M01801
STONES AS HUMAN BONES: AN ECOTHEOLOGICAL ANALYSIS OF THE
CONTRIBUTION OF MOLLO INDIGENOUS WOMEN’S SPIRITUAL BELIEF SYSTEM TO
ENVIROMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY
Ira D. Mangililo
Ira.mangililo@staff.uksw.edu
ABSTRACT
This paper aims to demonstrate the interconnection between the indigenous Mollo
women with their land and nature which is shown through their spiritual belief
system that regards rocks, trees, land, and water as their bodies. As the ones who
are most affected by the presence of mining companies in their area, Mollo women
have used their spiritual beliefs as a powerful foundation for their active and
creative attempts to challenge the colonization of the globalization as the
manifestation of capitalist patriarchy. These spiritual beliefs, therefore, are a gift from
the Divine Being that should be preserved and passed down from generation to
generation. This belief system is in line with the message of the Bible which emphasizes
a strong relationship between the land, the people, and God. Therefore, humans are
called to maintain the land’s fertility as a requirement of humans’ well-being and
sustainability. As such, Christianity, together with Mollo women’s spiritual beliefs, can
be used as a theological model of transformation that underlines women’s resistance
movement in East Nusa Tenggara.
Globalization is known as a process of global economic, political, and cultural
integration which has successfully turned the world into a small village where all the
borders between countries have disappeared.1 As such, one can see how the rapid
diffusion of information and cultural merging has successfully decreased the dimensions
of our world.2 As a result, whatever happens in other parts of the world will be known
in a matter of minutes as the news and reports can be accessed easily via online media
that has flourished rapidly in these last few decades. Moreover, many pictures shared in
social media such as Facebook or Instagram proclaim how Indonesian people now are
1
Roland Robertson, Globalization: Social Theory and Global Culture (London: SAGE Publications Ltd, 1992),
8.
2
Karla Sosa, “Globalization and Economic Development in the Third World: Hazard of Enhancement?”
http://www.ia-forum.org/Files/JIXWRE.pdf [Internet Accessed: Oct 15, 2015), 1.
leaning towards a Western way of living; they feel honorable when they can dress like
Hollywood celebrities; use fancy branded hand-bags; eat in fancy Western restaurants;
and speak or write in English. Hence, globalization is a powerful trend that can bring
together and unify various cultural values and the world economic systems. It involves
“economic integration; the transfer of policies across borders; the transmission of
knowledge; cultural stability; the reproduction, relations, and discourses of power; it is a
global process, a concept, a revolution, and ‘an establishment of the global market free
from sociopolitical control’.”3 This description indicates that globalization can refer to
progress, development and stability, integration, and cooperation; however, it also can
refer to regression, colonialism, and destabilization.4
However, the massive impact of globalization has also brought Indonesia into a
very tough question on whether it will help increase Indonesia’s economic growth or
whether it will further widen the gap between the rich and poor. Will globalization only
benefit the First World counties since it allows “industrialized countries to expand their
large markets through the implementation of free-trade zones, border areas where
restrictions such as import tariffs have been reduced or eliminated”?5 In Indonesia,
globalization has created a tremendous impact on the lives of many Indonesians. In our
everyday lives, we witness that even though Indonesia celebrates its independence
which has been obtained since 1945 after living under the colonization of Dutch people
and Japan for almost three and a half centuries, the notion of external colonization
which represents the power of white master colonizers is still obvious and visible in our
land. This external colonization can be seen in a system often referred to as
neocolonialism, in which “the ex-colonial powers and newly emerging superpowers such
as the United States continued to play a decisive role through international monetary
bodies, through the fixing of prices on world markets, multinational corporations and
3
Nayef R. F. Al-Rodhan, “Definitions of Globalization: A Comprehensive Overview and a Proposed
Definition,” in Program on the Geopolitical Implications of Globalization and Transnational Security
(Geneva: Geneva Centre for Security Policy, June 19, 2006), 3.
4
Al-Rodhan, “Definitions of Globalization,” 3.
5
Sosa, “Globalization and Economic Development,” 1.
cartels, and a variety of educational and cultural institutions.”6 In Indonesia, neocolonial
influence and activity can be seen in the presence of Western lenders, including the
International Monetary Fund, World Bank, and other international organizations that
work closely with the Indonesian government to create plans for economic
development. These international organizations also have assisted the Indonesian
government since the reign of President Suharto in 1967 to exploit Indonesia’s natural
resources such as oil, gas, copper, gold, coal, tin, nickel, fisheries, and rainforests for the
sake of so-called national development.7
The neocolonial system that walks hand-in-hand with global capitalization is also
applied in my own province of East Nusa Tenggara (Nusa Tenggara Timur – NTT). Being
located quite a distance from the capital city of Indonesia and among the country’s
poorest provinces, East Nusa Tenggara is characterized by dry, mountainous areas and a
short rainy season. Most men and women are self-reliant and resilient farmers, whose
primary crops of root vegetables, corn, and peanuts provide important food reserves in
harsh ecological conditions.8 In such a situation, there is constant pressure for the local
government to improve the income per capita which is very low compared to other
provinces in Indonesia. As Rihi Dara puts it, East Nusa Tenggara had an “income per
capita in 2008 at around 4.5 million rupiah (AU$ 500) which is only 23 percent of the
national average. NTT’s gross regional domestic product (GRDP) in 2008 was around
21.6 trillion rupiahs (AUD 23 million) or 0.9 percent of Indonesia’s gross domestic
product (GDP) (BPS Indonesia 2009).”9
In order to improve the economic conditions, our local government opened up
the opportunity for foreign investors from China, South Korea, Japan, India, and
6
Bill Ashcroft, Gareth Griffiths, and Helen Tiffin, Key Concepts in Post-Colonial Studies (London and New
York: Routledge, 1998), pp. 162-63.
7
Elizabeth Adams Parciany, “Golden Beaches & Adventuresome Wilderness: The Neocolonial Timeshare
in Indonesia,” Intersections 10, No. 2 (2009), 183.
8
Ria Gondowarsito, “Men, Women and Community Development in East Nusa Tenggara,” in Women in
Indonesia: Gender, Equity and Development, ed. by Kathryn May Robinson and Sharon Bessell (Singapore:
Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, 2002), 251.
9
Maxi Julians Rihi Dara, “Understanding Risk and Benefits of Informal (Artisanal Small-scale) Mining of
Manganese by Peasants in Indonesia: A Study on Resource Management and Livelihood Options in
Kupang and TTS, West Timor, NTT, “ IRGSC Working Paper No. 12, November 2014, 1.
Australia to explore mining (especially marble and manganese) in three districts – South
Central Timor, East North Central, and Belu. The majority of farmers were forced to
switch to mining as land was converted from small farms to mines. Many women and
children have been forced to get involved in mining activities in order to meet their food
needs and to pay off their debts, even though these activities endanger their lives.10
Indeed, the fast development of manganese and marble mining in East Nusa
Tenggara created a debate on whether the presence of a mining company is a blessing
or a curse to local communities. The major reason that prompted such a notion is due to
the shifting of the livelihood of the peasants from an agricultural subsistence to artisanal
small-scale mining (ASM) of the manganese and marble.11 The ASM is a more attractive
option of livelihood for various people because it is a cash-based economy that can help
people buy food and their basic needs. Rihi Dara states that women who gave up
farming and engage in mining activities have been able to improve their yearly income.
They can send their children to school, renovate their houses, and have motorcycles.
Hence, ASM is seen as a means that provides “direct cash since agriculture is vulnerable
to harvest failure due to prolonged dry seasons, and it also requires more time and
effort.”12 However, many NGOs that engage in environmental issues such as Wahana
Lingkungan Hidup (Walhi) have shown that the presence of mining companies has also
resulted in massive environmental damage, destroying soil, forests, water, and air.
Mining financially enriches only a very few people but afflicts so many, with those
people living near the mine generally remaining poor.13 Moreover, the presence of
mining companies has also triggered social conflict among local people as well as
10
Kompasiana, “Pertambangan Mangan: Menjawab atau Membawa Multikrisis?” 9th October 2011.
http://green.kompasiana.com/iklim/2011/10/09/“pertambangan-mangan-menjawabi-atau-membawamulti-krisis”/ [Internet Accessed: 16th May, 2012]; Selaras Lingkungan, “Tambang Mangan: Antara Mimpi
dan Bayang-Bayang Kematian,” Kamis, 8th Maret 2012.
http://yayasanselaras.blogspot.ca/2012/03/tambang-marmer-antara-mimpi-dan-bayang.htm1 [Internet
Accessed: 16th May, 2012]; Wahana Lingkungan Hidup Indonesia, “Pernyataan Tolak Tambang di NTT,”
http://walhintt.wordpress.com/2011/12/08/pernyataan-tolak-tambang-di-ntt-2/ [Internet Accessed: 16th
May, 2012].
11
Rihi Dara, “Understanding Risk and Benefits,” vi.
12
Rihi Dara, “Understanding Risk and Benefits,” vi.
13
Kompasiana, “Pertambangan Mangan.”; Selaras Lingkungan, “Tambang Mangan.”; Wahana Lingkungan
Hidup Indonesia, “Pernyataan Tolak Tambang di NTT.”
conflict between local people and the mining companies that hold the mining business
licenses from the local government.14 In short, it not only damages the relationship
among family members and the community but it also creates a strong division among
those who agree with the presence of the mining activities and those who are against it.
Indigenous Mollo Women as Protectors of Nature
In his book The Political System of the Atoni of Timor, Schulte Nordholt states
that the island of Timor together with the islands of Rote, Sabu, and Sumba are not the
same as the other islands in the archipelago because they lack volcano deposits which
are necessary to fertilize soils in the region. Instead, most of the land in West Timor
contains lime and marl soil making it less fertile.15 Nonetheless, there are some areas of
the island of Timor that are not too dry. These areas contain an old black volcanic rock
type that “can be seen in a deep chasm with black cliffs, hundreds of meters in height,
with loose, black, extremely fertile soil at their foot.”16 The existence of these stones
can be seen in Manamas, Naibenu, North Central Timor, NTT.
