Community Development of People in the Border Areas Between Indonesia and Democratic Republic of Timor Leste
Johanis Haba (Research Center for Society and Culture, Indonesian Institute of Sciences, Jakarta)
Since the failure of pro independence group to sustain former East Timor Province to be part of the Republic Indonesia in 1999, and the inclusion of Pulau Sipadan dan Pulau Langitan into the Malaysian Government authority, the Indonesian Government has begun to focus more of its attention on border areas’ issues. Particularly for border areas between Indonesia and Democratic Republic of Timor Leste, one major issue being developed and implemented is; how to improve the living standard of people, who reside along the border areas in Kabupaten Belu, Atambua. Main reason behind the government policy is to prevent the Indonesian citizens who are living in the border areas, so they do not cross the border for seeking a better life in their neighbor country (Democratic Republic of Timor Leste). This notion ties closely with an assumption that, the independence of former East Timor Province would create ‘dichotomy’ in people’s mind. On one side, arguably, if life condition in the neighbor country is improving, as a result, crossing border (much probably illegal) of the Indonesian citizens cannot be avoided. On the contrary, changing in the quality of life among the people in Kabupaten Belu, in the long run, will be a crucial factor to hinder people to leave their own land.
To meet this objectives, various programs are being implemented right now in agricultural sector, husbandry sector and home industry programs – among others – in several villages in Kabupaten Belu. This paper will examine some issues such as: economic condition of the people, subsistence patterns, social organization, intervention program brought about from outside and how people cope with their hardship life.