An institutional analysis of sasi laut in Maluku, Indonesia

of the year, inaccessible. From Ambon Island, however, the village can easily be reached by
boat in half an hour and there is a regular boat service. Communication links are minimal;
there is no telephone connection.

Employment

The majority of the employed adults (295) are registered farmers. Cloves are an important
cash crop. Most people combine fishing and farming. Of the 150 registered fishers, only 20
men fish full-time. The number of people involved in various trades and construction activities
is 89, there are 16 vendors in the village, and 42 people are government officials. For all
occupations, the numbers have increased since 1979.

11.2.1 Village government

In 1979, the new village structure became a fact. The LMD, consisting mainly of former
members of the saniri negeri, was chaired by the village head. Three committees were
established to deal with: 1) general affairs, 2) government, and 3) development. However, the
introduction of this new village structure caused a division within the village government:
the formal government bodies, on one side, and the traditional adat institutions (e.g., kepala
soa), on the other. Political stress led to unstable leadership.

Table 11.1.

Village leaders in Haruku

The 1997 elections made Jonas Pieter Ferdinandus the new village head. Over the previous 10
years, Haruku was governed by several interim leaders (Table 11.1). Often, interim leaders
come into power if a village head is not able to finish his term in office or if nobody wants to
run for the job after his term ends. In this case, the formal election may be postponed until
there are sufficient qualified and acceptable candidates.

The interim village heads lacked the mandate to restructure the LMD with the result that, at
the time of our research (1997), the LMD was not fully functional. This was aggravated by the
perception that the formal elections in 1997 were manipulated to ensure that a pro-mining
leader won the contest. One of the former village heads and raja, Bertie Ririmasse, was not
allowed to run for office owing to alleged communist sympathies. In fact, he was a popular
leader committed to environmental conservation. In the end, voter turnout was low and the
new village head became elected with a slender majority. Not only was the village divided,
but within the LMD, a pro and contra group also arose.

Village affairs are currently being managed by the village head, the village secretary and the
vice-chairs of the LMD and LKMD. In the meantime, the village head is trying to reconcile
the LMD members and re-organize it into a functional institution.

124 An Institutional Analysis of Sasi Laut in Maluku, Indonesia

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