In addition, other areas that are also fertile are located at the foot of Mount
Mutis, Tetum, Bonleu, Nenas, Naupin, Nunbena, and Fatumnasi. Due to the rainfall that
occurs almost every month with the highest frequency occurring from November to July,
Mount Mutis and its surrounding areas are the wettest areas on the island of Timor; it
contains fertile soils which are good for agriculture.17 The frequency of rainfall allows
the region of Mount Mutis to become the main water source for three watersheds (DAS)
on the island of Timor. They are Noelmina and Noel Benain in the southern part and
Noel Fail in the northern part.18 One group of people who live around Mount Mutis is
14
Rihi Dara, “Understanding Risk and Benefits,” 2.
H. G. Schulte Nordhold, The Political System of the Atoni of Timor, diterjemahkan oleh M. J. L. van
Yperen (Verhandelingen van het Koninklijk Instituut voor Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde, 60), 27.
16
Schulte Nordhold, The Political System, 28.
17
Wisata Nusa Tenggara, “Cagar Alam Gunung Mutis: Wisata Alam – Cagar Alam Gunung Mutis – Nusa
Tenggara Timur,” http://wisatanusatenggara.wordpress.com/wisata-nusa-tenggara-timur/cagar-alamgunung-mutis/ [Internet Accessed: 14 April 2015].
18
Wisata Nusa Tenggara, “Cagar Alam Gunung Mutis.”
15
the Mollo people. Most of them are farmers who “cultivate corn and cassava as staple
foods but have also diversified into vegetables and other cash crops, including onions,
garlic, potatoes, and fruit trees. Livestock-raising is another important component of the
rural economy and tradition…”19
The labor division among Mollo women and men has been strictly regulated
based on the traditional customs. The men cut and burn the trees and clear the bushes.
The women, on the other hand, are responsible for the planting. Schulte Nordhold
describes that,
…the women harvest and winnow the rice; they perform this work in the
daytime under observance of the strictest silence. Furthermore, a woman,
usually the wife of the lineage head (amaf), but in any case the wife of the
oldest member of the agnatically related group engaged in the cultivation of a
garden plot is responsible for the “tying of the vital force of the rice.” The
building of the corn, on the other hand, is the responsibility of the men and the
“tying of the vital force of the corn” is the amaf’s task. This work is done by
night and the men drink palm wine and ask each other pantun in-between. So
they may speak as they do this, while there is often even boisterous hilarity.
Now, the word feto (female) also donates “the interior” – during winnowing
only women from within the lineage are present – while another connotation
of the word mone (male) is “exterior” – when the corn is bundled men from
without the lineage are invited.20
The description of women who perform their duty silently in the daytime which is
quite in contrast to the men who are allowed to drink and talk while working may
indicate women’s lower position in Timorese society. However, when one looks
closely, the description of the labor division above has shown the big amount of
responsibility that Timorese women have. They are the ones who plant and
harvest – types of works performed under the scorching sun. They are also
responsible for doing all the work at home, including ensuring the availability of food
supplies at the household; and in order to do that, women must ensure the
availability of the fertile land that can be used to grow all kinds of plants that are
19
Larry Fisher, Ilya Moeliono, and Stefan Modicka, “The Nusa Tenggara Uplands, Indonesia: Multiple-site
Lessons in Conflict Management,” in Cultivating Peace: Conflict and Collaboration in Natural Resource
Management, edited by Daniel Buckles (Ottawa, Canada: The International Development Research Centre,
1999), 66.
20
Schulte Nordhold, The Political System of the Atoni of Timor, 90-91.
useful to meet their food needs. In this, it is not exaggerating to state that Mollo
women play an important role as a protector of nature, culture, and natural
resources.21
Kolimon in her book A Theology of Empowerment: Reflections from a West
Timorese Feminist Perspective observes that the role division for men and women in
Timorese culture that places women in the inside of the house and men in the
outside implies the social order of the Atoin Pah Meto (people of the dry land).22
Kolimon states that,23
The common order of the Meto people is understood in a binary category
symbolized by right-left, men-women, outside-inside, above-below, etc. These
dual categories are represented in the structure of the Meto house. In the
Meto house there is a consistent association of men’s activities and symbols
with the right side and outside of the house, while women’s activities and
symbols are associated with the inside and the left side of the house. These
pairs of association, founded on Meto symbolism, are as follows:
Men (mone)
- women (feto)
Outside (mone)
- inside (nanan)
Right (ne’u)
- left (li)
Above (fafon)
- below (below)
Front (matan)
- behind (kotin)
Heaven (neno)
- earth (pah)
Hot (maputu)
- cool (manikin)
In her analysis of the meaning of this binary category, Kolimon rejects Cunningham’s
analysis that regards a dual association as an expression of super-ordination and
subordination. Instead, this division, according to Kolimon, points to a harmony in
which “each side of the category must know its place. Women have to know that
their place is inside, while men’s is outside. When such an arrangement is not kept
anymore, the society will come to instability…this division [also] implicates
complementary. They are different but are inseparable from each other.”24 Hence,
21
Asia Indigenous Peoples Pact, “Indigenous Women in Southeast Asia: Challenges in their Access to
Justice,” 10, http: www.ohchr.org/Documents/Issues/.../StudyAccessToJustice/AIPP.ppdf, (Internet
Accessed: 9 Maret 2015].
22
Mery Kolimon, A Theology of Empowerment: Reflections from a West Timorese Feminist Perspective
(Zürich and Berlin: LIT Verlag, 2008), 166-67.
23
Kolimon, A Theology of Empowerment, 167.
24
Kolimon, A Theology of Empowerment, 167-68.
Kolinom sees the interconnectedness between the two opposite categories.
However, Kolimon is quickly to point out that even though the binary category
emphasizes harmony and equality, in performance and material levels, women are
the powerless among the powerless in Timor because they are the ones who bear
the heaviest burdens and the biggest responsibilities in their families and
community.25
The description of the role of women in Timorese culture indicates Mollo
women’s strong attachment to their family, land, and nature. This is further
strengthened by the fact that Mollo women have seen the rocks, trees, and water as
the symbols of their identity. As such, Mollo women see themselves as part of the
nature; therefore, there is a constant effort to always protect their natural resources
including the marble stone which is called Fatu (rock) Metan (black) in Dawan
language - Timorese traditional language. For Mollo women, the value of marble
stone cannot be measured with anything. Marble stone is considered as sacred and
thus should be respected. It is widely believed that if the Mollo people are
disrespectful to marble stone, there will be landslides, tornados, droughts, and other
disasters. Therefore, Mollo people are prohibited from taking or moving the marble
stone from its place.26
This attitude towards nature is also influenced by the philosophy of Atoin
pah meto. The philosophy underlies the way they interact with nature is that the
earth is described in accordance with the organs of the human body; land (nijan) is
seen as human meat; stone (fatu) is described as a bone. Water (oel) is the blood
that flows in a human’s body; forests are the lungs and hair. With the identification
of nature (earth) as such, it is pivotal for Meto people to preserve and maintain the
nature just as they maintain their own bodies, because they know that their bodies
Kolimon, A Theology of Empowerment, 173.
Weeklyline.Net., “Batu Mangan Diambil Tulang Pulau Patah,” 23 February 2014,
http://www.weeklyline.net/humaniora/20140223/batu-mangan-diambil-tulang-pulau-timor-patah.html,
[Internet Accessed: 2 February 2015].
25
26
will not function properly or even be paralyzed if any of their body parts were taken
or destroyed.27
In addition, the stone is also a symbol of the tribe (Fatu Kanaf). This is why
most of rocks located on Timor Island are named according to the tribes on Timor
Island. Here, the naming of the rocks marks the boundaries and territories of areas
inhabited by each tribe on Timor Island that cannot be violated. In addition to the
mystical reason above, the marble stones play a significant and practical role in
Mollo people’s lives; inside and under the stone, there are the water sources. Hence,
the marble stones are needed as they provide water that becomes the source of life
for Meto people on Timor Island.28 It is therefore obvious that any attempt to
destroy the stone would mean a destruction of the Mollo people’s livelihood.
The description above helps us to understand why the arrival of mining
companies in Mollo region provoked anxieties among local people. It is these mining
companies’ ignorance towards the meaning of the land and the nature for Mollo people
as well as their desire to profit as much as possible from the marble extraction that
prompted their rejection by most of Mollo indigenous women. Perhaps it is true that
their presence may help build and repair some roads, build churches and schools, and
provide clean water and jobs; however, as Mollo women have testified that the social
havoc, violence, and deep divisions within communities and families are the heavy price
to be paid by local people if they allow these mining companies to operate in their
area.29
Moreover, as the presence of the mining companies has resulted in significant
environmental damage, Mollo women have been forced to deal with the destruction of
their traditional lands, the removal of their forests, and the pollution of their water.
Those environmental conditions have put more pressure and responsibilities on women
27
Weeklyline.Net., “Batu Mangan.”
Weeklyline.Net., “Batu Mangan.”
29
Rihi Dara, “Understanding Risk and Benefits,” 1-2; See also Nani Afrida, “Aleta Baun: Environmental
Heroin from Molo,” The Jakarta Post, April 18 2013,
http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2013/04/18/aleta-baun-environmental-heroine-molo.html,
[Internet Accessed: Oct 9, 2015).
28
because the primary tasks of women are to maintain the family’s health and economic
welfare and to secure the food supply.30 Many women have testified that because of
the environmental damage, women can no longer do the farming, and as a result food is
scarce. In such a condition, in order to make sure to get food for their families, they
have to travel many miles for that purpose. Many women are also forced to sell their
bodies to fulfill the basic needs of their families, and some women even cross the
borders to work as migrant workers in other countries. Some of them are even
trafficked into many different forms of labor and sexual exploitation. These conditions
are coupled with the fact that when household food needs are not met in patriarchal
areas like South Central Timor, women are able to access food only after their husbands
and children have eaten. As a result, many women are not getting adequate nutrition,
which of course causes malnutrition and influences maternal mortality and child
mortality.31 Thus, it is obvious that our local government and political elites are the ones
who enjoy the key advantage of direct access to the local assets that were once owned
by powerless indigenous people. The harsh effects that these external and internal
exploitations and oppressions have on Indonesian people, especially in poor areas such
as my own, cannot be ignored.
