Pergeseran nilai tradisional Suku Bajo dalam perlindungan dan pemanfaatan sumberdaya laut Taman Nasional Wakatobi

Abstract

Wakatobi National Park is situated geographically at the world’s coral reef triangle centre which has the highest diversity of coral reefs and other marine biodiversity on earth. These has made Wakatobi Sea as the source of livelihood for the Bajo people, a well known sailor ethnic group in Indonesia which has developed a marine culture for centuries. People of Bajo were highly dependent upon sea, as means of livelihood and settlements. They believed that sea is their ancestor’s home, the ruler of the sea. Nevertheless, currently, Bajo’s settlement in Wakatobi National Park in the Sub-District of South Wangi- wangi is experiencing a shift with regard to their housings, which were built on the mainland, not above water. Furthermore, their way of living did not reflect a cultural life that appreciates the sea, where marine resources utilizations were conducted in places which were actually preservation areas. This research was conducted to analyze the shifts in traditional values of utilization and protection of marine resources by Bajo ethnic group in Wakatobi National Park. The subject of this research was the Bajo people inhabiting Wangi-Wangi Island, focusing on two villages, North Mola and Mola Nelayan Bakti Villages, of South Wangi- wangi Sub-district, in the province of Southeast Sulawesi. The research was conducted in June through to August 2010. Equipments and materials used in this research include map of the area, tape recorder, interview guides, digital camera, diary, calculator, ruler and other stationary. Data were collected using triangulation method, which is the use of three methods including interview, observation, and literature study as means of cross referencing. Results of the observations and interviews indicated that the Bajo’s settlements have been united with the mainland, where the majority of the housings were built on reclamation land using coral reefs. The patterns of such resource utilization were no longer reflected their cultural life, in such that protected marine resources were also being exploited, as well as utilization practices which did not considered traditional ceremony prior to resource utilization.