WCF 2016: Mama Aleta Talks on Cultural Preservation

Bali - Three out of six symposia were conducted simultaneously on Monday (11/10), at the Bali Nusa Dua Convention Center, Bali.

At the first symposium, Indonesian representative Aletta Baun explained cultural preservation is conducted as the results of modernization. The presentation refers to the symposium’s sub-theme ‘Reviving Culture for Rural Sustainability’.

Alleta, affectionately known as Mama Alleta, said that modernization brought significant impact to East Nusa Tenggara community. “I live in Mollo Village, where most residents work as corn farmers, and forest products trader,” she added.

However, Aletta continued, modernization leads to cultural imbalance in her village. Aletta pointed out a case when the implementation of forest plant homogenization and conversion of forest into industrial plantation brought a negative impact to their culture. “We could not do our chores because the majority of Mollo residents worked as farmers and forest products sellers, and that caused conflict between the men in the families in our village,” Mama Alleta said.

In addition, the permit to manage mountain into coal mining area also contributed to add the list of the cultural imbalances.

“I came from the Amman Clan and rock mountain is our origin that is considered sacred according to our custom, but it changed because the area is converted into coal mines,” Mama Alleta explained.

According to Alleta, the damage cannot be ignored. “Culture teaches us to treat the nature as we treat our bodies,” She said. Therefore, deforestation means that we damage our bodies.

During her struggle to preserve the culture, Mama Alleta was challenged by confrontation from her own culture. “I am the daughter of Amman Clan in which women does not have rights to speak, and fight for the culture, so I was confronted with my own East Nusa Tenggara community,” the Head of Mollo Village said. Through joint efforts with other women of her community, Mama Alleta shared her keys to success. We worked hard to find ways by discussing with traditional figures and young people. We made a ritual and refuse the economy that destructs the nature.

For the future, Mama Alleta set the target for a sustainable economy that improves the culture.

“Destroying the nature means destroying our custom, so we should organize our natural products,” Mama Alleta explained.

She asserted in custom meetings that they are allowed to sell things that they produce, but not allowed to sell land, air, water, and material includes in their land.

For the record, World Culture Forum is an international event which is participated by ministers and delegates from 65 countries. In this year’s WCF, they will meet to compile a platform to improve the function of culture in the development through six symposia. Symposium 1 takes theme ”Reviving Culture for Rural Sustainability”; Symposium 2 takes theme ”Water for Life: Reconciling Socio-Economic Growth and Environmental Ethics”; Symposium 3 takes themes “Interweaving History, Urban Space and Cultural Movement”; Symposium 4 takes themes ‘Culture in the New Digital World”; Symposium 5 takes themes ”Reconciling State, Community and Cultural Divides”; and Symposium 6 takes themes “Cultural Diversity for Responsible Development”. (WCF2016)

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