In addition, the impact of these multiple oppressions is greater for Mollo
women than for men because women are caught within oppressive structures of both
class and gender relations. As implied above, the negotiations about mining activities
are indeed on a man-to-man basis, which do not pay attention to women’s interests and
welfare. Here, Mollo women are not invited to share their knowledge or views of the
implications of the mining activities for their environment and community. Hence, it is
clear that Mollo women are oppressed by the patriarchal structure and ideologies that
maintain men’s power and domination over the land, the natural resources, and
30
Athiqah Nur Alami, Sandy Nur Ikfal Raharjo, and Yuly Astuti, “Women and Food Security: The Case of
Belu Regency, East Nusa Tenggara Provinci, Indonesia,” in Asian Journal of Social Sciences & Humanities
Vol. 3(4) November 2014, 172-74.
31
Joko Sulistyo, ‘Food Access: Where is the Space for Women?’ 16th October 2011.
http://www.walhi.or.id/en/kampanye-dan-advokasi/tematik/pangan.html [Internet Accessed: 19th May,
2012].
women’s hard work. This leaves women relying heavily on men and therefore powerless.
As such, one notices that the obvious effects of male dominance over women can be
seen in the denial of women’s agency and the steps taken to prevent women from
participating in the public sphere – the right of women to be involved in public decisions
regarding the mining development, and the role of women is restricted to the domestic
sphere, where she acts as home-maker, cook, and servant to her husband. This male
domination has prevented Mollo women from voicing their strong resistance publicly
regarding an active attempt of their male local government to separate them from their
nature and therefore perpetuates men’s domination over them.
Mollo Women, Spirituality and an Act of Weaving as a Symbol of Resistance
When forced to give in to their suffering and give up their land and nature to be
abused by their local government and the mining companies, Mollo women in East Nusa
Tenggara turn to their traditional spiritual beliefs and practices that “relates to basic
philosophy drawn from cultural values or local wisdom that sets a holistic notion of the
interconnectedness of people and other elements of earth such as plants, animals, and
nature.”32 Lartey defines spirituality as “the human capacity for relationship with self,
others, world, God and that which transcends sensory experience, which is often
expressed in the particularities of given historical, spatial, and social contexts, and which
often leads to specific forms of action in the world.”33 Martsolf and Mickey point out
five important elements of spirituality: 1) meaning which refers to the ontological
significance of life, make sense of life conditions or obtain meaning in existence; 2)
connecting which points to the relationship with self, others, God/higher power and the
environment; 3) transcendence which refers to experience and appreciation of
dimension beyond the self, extend self-boundaries; and 4) value which defines beliefs
and standards that are cherished. It has to do with the truth, beauty, or behavior; 5)
32
Ira D. Mangililo, “When Mollo Indigenous Women in East Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia Speak Back!” in
Feminism in Religion Forum, August 6, 2015.
33
E. Lartey, In Living ColourL An Intercultural Approach to Pastoral Care and Counseling (London: Carswell,
2003), 143.
becoming which is related to an unfolding of life that requires reflection and
experience.34 This definition indicates that the source of spirituality is a cultural ethos in
which a person’s identity is revealed.35
The understanding of spirituality helps us to recognize the feeling of oneness, of
belonging that Mollo women have with their land and nature. This deep innermost
feeling is the driving force that leads the Mollo women to look after their land and to
protect their nature. It is an obligation which has been passed down from generation to
generation. The recognition of nature as their own bodies demonstrates Mollo women’s
intricate and tender bond with nature. In this, Mollo women’s hearts and souls are
closely connected with nature. Hence, Mollo women understand that any attempt to
destroy nature will break this sacred relationship.
It is this traditional knowledge and special dependence on the nature that drives
Mollo women to create a movement of resistance to free their land, water, and sacred
marble from the colonization of the globalization as the manifestation of capitalist
patriarchy. They have done this by “using gender roles which, in the past, have
restricted their movements to the domestic sphere and twisted them so that men will
allow them to enter the public sphere where they can initiate a peaceful protest against
the mining companies.”36 Here, they use the Timorese patriarchal argument that
perceives women as more nurturing, intuitively spiritual, and closer to nature to
persuade men in their community to allow them to leave their domestic site in order to
enter a public sphere where they can stand on the frontlines of the protests and acts of
negotiation with the local government and mining companies. Furthermore, under the
leadership of a homemaker named Aleta Baun, Mollo men are convinced that women
should be allowed to lead the campaign because they are the ones who have a special
dependence on the nature and a special knowledge of the nature. The men apparently
34
D. Martsolf & J. Mickey, “The Concept of Spirituality in Nursing Theories: Differing World-views and
Extent of Focus,” Journal of Advanced Nursing, Feb: 27 (2), 1998, 294-95.
35
Samson Tse, Chris Lloyd, Leon Petchkovsky and Wiremu Manaia, “Exploration of Australian and New
Zealand Indigenous People’s Spiritualty and Mental Health,” in Australian Occupational Therapy Journal
(2005) 52, 181.
36
Mangililo, “When Mollo Indigenous Women.”
saw no harm and threat in this demand and therefore allowed their wives, sisters, and
daughters to enter the public sphere where they could form a peaceful protest, starting
in 2006.
In her attempt to reach out to other Mollo women to fight together with her,
Baun testified that not all women were ready to support her in her important mission.
Many of them saw the presence of the mining as a way to escape their poverty and to
pursue a better life. However, in her own words, Baun argued convincingly that, “I told
them it's true you have money now, but you should remember that your name came
from the rocks, from the tree … Once the money is over, your name will be over too.”37
Through this argument, Baun invited her Mollo women to remember who they are – to
their own identity that cannot be seen separately from the earth’s bones. Moreover,
Baun also reminded the Mollo women of the importance of the forest that provides the
dyes for their weaving – another symbol of their identity.38 Baun’s messages were well
received by Mollo women. They were convinced to reclaim and protect what is rightfully
theirs. Taken together, Baun’s active attempts to use the gender roles to convince the
Mollo men to let their women resist the oppression as well as her use of spiritual belief
that considers the interconnectedness of human beings and nature have become an
important foundation and driving force to sustain their struggle to protect their
environment.39 In her description of the nature of the resistance, Baun recalls, “… when
we began our protest, women realized that they could do more — take a stand and be
heard. Women are also the recognized landowners in the [Mollo] culture, and this
reawakened in those women who hadn’t been actively speaking out a desire to protect
their land.”40
Simon Roughneen, “’Mama Aleta’ Defends Indonesia’s Natural Habitat,” The Christian Science Monitor,
August 8, 2014, http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Making-a-difference/ChangeAgent/2014/0808/Mama-Aleta-defends-Indonesia-s-natural-habitat, [Internet Accessed: Oct 9, 2015].
38
The Goldman Environment Prize, “Aleta Baun: Indonesian 2013 Goldman Environment Prize Recipient
for Islands & Island Nations,” April 15, 2013,
http://www.rightsandresources.org/documents/files/doc_6039.pdf, (Internet Accessed: 21 July 2015), 3.
39
Mangililo, “When Mollo Indigenous Women.”
40
Afrida, “Aleta Baun.”
37
Furthermore, Baun’s wisdom to connect the struggle to prevent the nature
destruction with the weaving activity is a powerful gesture that speaks directly to Mollo
women’s hearts as woven fabrics contain symbols which describe their identity and
ancestry. Moreover, the weaving activity itself depicts the routines and rhythms of daily
life in village with women as the ones who perform such an activity. Hence, weaving is
closely connected with women.41 In addition, woven fabrics are regarded as sacred
entities that create a link between the mundane world and the supernatural or
ancestral world. Those fabrics are precious heirlooms that are used in lifecycle rituals
and as offerings and are passed down from generation to generation as they contain
sacred values. Finally, woven fabrics are a valuable item that defines people’s status and
exchange. They are owned by different types of people from different social and
economical status and background.42
Baun’s emphasis on the possibility of the cessation of weaving activities due to
forest destruction has raised the Mollo women’s awareness and has allowed them to
open themselves to new, empowering ideas that are related to the notion of taking a
concrete action to prevent the destruction. In 2006, 150 women left their houses – their
comfort zone in order to challenge the mining companies’ domination over them. Using
a peaceful form of protest, these women sat on the marble rocks at the mining sites and
were quietly weaving their traditional cloth, their symbol of identity.43 This activity was
performed for a year and was fully supported by Mollo men who, in spite of strong
gender role divisions in Timorese society, were willing to take over women’s tasks at
home such as cooking, cleaning, and caring for the children.44 Hence, we can truly say
that even though women were the ones who initiated and performed the act of
resistance, one cannot ignore the active involvement of Mollo men in protecting the
land and the nature. Through their actions, the Mollo men demonstrated their ability to
look beyond their Timorese culture that requires men to be dominant, authoritarian,
Joanna Barrkman, Entwined: The Influence of Indian Patola and Trade Cloths on the Ritual Practices and
Textile Motifs of the Atoin Meto People of West Timor, (MA Thesis, Charles Darwin University, 2006), 2.
42
The Goldman Environment Prize, “Aleta Baun,” 3.
43
Barrkman, “Entwined,” 2.
44
Afrida, “Aleta Baun.”
41
and responsible to provide for, protect, and defend their families and community. Here,
for the sake of their community’s survival, men were willing to take a back seat and let
their women be active agents to negotiate, confront, and speak to power that has
defined their full right of their land and nature.
