Kontestasi Kepentingan antar Aktor: Pertarungan Akses Sumberdaya Air Irigasi di Padukuhan Bayen, Daerah Istimewa Yogyakarta

Abstract

Contestation over water resources for agricultural irrigation is increasingly prevalent in rural-urban areas. The malfunctioning of irrigation systems is not only caused by water scarcity and inadequate physical infrastructure, but also by the monopolization of water use by certain powerful actors. This study aims to analyze the contestation and conflicts among actors that underlie the limited use of irrigation. It employs a qualitative case study approach, collecting data through in-depth interviews, direct observation, and document analysis.

Irrigation governance in Padukuhan Bayen has not been functioning effectively. There is a lack of synchronization between central and local regulations regarding irrigation water use. The local government, which holds authority over local irrigation management, has failed to foster coordination among agencies to accommodate peasants’ participation. Farmer groups are unable to prevent land irrigation encroachment or address issues such as irrigated land conversion and the political-economic interests of actors surrounding Bayen hamlet.

Among the three layers of peasants, ruling peasants are able to secure their interests through connections with elites beyond the village level, while treating other cultivators as agricultural laborers who must adjust to their control over water use. Intermediate peasants have the capacity to purchase diesel pumps and construct private wells to irrigate their land when irrigation water is insufficient. In contrast, marginal peasants lack authoritative access to water and are thus forced to incur additional costs by buying water from deep wells or renting diesel pumps from better-off peasants.

The construction of a toll road has further compromised irrigation facilities. Farmer groups have been unable to advocate for the restoration of irrigation systems as the toll project advanced. Community responses have fragmented into three distinct organizations: the farmer group, the United Alliance People of Bayen (Aliansi Warga Bayen Bersatu), and the the Community of Toll Road Construction Victims (Paguyuban Warga Terdampak). The Farmer Group and the the Community of Toll Road Construction Victims have both served as platforms for voicing demands related to the restoration of farmland irrigation, but they operate separately. Ruling peasants have allowed intermediate and marginal peasants to act independently, leaving the hamlet head of Bayen (Kepala Dukuh Bayen) as one of the few remaining figures bridging negotiations with external stakeholders.