it is easily accessible, and 3) they can
sell fish together with other commodities.
10.3.1 Commercial large-scale fish trade
The financial control over the pole and line fish trade is mainly in the hands of Chinese
Indonesians. The pole and line boats typically go out twice a week on 3-day trips, unloading
fish at cold stores in Tulehu and Masohi.
102 An Institutional Analysis of Sasi Laut in Maluku, Indonesia