The Mollo women’s act of resistance was not in vain. When confronted with a
peaceful and sustainable presence of the villagers, the mining companies realized that
they could no longer continue their marble-quarrying endeavor. Moreover, the weaving
occupation also put tremendous pressure on Indonesian government officials who then
had no choice but to stop the mining activities as the public awareness of the weaving
occupation increased. By 2010, the mining companies abandoned their operations and
left the four existing mines in Mollo territories.45 The termination of mining operations
in Mollo proves the efficiency of the Mollo women’s perseverance to overcome the
systematic silencing and disempowerment by the male ruling government officials in
their regency. They with no doubt have challenged the multiple oppressions that have
been culturally and politically marginalized and domesticated them. Through their
expulsion of the mining companies from their land, the Mollo women have shown that
they are capable of speaking for and about themselves. And in doing so, they took
“center stage, positions of power, and leadership roles that will transform and empower
them and other women like them who are situated on the periphery.”46 This center
stage is what I call a third space47 – a space of enunciation where Mollo women feel
powerful to resist their oppression and to challenge the capitalist patriarchal power that
aims to destroy their land and nature. This third space therefore is a safe space where
identity can be reaffirmed and strengthened and the spiritual beliefs can be shared and
then used to protect the life of the community. It is an innovative site where Mollo
45
Afrida, “Aleta Baun.”
Ira D. Mangililo, “When Rahab and Indonesian Christian Women Meet in the Third Space,” in Journal of
Feminist in Religion 31.1 (2015), 61.
47
Third space is a concept related to Homi K. Bhabha who defines it as a site where the identity and
power relations can be altered by the marginals in order to allow the emergence of other position. As
Bhabha puts it, the third space “displaces the histories that constitute it and sets up new structures of
authority, new political initiatives, which are inadequately understood through received wisdom.” See
Jonathan, Rutherford, “The Third Space: Interview with Homi Bhabha,” in Identity: Community, Culture,
Difference, ed. Jonathan Rutherford (London: Lawrence and Wishart, 1990), 211.
46
women can “build a support network of relationships based on solidarity among
women”48 that contests the destructive power of neocolonialism.
Mollo Women’s Spiritual Belief System and Christianity
The Meto people, including Mollo people, are mostly Christians. They were first
exposed to Christianity by the Western traders and later by Western missionary
organizations. However, even though the Meto people already embraced Christianity
for more than 100 years, they still preserve their cultural identity and apply it hand-inhand with Christian values. In her description, Kolimon mentions that even though there
is a tendency to regard Christianity as superior to Timorese culture, the Meto people
“are not passive receivers of Christian traditions. They pay attention to the stories of
Christian traditions, including those in the Bible, and at the same time hold on to their
own stories, myths, legends, songs, and poems.”49
As a part of Timorese people, I have seen and experienced firsthand how my
people are in a constant endeavor to negotiate between Christianity and their own
cultural identity. An example of this can be seen in the cultural belief that the spirits of
the dead people will leave their bodies on the third day after the burial. When my father
passed away, my oldest sister was burning the candles at my father’s grave and asked us
to join her in guarding the grave in order to ease my father’s transition from this
mundane world to the world above. When asked whether this tradition is against
Christian teachings, my sister provided an interesting explanation that was received well
by others. In her own words she said, “For Jesus died and was resurrected on the third
day; therefore as people of faith, we believe that those who abide in Christ will also
experience resurrection on the third day.” Here, as Kolimon puts it, the Timorese people
“reshape the meaning of the Christian tradition based on their own worldview and
48
49
Mangililo, “When Rahab and Indonesian Christian Women,” 64.
Kolimon, A Theology of Empowerment, 140.
perspectives.”50 By doing so, they can still be Christians who practice their cultural
beliefs.
Another example can be seen in the way Timorese people address the name of
their God. Before the presence of Christianity in West Timor, Meto people who already
had their religion, called the Divine Being by the names “Uis Neno ma Uis Pah, Nitu ma
Leu” (the Ruler of Heaven and the Ruler of Earth, Ancestors, and the Awe-inspiring /
Fascinating Things).51 Kolimon points out that,
The Uis Neno, the ruler of heaven, is described as a transcendental masculine
power. He is far above. He is known as one who ignites and burns, protects
and watches over people, the arranger and guider of life (apinat aklahat,
aneom ahafot, alekat ma alulut). On the other side, the ruler of earth, Uis Pah,
is the immanent feminine power. As a mother, she carries us and holds us on
her lap, feeds and nourishes us (afafat ma amnaifat, ahaot ma afatis). The
ruler of heaven decides when we will be born and when we will die, while the
ruler of earth, our mother of life, brings us forth into the world, nurtures us,
and receives us when we die and are buried.52
When H. Kraijer van Aalst, the first Dutch missionary to the Meto people, arrived in
1916, he immediately delivered sermons in the Meto language and even translated
some parts of the Bible as well as the Lord’s Prayer into the Meto language. He
deliberately translated the name of God into Uis Neno – the name of one of the
Meto gods.53 Until today, Christian Meto people use the name Tuhan (Lord), Tuhan
Allah (Lord God), and Uis Neno (Tuhan Allah) interchangeably.
Through my description of the traditional indigenous spiritual beliefs and
practice that has become a means to enter a third space where they could actively and
creatively challenge the mining operations in their area, I have shown how Mollo
women see all aspects of life as interconnected and inspired by their deep connection
with the nature. In this, we can see how Mollo women do not regard their spiritual
beliefs or local wisdoms as inferior to Christian values. Through their bold actions to
50
Kolimon, A Theology of Empowerment, 140.
Kolimon, A Theology of Empowerment, 153.
52
Kolimon, A Theology of Empowerment, 153.
53
Kolimon, A Theology of Empowerment, 159.
51
stop the mining operations, Mollo women send the message that “both Christianity and
the Timor culture are two equal entities and influence each other.”54 What is more, I
would argue that the presence of the spiritual beliefs has made Mollo women powerful
Christians who dare to fight for justice and righteousness – two valuable and important
concepts found in the Hebrew Bible. In other words, the Mollo women’s spiritual beliefs
should not be considered as a threat to Christianity. Instead, its existence has helped
Mollo women speak to their powerful male government officials in order to correct their
corrupt point of views that have been influenced by colonial desires and interests. Here,
I argue that Mollo women’s spiritual beliefs have contributed immensely to their selfempowerment to overcome their suffering and to save their land and nature. These
spiritual beliefs therefore are gifts from the Divine that should be preserved and passed
down from generation to generation.
To this end, in order to create a dynamic and constant dialogue with the Timor
culture, it is important to explore what the Bible says about the ecological crisis
experienced by the Mollo women. Does the Bible offer insights that will help Christian
Meto people address the environmental damage that influenced their lives? In her
attempt to address all these issues, Ellen Davis states that the Bible, especially the
Hebrew Bible, is centered in its theological discussions.55 Davis states that,
Beginning with the first chapter of Genesis, there is no extensive exploration of
the relationship between God and humanity that does not factor the land and its
fertility into that relationship. Overall, from a biblical perspective, the sustained
fertility and habitability of the earth, or more particularly of the land of Israel, is
the best index of the health of the covenant relationship. When humanity, or the
people of Israel, is disobedient, thorns and briars abound (Gen 3:17-19); rain is
withheld (Deut. 11:11-17; 28:24); the land languishes and mourns (Isa. 16:8; 33:9;
Hos. 4:3). Conversely, the most extravagant poetic images of loveliness – in the
prophets, the Psalms, and the Song of Songs – all show a land lush with growth,
together with a people living in (or restored to) righteousness and full intimacy
with God. “Truth [or: faithfulness, ’ĕmet] springs up from the earth [’ereṣ].”56
54
Kolimon, A Theology of Empowerment, 237.
Ellen F. Davis, Scripture, Culture, and Agriculture: An Agrarian Reading of the Bible (New York:
Cambridge University Press, 2009), 8.
56
Davis, Scripture, Culture, and Agriculture, 8.
55
The Hebrew Bible’s interest in land and its emphasis on the importance of humans’ role
to maintain the land’s fertility as a requirement of humans’ well-being and sustainability
help us to understand the mutual relationship between humans and land. When
humans care for the land, the land in turn will also care for them. Here, “the well-being
of humans and the enduring fruitfulness of the earth are inseparable elements of a
harmony sometimes imagined as a ‘covenant’ encompassing all creatures.”57 As such,
the ecological crisis indicates humans’ moral failure to carry out their responsibilities to
be fully humans who serve and preserve the land – their source of life.
The description of a strong relationship between the land, the people, and God
in which the life of the Israelites cannot be seen separately from the land is in line with
Mollo women’s local spiritual beliefs. Hence, the messages of the Bible can also be used
as a powerful foundation to support Mollo women’s struggles to overcome their
oppression. Here, just like the local spiritual beliefs, the Scriptures can contribute to
Mollo women’s actions. To this end, it is appropriate to say that one can be a Meto
woman and a Christian at the same time for all she needs to do is to embrace both
identities in order to allow herself to be enriched and transformed by different values
offered by both entities.
Conclusion
The mining companies are long gone from the Mollo area. However, Mollo
women face new challenges due to the environmental damage caused by the mining
activities. In this, Mollo women have to nurture the wounded earth in order to make it
healthy and fertile again in the same way they care for their own family members. Mollo
women’s responsibility to care for the soil continues as the governor of East Nusa
Tenggara has once again issued 315 mining business licenses for several mining
companies to operate in East Nusa Tenggara. Among those mining companies is Soe’
Makmur Resources (SMR) that has promised to provide the basic facilities and
57
Davis, Scripture, Culture, and Agriculture, 12.
installations such as roads, church buildings, and schools that will improve local people’s
lives. However, the Meto people know well the mining activities will break humans’
strong bond with the land and the nature. As such, I think people in East Nusa Tenggara
have to follow the footsteps of Mama Aleta and Mollo women who created a social
movement to resist the mining companies. In this, I think the spiritual beliefs as well as
the Christian values that see the strong connection between humanity and land should
be used as a theological model of transformation that underlines the resistance
movement to expel the mining companies from their area. The active and creative
encounter of the Timor culture and Christianity hence may illuminate Timorese people’s
efforts to face the challenges that occur in East Nusa Tenggara.
