the village authorities. The church was more continuous than the ever-changing village government
which, each time, would install a new kewang with members who supported that particular village
government (read: village head). This was possible, because only the position of the kewang head
is based on descent; the kewang members were chosen. The change in kewang and their position
towards the village authorities led to favoritism and undermined the effectiveness of the kewang.
As a result of their strong position, the church became a major pillar in resource management.
Another aspect that made the church an institution with regard to enforcement is the power
of the institution itself. Bobby Leisana illustrated: “The advantage of church sasi is that you
actually do not need any guards, since God sees everything and will punish the offender.” He
explained: “Several times people took coconuts during sasi. A few days later they got severe
stomach aches and had to admit their crimes to the priest.” For land-based products, thus,
church sasi is strong and effective. Similar to the situation at Tuhaha though, the option to
have marine sasi enforced by the church was not considered.
The formal authority and responsibility for law enforcement, including fisheries regulations,
are in the hands of the police. The fact, however, that the police personnel are based in Pelauw,
10 km from Hualiu, reduced their effectiveness significantly. For example, when an offender
breaks the rules, the village officials would have to make a formal report to the police, but by
the time they arrive the offender has already disappeared. Therefore, the village officials (LMD
and LKMD) are the ones catching offenders, but this implies certain risks. The village
government realizes that if they or, for example, the kewang members injure the offender, the
local authorities could be held liable. Therefore, they will not deal with the offender locally
but bring him to the police.
Since the implementation of the new formal village structure, the prosecution of offenders is
handled according to the formal government regulations and procedures. Traditionally, the
local court consisted of the saniri negeri, the village officials, and the kewang, and despite the
abolishment of these structures, adat law is still taken into account. The village authorities
collaborate closely with the sub-district government, and once a case is in the hands of a
judge from the sub-district, the village leaders can still influence the matter. This, of course,
also allows the village leaders to manipulate the course of events in favor of their relatives.
From our study, it appeared that the formal enforcement structures are inadequate. For
example, despite the village fishery regulations, there is a relatively high occurrence of
dynamite fishing and the use of poisons.
13.4.6 Compliance
Since sasi disappeared, compliance to fisheries rules has become a problem. The lack of an
enforcing institution creates opportunities for illegal fishing. The belief in ancestral spirits and
their revenge is still mentioned as an important reason for people to comply, but it was obviously
not sufficient to keep the people on track when sasi was lost. Economic difficulties aggravated
the situation. In order to get their share in what had become an open-access resource, people
infringed the sasi area. The short-term benefits exceeded the need for a management system.
The process of decline is illustrated by Ama Sihaya, an old fisher-woman, who stated: “The
grace of God is lesser, the world is getting harder and harder, and the people are not good
anymore.” Currently, contra groups in the village use destructive fishing techniques to
undermine the village head’s authority and encroachment and bombing are merely a sign of
political dissatisfaction. This situation severely undermines village authority and it will
definitely affect compliance to the new village regulations that the village head proposes.
168 An Institutional Analysis of Sasi Laut in Maluku, Indonesia