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Barrkman, Joanna. Entwined: The Influence of Indian Patola and Trade Cloths on the
Ritual Practices and Textile Motifs of the Atoin Meto People of West Timor. MA
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Davis, Ellen. F. Scripture, Culture, and Agriculture: An Agrarian Reading of the Bible. New
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Kolimon, Merry. A Theology of Empowerment: Reflections from A West Timorese
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CONTRIBUTION OF MOLLO INDIGENOUS WOMEN’S SPIRITUAL BELIEF SYSTEM TO
ENVIROMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY
Ira D. Mangililo
Ira.mangililo@staff.uksw.edu
ABSTRACT
This paper aims to demonstrate the interconnection between the indigenous Mollo
women with their land and nature which is shown through their spiritual belief
system that regards rocks, trees, land, and water as their bodies. As the ones who
are most affected by the presence of mining companies in their area, Mollo women
have used their spiritual beliefs as a powerful foundation for their active and
creative attempts to challenge the colonization of the globalization as the
manifestation of capitalist patriarchy. These spiritual beliefs, therefore, are a gift from
the Divine Being that should be preserved and passed down from generation to
generation. This belief system is in line with the message of the Bible which emphasizes
a strong relationship between the land, the people, and God. Therefore, humans are
called to maintain the land’s fertility as a requirement of humans’ well-being and
sustainability. As such, Christianity, together with Mollo women’s spiritual beliefs, can
be used as a theological model of transformation that underlines women’s resistance
movement in East Nusa Tenggara.
Globalization is known as a process of global economic, political, and cultural
integration which has successfully turned the world into a small village where all the
borders between countries have disappeared.1 As such, one can see how the rapid
diffusion of information and cultural merging has successfully decreased the dimensions
of our world.2 As a result, whatever happens in other parts of the world will be known
in a matter of minutes as the news and reports can be accessed easily via online media
that has flourished rapidly in these last few decades. Moreover, many pictures shared in
social media such as Facebook or Instagram proclaim how Indonesian people now are
1
Roland Robertson, Globalization: Social Theory and Global Culture (London: SAGE Publications Ltd, 1992),
8.
2
Karla Sosa, “Globalization and Economic Development in the Third World: Hazard of Enhancement?”
http://www.ia-forum.org/Files/JIXWRE.pdf [Internet Accessed: Oct 15, 2015), 1.
leaning towards a Western way of living; they feel honorable when they can dress like
Hollywood celebrities; use fancy branded hand-bags; eat in fancy Western restaurants;
and speak or write in English. Hence, globalization is a powerful trend that can bring
together and unify various cultural values and the world economic systems. It involves
“economic integration; the transfer of policies across borders; the transmission of
knowledge; cultural stability; the reproduction, relations, and discourses of power; it is a
global process, a concept, a revolution, and ‘an establishment of the global market free
from sociopolitical control’.”3 This description indicates that globalization can refer to
progress, development and stability, integration, and cooperation; however, it also can
refer to regression, colonialism, and destabilization.4
However, the massive impact of globalization has also brought Indonesia into a
very tough question on whether it will help increase Indonesia’s economic growth or
whether it will further widen the gap between the rich and poor. Will globalization only
benefit the First World counties since it allows “industrialized countries to expand their
large markets through the implementation of free-trade zones, border areas where
restrictions such as import tariffs have been reduced or eliminated”?5 In Indonesia,
globalization has created a tremendous impact on the lives of many Indonesians. In our
everyday lives, we witness that even though Indonesia celebrates its independence
which has been obtained since 1945 after living under the colonization of Dutch people
and Japan for almost three and a half centuries, the notion of external colonization
which represents the power of white master colonizers is still obvious and visible in our
land. This external colonization can be seen in a system often referred to as
neocolonialism, in which “the ex-colonial powers and newly emerging superpowers such
as the United States continued to play a decisive role through international monetary
bodies, through the fixing of prices on world markets, multinational corporations and
3
Nayef R. F. Al-Rodhan, “Definitions of Globalization: A Comprehensive Overview and a Proposed
Definition,” in Program on the Geopolitical Implications of Globalization and Transnational Security
(Geneva: Geneva Centre for Security Policy, June 19, 2006), 3.
4
Al-Rodhan, “Definitions of Globalization,” 3.
5
Sosa, “Globalization and Economic Development,” 1.
cartels, and a variety of educational and cultural institutions.”6 In Indonesia, neocolonial
influence and activity can be seen in the presence of Western lenders, including the
International Monetary Fund, World Bank, and other international organizations that
work closely with the Indonesian government to create plans for economic
development. These international organizations also have assisted the Indonesian
government since the reign of President Suharto in 1967 to exploit Indonesia’s natural
resources such as oil, gas, copper, gold, coal, tin, nickel, fisheries, and rainforests for the
sake of so-called national development.7
The neocolonial system that walks hand-in-hand with global capitalization is also
applied in my own province of East Nusa Tenggara (Nusa Tenggara Timur – NTT). Being
located quite a distance from the capital city of Indonesia and among the country’s
poorest provinces, East Nusa Tenggara is characterized by dry, mountainous areas and a
short rainy season. Most men and women are self-reliant and resilient farmers, whose
primary crops of root vegetables, corn, and peanuts provide important food reserves in
harsh ecological conditions.8 In such a situation, there is constant pressure for the local
government to improve the income per capita which is very low compared to other
provinces in Indonesia. As Rihi Dara puts it, East Nusa Tenggara had an “income per
capita in 2008 at around 4.5 million rupiah (AU$ 500) which is only 23 percent of the
national average. NTT’s gross regional domestic product (GRDP) in 2008 was around
21.6 trillion rupiahs (AUD 23 million) or 0.9 percent of Indonesia’s gross domestic
product (GDP) (BPS Indonesia 2009).”9
In order to improve the economic conditions, our local government opened up
the opportunity for foreign investors from China, South Korea, Japan, India, and
6
Bill Ashcroft, Gareth Griffiths, and Helen Tiffin, Key Concepts in Post-Colonial Studies (London and New
York: Routledge, 1998), pp. 162-63.
7
Elizabeth Adams Parciany, “Golden Beaches & Adventuresome Wilderness: The Neocolonial Timeshare
in Indonesia,” Intersections 10, No. 2 (2009), 183.
8
Ria Gondowarsito, “Men, Women and Community Development in East Nusa Tenggara,” in Women in
Indonesia: Gender, Equity and Development, ed. by Kathryn May Robinson and Sharon Bessell (Singapore:
Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, 2002), 251.
9
Maxi Julians Rihi Dara, “Understanding Risk and Benefits of Informal (Artisanal Small-scale) Mining of
Manganese by Peasants in Indonesia: A Study on Resource Management and Livelihood Options in
Kupang and TTS, West Timor, NTT, “ IRGSC Working Paper No. 12, November 2014, 1.
Australia to explore mining (especially marble and manganese) in three districts – South
Central Timor, East North Central, and Belu. The majority of farmers were forced to
switch to mining as land was converted from small farms to mines. Many women and
children have been forced to get involved in mining activities in order to meet their food
needs and to pay off their debts, even though these activities endanger their lives.10
Indeed, the fast development of manganese and marble mining in East Nusa
Tenggara created a debate on whether the presence of a mining company is a blessing
or a curse to local communities. The major reason that prompted such a notion is due to
the shifting of the livelihood of the peasants from an agricultural subsistence to artisanal
small-scale mining (ASM) of the manganese and marble.11 The ASM is a more attractive
option of livelihood for various people because it is a cash-based economy that can help
people buy food and their basic needs. Rihi Dara states that women who gave up
farming and engage in mining activities have been able to improve their yearly income.
They can send their children to school, renovate their houses, and have motorcycles.
Hence, ASM is seen as a means that provides “direct cash since agriculture is vulnerable
to harvest failure due to prolonged dry seasons, and it also requires more time and
effort.”12 However, many NGOs that engage in environmental issues such as Wahana
Lingkungan Hidup (Walhi) have shown that the presence of mining companies has also
resulted in massive environmental damage, destroying soil, forests, water, and air.
Mining financially enriches only a very few people but afflicts so many, with those
people living near the mine generally remaining poor.13 Moreover, the presence of
mining companies has also triggered social conflict among local people as well as
10
Kompasiana, “Pertambangan Mangan: Menjawab atau Membawa Multikrisis?” 9th October 2011.
http://green.kompasiana.com/iklim/2011/10/09/“pertambangan-mangan-menjawabi-atau-membawamulti-krisis”/ [Internet Accessed: 16th May, 2012]; Selaras Lingkungan, “Tambang Mangan: Antara Mimpi
dan Bayang-Bayang Kematian,” Kamis, 8th Maret 2012.
http://yayasanselaras.blogspot.ca/2012/03/tambang-marmer-antara-mimpi-dan-bayang.htm1 [Internet
Accessed: 16th May, 2012]; Wahana Lingkungan Hidup Indonesia, “Pernyataan Tolak Tambang di NTT,”
http://walhintt.wordpress.com/2011/12/08/pernyataan-tolak-tambang-di-ntt-2/ [Internet Accessed: 16th
May, 2012].
11
Rihi Dara, “Understanding Risk and Benefits,” vi.
12
Rihi Dara, “Understanding Risk and Benefits,” vi.
13
Kompasiana, “Pertambangan Mangan.”; Selaras Lingkungan, “Tambang Mangan.”; Wahana Lingkungan
Hidup Indonesia, “Pernyataan Tolak Tambang di NTT.”
conflict between local people and the mining companies that hold the mining business
licenses from the local government.14 In short, it not only damages the relationship
among family members and the community but it also creates a strong division among
those who agree with the presence of the mining activities and those who are against it.
Indigenous Mollo Women as Protectors of Nature
In his book The Political System of the Atoni of Timor, Schulte Nordholt states
that the island of Timor together with the islands of Rote, Sabu, and Sumba are not the
same as the other islands in the archipelago because they lack volcano deposits which
are necessary to fertilize soils in the region. Instead, most of the land in West Timor
contains lime and marl soil making it less fertile.15 Nonetheless, there are some areas of
the island of Timor that are not too dry. These areas contain an old black volcanic rock
type that “can be seen in a deep chasm with black cliffs, hundreds of meters in height,
with loose, black, extremely fertile soil at their foot.”16 The existence of these stones
can be seen in Manamas, Naibenu, North Central Timor, NTT.
In addition, other areas that are also fertile are located at the foot of Mount
Mutis, Tetum, Bonleu, Nenas, Naupin, Nunbena, and Fatumnasi. Due to the rainfall that
occurs almost every month with the highest frequency occurring from November to July,
Mount Mutis and its surrounding areas are the wettest areas on the island of Timor; it
contains fertile soils which are good for agriculture.17 The frequency of rainfall allows
the region of Mount Mutis to become the main water source for three watersheds (DAS)
on the island of Timor. They are Noelmina and Noel Benain in the southern part and
Noel Fail in the northern part.18 One group of people who live around Mount Mutis is
14
Rihi Dara, “Understanding Risk and Benefits,” 2.
H. G. Schulte Nordhold, The Political System of the Atoni of Timor, diterjemahkan oleh M. J. L. van
Yperen (Verhandelingen van het Koninklijk Instituut voor Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde, 60), 27.
16
Schulte Nordhold, The Political System, 28.
17
Wisata Nusa Tenggara, “Cagar Alam Gunung Mutis: Wisata Alam – Cagar Alam Gunung Mutis – Nusa
Tenggara Timur,” http://wisatanusatenggara.wordpress.com/wisata-nusa-tenggara-timur/cagar-alamgunung-mutis/ [Internet Accessed: 14 April 2015].
18
Wisata Nusa Tenggara, “Cagar Alam Gunung Mutis.”
15
the Mollo people. Most of them are farmers who “cultivate corn and cassava as staple
foods but have also diversified into vegetables and other cash crops, including onions,
garlic, potatoes, and fruit trees. Livestock-raising is another important component of the
rural economy and tradition…”19
The labor division among Mollo women and men has been strictly regulated
based on the traditional customs. The men cut and burn the trees and clear the bushes.
The women, on the other hand, are responsible for the planting. Schulte Nordhold
describes that,
…the women harvest and winnow the rice; they perform this work in the
daytime under observance of the strictest silence. Furthermore, a woman,
usually the wife of the lineage head (amaf), but in any case the wife of the
oldest member of the agnatically related group engaged in the cultivation of a
garden plot is responsible for the “tying of the vital force of the rice.” The
building of the corn, on the other hand, is the responsibility of the men and the
“tying of the vital force of the corn” is the amaf’s task. This work is done by
night and the men drink palm wine and ask each other pantun in-between. So
they may speak as they do this, while there is often even boisterous hilarity.
Now, the word feto (female) also donates “the interior” – during winnowing
only women from within the lineage are present – while another connotation
of the word mone (male) is “exterior” – when the corn is bundled men from
without the lineage are invited.20
The description of women who perform their duty silently in the daytime which is
quite in contrast to the men who are allowed to drink and talk while working may
indicate women’s lower position in Timorese society. However, when one looks
closely, the description of the labor division above has shown the big amount of
responsibility that Timorese women have. They are the ones who plant and
harvest – types of works performed under the scorching sun. They are also
responsible for doing all the work at home, including ensuring the availability of food
supplies at the household; and in order to do that, women must ensure the
availability of the fertile land that can be used to grow all kinds of plants that are
19
Larry Fisher, Ilya Moeliono, and Stefan Modicka, “The Nusa Tenggara Uplands, Indonesia: Multiple-site
Lessons in Conflict Management,” in Cultivating Peace: Conflict and Collaboration in Natural Resource
Management, edited by Daniel Buckles (Ottawa, Canada: The International Development Research Centre,
1999), 66.
20
Schulte Nordhold, The Political System of the Atoni of Timor, 90-91.
useful to meet their food needs. In this, it is not exaggerating to state that Mollo
women play an important role as a protector of nature, culture, and natural
resources.21
Kolimon in her book A Theology of Empowerment: Reflections from a West
Timorese Feminist Perspective observes that the role division for men and women in
Timorese culture that places women in the inside of the house and men in the
outside implies the social order of the Atoin Pah Meto (people of the dry land).22
Kolimon states that,23
The common order of the Meto people is understood in a binary category
symbolized by right-left, men-women, outside-inside, above-below, etc. These
dual categories are represented in the structure of the Meto house. In the
Meto house there is a consistent association of men’s activities and symbols
with the right side and outside of the house, while women’s activities and
symbols are associated with the inside and the left side of the house. These
pairs of association, founded on Meto symbolism, are as follows:
Men (mone)
- women (feto)
Outside (mone)
- inside (nanan)
Right (ne’u)
- left (li)
Above (fafon)
- below (below)
Front (matan)
- behind (kotin)
Heaven (neno)
- earth (pah)
Hot (maputu)
- cool (manikin)
In her analysis of the meaning of this binary category, Kolimon rejects Cunningham’s
analysis that regards a dual association as an expression of super-ordination and
subordination. Instead, this division, according to Kolimon, points to a harmony in
which “each side of the category must know its place. Women have to know that
their place is inside, while men’s is outside. When such an arrangement is not kept
anymore, the society will come to instability…this division [also] implicates
complementary. They are different but are inseparable from each other.”24 Hence,
21
Asia Indigenous Peoples Pact, “Indigenous Women in Southeast Asia: Challenges in their Access to
Justice,” 10, http: www.ohchr.org/Documents/Issues/.../StudyAccessToJustice/AIPP.ppdf, (Internet
Accessed: 9 Maret 2015].
22
Mery Kolimon, A Theology of Empowerment: Reflections from a West Timorese Feminist Perspective
(Zürich and Berlin: LIT Verlag, 2008), 166-67.
23
Kolimon, A Theology of Empowerment, 167.
24
Kolimon, A Theology of Empowerment, 167-68.
Kolinom sees the interconnectedness between the two opposite categories.
However, Kolimon is quickly to point out that even though the binary category
emphasizes harmony and equality, in performance and material levels, women are
the powerless among the powerless in Timor because they are the ones who bear
the heaviest burdens and the biggest responsibilities in their families and
community.25
The description of the role of women in Timorese culture indicates Mollo
women’s strong attachment to their family, land, and nature. This is further
strengthened by the fact that Mollo women have seen the rocks, trees, and water as
the symbols of their identity. As such, Mollo women see themselves as part of the
nature; therefore, there is a constant effort to always protect their natural resources
including the marble stone which is called Fatu (rock) Metan (black) in Dawan
language - Timorese traditional language. For Mollo women, the value of marble
stone cannot be measured with anything. Marble stone is considered as sacred and
thus should be respected. It is widely believed that if the Mollo people are
disrespectful to marble stone, there will be landslides, tornados, droughts, and other
disasters. Therefore, Mollo people are prohibited from taking or moving the marble
stone from its place.26
This attitude towards nature is also influenced by the philosophy of Atoin
pah meto. The philosophy underlies the way they interact with nature is that the
earth is described in accordance with the organs of the human body; land (nijan) is
seen as human meat; stone (fatu) is described as a bone. Water (oel) is the blood
that flows in a human’s body; forests are the lungs and hair. With the identification
of nature (earth) as such, it is pivotal for Meto people to preserve and maintain the
nature just as they maintain their own bodies, because they know that their bodies
Kolimon, A Theology of Empowerment, 173.
Weeklyline.Net., “Batu Mangan Diambil Tulang Pulau Patah,” 23 February 2014,
http://www.weeklyline.net/humaniora/20140223/batu-mangan-diambil-tulang-pulau-timor-patah.html,
[Internet Accessed: 2 February 2015].
25
26
will not function properly or even be paralyzed if any of their body parts were taken
or destroyed.27
In addition, the stone is also a symbol of the tribe (Fatu Kanaf). This is why
most of rocks located on Timor Island are named according to the tribes on Timor
Island. Here, the naming of the rocks marks the boundaries and territories of areas
inhabited by each tribe on Timor Island that cannot be violated. In addition to the
mystical reason above, the marble stones play a significant and practical role in
Mollo people’s lives; inside and under the stone, there are the water sources. Hence,
the marble stones are needed as they provide water that becomes the source of life
for Meto people on Timor Island.28 It is therefore obvious that any attempt to
destroy the stone would mean a destruction of the Mollo people’s livelihood.
The description above helps us to understand why the arrival of mining
companies in Mollo region provoked anxieties among local people. It is these mining
companies’ ignorance towards the meaning of the land and the nature for Mollo people
as well as their desire to profit as much as possible from the marble extraction that
prompted their rejection by most of Mollo indigenous women. Perhaps it is true that
their presence may help build and repair some roads, build churches and schools, and
provide clean water and jobs; however, as Mollo women have testified that the social
havoc, violence, and deep divisions within communities and families are the heavy price
to be paid by local people if they allow these mining companies to operate in their
area.29
Moreover, as the presence of the mining companies has resulted in significant
environmental damage, Mollo women have been forced to deal with the destruction of
their traditional lands, the removal of their forests, and the pollution of their water.
Those environmental conditions have put more pressure and responsibilities on women
27
Weeklyline.Net., “Batu Mangan.”
Weeklyline.Net., “Batu Mangan.”
29
Rihi Dara, “Understanding Risk and Benefits,” 1-2; See also Nani Afrida, “Aleta Baun: Environmental
Heroin from Molo,” The Jakarta Post, April 18 2013,
http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2013/04/18/aleta-baun-environmental-heroine-molo.html,
[Internet Accessed: Oct 9, 2015).
28
because the primary tasks of women are to maintain the family’s health and economic
welfare and to secure the food supply.30 Many women have testified that because of
the environmental damage, women can no longer do the farming, and as a result food is
scarce. In such a condition, in order to make sure to get food for their families, they
have to travel many miles for that purpose. Many women are also forced to sell their
bodies to fulfill the basic needs of their families, and some women even cross the
borders to work as migrant workers in other countries. Some of them are even
trafficked into many different forms of labor and sexual exploitation. These conditions
are coupled with the fact that when household food needs are not met in patriarchal
areas like South Central Timor, women are able to access food only after their husbands
and children have eaten. As a result, many women are not getting adequate nutrition,
which of course causes malnutrition and influences maternal mortality and child
mortality.31 Thus, it is obvious that our local government and political elites are the ones
who enjoy the key advantage of direct access to the local assets that were once owned
by powerless indigenous people. The harsh effects that these external and internal
exploitations and oppressions have on Indonesian people, especially in poor areas such
as my own, cannot be ignored.
In addition, the impact of these multiple oppressions is greater for Mollo
women than for men because women are caught within oppressive structures of both
class and gender relations. As implied above, the negotiations about mining activities
are indeed on a man-to-man basis, which do not pay attention to women’s interests and
welfare. Here, Mollo women are not invited to share their knowledge or views of the
implications of the mining activities for their environment and community. Hence, it is
clear that Mollo women are oppressed by the patriarchal structure and ideologies that
maintain men’s power and domination over the land, the natural resources, and
30
Athiqah Nur Alami, Sandy Nur Ikfal Raharjo, and Yuly Astuti, “Women and Food Security: The Case of
Belu Regency, East Nusa Tenggara Provinci, Indonesia,” in Asian Journal of Social Sciences & Humanities
Vol. 3(4) November 2014, 172-74.
31
Joko Sulistyo, ‘Food Access: Where is the Space for Women?’ 16th October 2011.
http://www.walhi.or.id/en/kampanye-dan-advokasi/tematik/pangan.html [Internet Accessed: 19th May,
2012].
women’s hard work. This leaves women relying heavily on men and therefore powerless.
As such, one notices that the obvious effects of male dominance over women can be
seen in the denial of women’s agency and the steps taken to prevent women from
participating in the public sphere – the right of women to be involved in public decisions
regarding the mining development, and the role of women is restricted to the domestic
sphere, where she acts as home-maker, cook, and servant to her husband. This male
domination has prevented Mollo women from voicing their strong resistance publicly
regarding an active attempt of their male local government to separate them from their
nature and therefore perpetuates men’s domination over them.
Mollo Women, Spirituality and an Act of Weaving as a Symbol of Resistance
When forced to give in to their suffering and give up their land and nature to be
abused by their local government and the mining companies, Mollo women in East Nusa
Tenggara turn to their traditional spiritual beliefs and practices that “relates to basic
philosophy drawn from cultural values or local wisdom that sets a holistic notion of the
interconnectedness of people and other elements of earth such as plants, animals, and
nature.”32 Lartey defines spirituality as “the human capacity for relationship with self,
others, world, God and that which transcends sensory experience, which is often
expressed in the particularities of given historical, spatial, and social contexts, and which
often leads to specific forms of action in the world.”33 Martsolf and Mickey point out
five important elements of spirituality: 1) meaning which refers to the ontological
significance of life, make sense of life conditions or obtain meaning in existence; 2)
connecting which points to the relationship with self, others, God/higher power and the
environment; 3) transcendence which refers to experience and appreciation of
dimension beyond the self, extend self-boundaries; and 4) value which defines beliefs
and standards that are cherished. It has to do with the truth, beauty, or behavior; 5)
32
Ira D. Mangililo, “When Mollo Indigenous Women in East Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia Speak Back!” in
Feminism in Religion Forum, August 6, 2015.
33
E. Lartey, In Living ColourL An Intercultural Approach to Pastoral Care and Counseling (London: Carswell,
2003), 143.
becoming which is related to an unfolding of life that requires reflection and
experience.34 This definition indicates that the source of spirituality is a cultural ethos in
which a person’s identity is revealed.35
The understanding of spirituality helps us to recognize the feeling of oneness, of
belonging that Mollo women have with their land and nature. This deep innermost
feeling is the driving force that leads the Mollo women to look after their land and to
protect their nature. It is an obligation which has been passed down from generation to
generation. The recognition of nature as their own bodies demonstrates Mollo women’s
intricate and tender bond with nature. In this, Mollo women’s hearts and souls are
closely connected with nature. Hence, Mollo women understand that any attempt to
destroy nature will break this sacred relationship.
It is this traditional knowledge and special dependence on the nature that drives
Mollo women to create a movement of resistance to free their land, water, and sacred
marble from the colonization of the globalization as the manifestation of capitalist
patriarchy. They have done this by “using gender roles which, in the past, have
restricted their movements to the domestic sphere and twisted them so that men will
allow them to enter the public sphere where they can initiate a peaceful protest against
the mining companies.”36 Here, they use the Timorese patriarchal argument that
perceives women as more nurturing, intuitively spiritual, and closer to nature to
persuade men in their community to allow them to leave their domestic site in order to
enter a public sphere where they can stand on the frontlines of the protests and acts of
negotiation with the local government and mining companies. Furthermore, under the
leadership of a homemaker named Aleta Baun, Mollo men are convinced that women
should be allowed to lead the campaign because they are the ones who have a special
dependence on the nature and a special knowledge of the nature. The men apparently
34
D. Martsolf & J. Mickey, “The Concept of Spirituality in Nursing Theories: Differing World-views and
Extent of Focus,” Journal of Advanced Nursing, Feb: 27 (2), 1998, 294-95.
35
Samson Tse, Chris Lloyd, Leon Petchkovsky and Wiremu Manaia, “Exploration of Australian and New
Zealand Indigenous People’s Spiritualty and Mental Health,” in Australian Occupational Therapy Journal
(2005) 52, 181.
36
Mangililo, “When Mollo Indigenous Women.”
saw no harm and threat in this demand and therefore allowed their wives, sisters, and
daughters to enter the public sphere where they could form a peaceful protest, starting
in 2006.
In her attempt to reach out to other Mollo women to fight together with her,
Baun testified that not all women were ready to support her in her important mission.
Many of them saw the presence of the mining as a way to escape their poverty and to
pursue a better life. However, in her own words, Baun argued convincingly that, “I told
them it's true you have money now, but you should remember that your name came
from the rocks, from the tree … Once the money is over, your name will be over too.”37
Through this argument, Baun invited her Mollo women to remember who they are – to
their own identity that cannot be seen separately from the earth’s bones. Moreover,
Baun also reminded the Mollo women of the importance of the forest that provides the
dyes for their weaving – another symbol of their identity.38 Baun’s messages were well
received by Mollo women. They were convinced to reclaim and protect what is rightfully
theirs. Taken together, Baun’s active attempts to use the gender roles to convince the
Mollo men to let their women resist the oppression as well as her use of spiritual belief
that considers the interconnectedness of human beings and nature have become an
important foundation and driving force to sustain their struggle to protect their
environment.39 In her description of the nature of the resistance, Baun recalls, “… when
we began our protest, women realized that they could do more — take a stand and be
heard. Women are also the recognized landowners in the [Mollo] culture, and this
reawakened in those women who hadn’t been actively speaking out a desire to protect
their land.”40
Simon Roughneen, “’Mama Aleta’ Defends Indonesia’s Natural Habitat,” The Christian Science Monitor,
August 8, 2014, http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Making-a-difference/ChangeAgent/2014/0808/Mama-Aleta-defends-Indonesia-s-natural-habitat, [Internet Accessed: Oct 9, 2015].
38
The Goldman Environment Prize, “Aleta Baun: Indonesian 2013 Goldman Environment Prize Recipient
for Islands & Island Nations,” April 15, 2013,
http://www.rightsandresources.org/documents/files/doc_6039.pdf, (Internet Accessed: 21 July 2015), 3.
39
Mangililo, “When Mollo Indigenous Women.”
40
Afrida, “Aleta Baun.”
37
Furthermore, Baun’s wisdom to connect the struggle to prevent the nature
destruction with the weaving activity is a powerful gesture that speaks directly to Mollo
women’s hearts as woven fabrics contain symbols which describe their identity and
ancestry. Moreover, the weaving activity itself depicts the routines and rhythms of daily
life in village with women as the ones who perform such an activity. Hence, weaving is
closely connected with women.41 In addition, woven fabrics are regarded as sacred
entities that create a link between the mundane world and the supernatural or
ancestral world. Those fabrics are precious heirlooms that are used in lifecycle rituals
and as offerings and are passed down from generation to generation as they contain
sacred values. Finally, woven fabrics are a valuable item that defines people’s status and
exchange. They are owned by different types of people from different social and
economical status and background.42
Baun’s emphasis on the possibility of the cessation of weaving activities due to
forest destruction has raised the Mollo women’s awareness and has allowed them to
open themselves to new, empowering ideas that are related to the notion of taking a
concrete action to prevent the destruction. In 2006, 150 women left their houses – their
comfort zone in order to challenge the mining companies’ domination over them. Using
a peaceful form of protest, these women sat on the marble rocks at the mining sites and
were quietly weaving their traditional cloth, their symbol of identity.43 This activity was
performed for a year and was fully supported by Mollo men who, in spite of strong
gender role divisions in Timorese society, were willing to take over women’s tasks at
home such as cooking, cleaning, and caring for the children.44 Hence, we can truly say
that even though women were the ones who initiated and performed the act of
resistance, one cannot ignore the active involvement of Mollo men in protecting the
land and the nature. Through their actions, the Mollo men demonstrated their ability to
look beyond their Timorese culture that requires men to be dominant, authoritarian,
Joanna Barrkman, Entwined: The Influence of Indian Patola and Trade Cloths on the Ritual Practices and
Textile Motifs of the Atoin Meto People of West Timor, (MA Thesis, Charles Darwin University, 2006), 2.
42
The Goldman Environment Prize, “Aleta Baun,” 3.
43
Barrkman, “Entwined,” 2.
44
Afrida, “Aleta Baun.”
41
and responsible to provide for, protect, and defend their families and community. Here,
for the sake of their community’s survival, men were willing to take a back seat and let
their women be active agents to negotiate, confront, and speak to power that has
defined their full right of their land and nature.
The Mollo women’s act of resistance was not in vain. When confronted with a
peaceful and sustainable presence of the villagers, the mining companies realized that
they could no longer continue their marble-quarrying endeavor. Moreover, the weaving
occupation also put tremendous pressure on Indonesian government officials who then
had no choice but to stop the mining activities as the public awareness of the weaving
occupation increased. By 2010, the mining companies abandoned their operations and
left the four existing mines in Mollo territories.45 The termination of mining operations
in Mollo proves the efficiency of the Mollo women’s perseverance to overcome the
systematic silencing and disempowerment by the male ruling government officials in
their regency. They with no doubt have challenged the multiple oppressions that have
been culturally and politically marginalized and domesticated them. Through their
expulsion of the mining companies from their land, the Mollo women have shown that
they are capable of speaking for and about themselves. And in doing so, they took
“center stage, positions of power, and leadership roles that will transform and empower
them and other women like them who are situated on the periphery.”46 This center
stage is what I call a third space47 – a space of enunciation where Mollo women feel
powerful to resist their oppression and to challenge the capitalist patriarchal power that
aims to destroy their land and nature. This third space therefore is a safe space where
identity can be reaffirmed and strengthened and the spiritual beliefs can be shared and
then used to protect the life of the community. It is an innovative site where Mollo
45
Afrida, “Aleta Baun.”
Ira D. Mangililo, “When Rahab and Indonesian Christian Women Meet in the Third Space,” in Journal of
Feminist in Religion 31.1 (2015), 61.
47
Third space is a concept related to Homi K. Bhabha who defines it as a site where the identity and
power relations can be altered by the marginals in order to allow the emergence of other position. As
Bhabha puts it, the third space “displaces the histories that constitute it and sets up new structures of
authority, new political initiatives, which are inadequately understood through received wisdom.” See
Jonathan, Rutherford, “The Third Space: Interview with Homi Bhabha,” in Identity: Community, Culture,
Difference, ed. Jonathan Rutherford (London: Lawrence and Wishart, 1990), 211.
46
women can “build a support network of relationships based on solidarity among
women”48 that contests the destructive power of neocolonialism.
Mollo Women’s Spiritual Belief System and Christianity
The Meto people, including Mollo people, are mostly Christians. They were first
exposed to Christianity by the Western traders and later by Western missionary
organizations. However, even though the Meto people already embraced Christianity
for more than 100 years, they still preserve their cultural identity and apply it hand-inhand with Christian values. In her description, Kolimon mentions that even though there
is a tendency to regard Christianity as superior to Timorese culture, the Meto people
“are not passive receivers of Christian traditions. They pay attention to the stories of
Christian traditions, including those in the Bible, and at the same time hold on to their
own stories, myths, legends, songs, and poems.”49
As a part of Timorese people, I have seen and experienced firsthand how my
people are in a constant endeavor to negotiate between Christianity and their own
cultural identity. An example of this can be seen in the cultural belief that the spirits of
the dead people will leave their bodies on the third day after the burial. When my father
passed away, my oldest sister was burning the candles at my father’s grave and asked us
to join her in guarding the grave in order to ease my father’s transition from this
mundane world to the world above. When asked whether this tradition is against
Christian teachings, my sister provided an interesting explanation that was received well
by others. In her own words she said, “For Jesus died and was resurrected on the third
day; therefore as people of faith, we believe that those who abide in Christ will also
experience resurrection on the third day.” Here, as Kolimon puts it, the Timorese people
“reshape the meaning of the Christian tradition based on their own worldview and
48
49
Mangililo, “When Rahab and Indonesian Christian Women,” 64.
Kolimon, A Theology of Empowerment, 140.
perspectives.”50 By doing so, they can still be Christians who practice their cultural
beliefs.
Another example can be seen in the way Timorese people address the name of
their God. Before the presence of Christianity in West Timor, Meto people who already
had their religion, called the Divine Being by the names “Uis Neno ma Uis Pah, Nitu ma
Leu” (the Ruler of Heaven and the Ruler of Earth, Ancestors, and the Awe-inspiring /
Fascinating Things).51 Kolimon points out that,
The Uis Neno, the ruler of heaven, is described as a transcendental masculine
power. He is far above. He is known as one who ignites and burns, protects
and watches over people, the arranger and guider of life (apinat aklahat,
aneom ahafot, alekat ma alulut). On the other side, the ruler of earth, Uis Pah,
is the immanent feminine power. As a mother, she carries us and holds us on
her lap, feeds and nourishes us (afafat ma amnaifat, ahaot ma afatis). The
ruler of heaven decides when we will be born and when we will die, while the
ruler of earth, our mother of life, brings us forth into the world, nurtures us,
and receives us when we die and are buried.52
When H. Kraijer van Aalst, the first Dutch missionary to the Meto people, arrived in
1916, he immediately delivered sermons in the Meto language and even translated
some parts of the Bible as well as the Lord’s Prayer into the Meto language. He
deliberately translated the name of God into Uis Neno – the name of one of the
Meto gods.53 Until today, Christian Meto people use the name Tuhan (Lord), Tuhan
Allah (Lord God), and Uis Neno (Tuhan Allah) interchangeably.
Through my description of the traditional indigenous spiritual beliefs and
practice that has become a means to enter a third space where they could actively and
creatively challenge the mining operations in their area, I have shown how Mollo
women see all aspects of life as interconnected and inspired by their deep connection
with the nature. In this, we can see how Mollo women do not regard their spiritual
beliefs or local wisdoms as inferior to Christian values. Through their bold actions to
50
Kolimon, A Theology of Empowerment, 140.
Kolimon, A Theology of Empowerment, 153.
52
Kolimon, A Theology of Empowerment, 153.
53
Kolimon, A Theology of Empowerment, 159.
51
stop the mining operations, Mollo women send the message that “both Christianity and
the Timor culture are two equal entities and influence each other.”54 What is more, I
would argue that the presence of the spiritual beliefs has made Mollo women powerful
Christians who dare to fight for justice and righteousness – two valuable and important
concepts found in the Hebrew Bible. In other words, the Mollo women’s spiritual beliefs
should not be considered as a threat to Christianity. Instead, its existence has helped
Mollo women speak to their powerful male government officials in order to correct their
corrupt point of views that have been influenced by colonial desires and interests. Here,
I argue that Mollo women’s spiritual beliefs have contributed immensely to their selfempowerment to overcome their suffering and to save their land and nature. These
spiritual beliefs therefore are gifts from the Divine that should be preserved and passed
down from generation to generation.
To this end, in order to create a dynamic and constant dialogue with the Timor
culture, it is important to explore what the Bible says about the ecological crisis
experienced by the Mollo women. Does the Bible offer insights that will help Christian
Meto people address the environmental damage that influenced their lives? In her
attempt to address all these issues, Ellen Davis states that the Bible, especially the
Hebrew Bible, is centered in its theological discussions.55 Davis states that,
Beginning with the first chapter of Genesis, there is no extensive exploration of
the relationship between God and humanity that does not factor the land and its
fertility into that relationship. Overall, from a biblical perspective, the sustained
fertility and habitability of the earth, or more particularly of the land of Israel, is
the best index of the health of the covenant relationship. When humanity, or the
people of Israel, is disobedient, thorns and briars abound (Gen 3:17-19); rain is
withheld (Deut. 11:11-17; 28:24); the land languishes and mourns (Isa. 16:8; 33:9;
Hos. 4:3). Conversely, the most extravagant poetic images of loveliness – in the
prophets, the Psalms, and the Song of Songs – all show a land lush with growth,
together with a people living in (or restored to) righteousness and full intimacy
with God. “Truth [or: faithfulness, ’ĕmet] springs up from the earth [’ereṣ].”56
54
Kolimon, A Theology of Empowerment, 237.
Ellen F. Davis, Scripture, Culture, and Agriculture: An Agrarian Reading of the Bible (New York:
Cambridge University Press, 2009), 8.
56
Davis, Scripture, Culture, and Agriculture, 8.
55
The Hebrew Bible’s interest in land and its emphasis on the importance of humans’ role
to maintain the land’s fertility as a requirement of humans’ well-being and sustainability
help us to understand the mutual relationship between humans and land. When
humans care for the land, the land in turn will also care for them. Here, “the well-being
of humans and the enduring fruitfulness of the earth are inseparable elements of a
harmony sometimes imagined as a ‘covenant’ encompassing all creatures.”57 As such,
the ecological crisis indicates humans’ moral failure to carry out their responsibilities to
be fully humans who serve and preserve the land – their source of life.
The description of a strong relationship between the land, the people, and God
in which the life of the Israelites cannot be seen separately from the land is in line with
Mollo women’s local spiritual beliefs. Hence, the messages of the Bible can also be used
as a powerful foundation to support Mollo women’s struggles to overcome their
oppression. Here, just like the local spiritual beliefs, the Scriptures can contribute to
Mollo women’s actions. To this end, it is appropriate to say that one can be a Meto
woman and a Christian at the same time for all she needs to do is to embrace both
identities in order to allow herself to be enriched and transformed by different values
offered by both entities.
Conclusion
The mining companies are long gone from the Mollo area. However, Mollo
women face new challenges due to the environmental damage caused by the mining
activities. In this, Mollo women have to nurture the wounded earth in order to make it
healthy and fertile again in the same way they care for their own family members. Mollo
women’s responsibility to care for the soil continues as the governor of East Nusa
Tenggara has once again issued 315 mining business licenses for several mining
companies to operate in East Nusa Tenggara. Among those mining companies is Soe’
Makmur Resources (SMR) that has promised to provide the basic facilities and
57
Davis, Scripture, Culture, and Agriculture, 12.
installations such as roads, church buildings, and schools that will improve local people’s
lives. However, the Meto people know well the mining activities will break humans’
strong bond with the land and the nature. As such, I think people in East Nusa Tenggara
have to follow the footsteps of Mama Aleta and Mollo women who created a social
movement to resist the mining companies. In this, I think the spiritual beliefs as well as
the Christian values that see the strong connection between humanity and land should
be used as a theological model of transformation that underlines the resistance
movement to expel the mining companies from their area. The active and creative
encounter of the Timor culture and Christianity hence may illuminate Timorese people’s
efforts to face the challenges that occur in East Nusa Tenggara.
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