Already resource-stricken, Duano fishers bear the brunt of climate crisis and environmental degradation impacts.
Dozens of houses on stilts are lined up and connected to each other. The settlement, which faces each other, is divided by a concrete path. The roofs are made of corrugated iron and the walls are dull. The stilt houses — located in Trio Perkasa alley, Kampung Laut, East Tanjung Jabung District (East Tanjab), Jambi — are home to dozens of Duano tribe fishermen and their families.
On January 3, 2023, when I visited the Duano tribe’s fishing village, the village looked quiet, with some doors closed. There were only a few women outside. They chatted on the veranda of their houses while waiting for their husbands to return from fishing.
The sun was high when Amri (40) returned from fishing. He walked carrying a small box containing his meal when he went fishing. Before he set foot in his house, a little girl ran up and hugged him.
“Daddy is home,” the girl shouted. She then ran to her father.
After guiding his daughter back into the house, I approached Amri on the terrace of his neighbor’s house. At the beginning of the conversation, Amri immediately talked about the hardships of as a fisherman.
Amri says every year, from the end to the beginning of the year, there is a transition season. Kuala Jambi fishermen — an administrative area including Kampung Laut — are tested by the changing seasons.
The season, which they often call Perbani, Amri explained, occurs when the sea water does not rise and recede. There is no current underwater, making it difficult for fishermen to cast their nets.
During this season, fish catch drops dramatically and boats rely more on engines than wind and currents. The cost of sailing to the sea becomes more expensive with a very small yield and continues to decrease.
Am, as he is often called, said that he and his fellow fishermen are suffering. They are finding it more and more difficult to rely on their fish catches. Their fishing income is steadily declining.
“Today is quiet. There is also a lack of fish (catch). The water is stagnant, not flowing, the fish stay away,” said Amri.
Amri is a fisherman from the Duano tribe — an indigenous community that inhabits the eastern coastal area of Jambi — who inhabits Tanjung Solok Village, Kampung Laut, in East Tanjab District.
For Duano indigenous fishers, the sea and the coast are their cultural identity. Their lives are highly dependent on the sea and inseparable from the coastal area.
Below is a map that shows the settlements of the Duano Tribe in Tanjung Solok, East Tanjung Jabung District, Jambi.
Ristanto, a regional language researcher from the Jambi language office says the Duano people were once known as Orang Laut or the Sea Tribe people. They lived in kajang boats – traditional wooden boats that housed and transported them.
This tribe has superior local wisdom including star observation and navigation, weather forecasting, and water conservation. Their marine and coastal environment benefits from their ancestors’ wisdom.
They were also called sea gypsies, referring to their nomadic lifestyle — moving from coast to coast.
But starting in the 80s, this tribe moved to the mainland near the coast. The local government then built settlements in Tanjung Solok Sea Village but their rights and ownership of those houses remained unclear.
During the Language Congress in the 2000s in Pekanbaru, Riau, the Orang Laut name for the tribe living in parts of Riau and Jambi was changed to Duano. This name change is due to their adoption of Islamic religion and Malay culture.
They lived and coexisted with the Minang, Bugis, Javanese, and Banjar people who lived around Kampung Laut – inhabiting the East Coast of Sumatra and directly facing the Malacca Strait.
The Duano tribe’s livelihood depended on fishing. Amri recalls that in the past, about a decade ago, his catch was ample from a single day at sea — about threefolds from his catch today.
But in the last half-decade, Amri and other Duano fishermen have had to spend longer out at sea to fish with no promise of enough catch. As a traditional fisher, Amri also has to pay installments for his small boat to a lender who also buys his catch.
In the past, when the weather was favorable, he said, he could catch tens of kilograms a day and pocket Rp300,000. But the days when his income could fulfill his needs are long gone.
“Right now, the most I get is Rp100,000 per day, and I still have to pay for fuel and boat installments to my boss. So, on average, I can only bring home IDR 50,000 a day,” Am said, letting out a long sigh.
Shipless and highly dependent on financiers
An elder of the Duano tribe, Asri Tara (77) says 300 people live in his tribe. They live in dense settlements and most are traditional fishermen. But they all feel that fishing has become increasingly difficult with unpredictable weather.
Asri Tara said that the majority of Duano people do not have their own fishing boats. Of the 77 Duano families living in Tanjung Solok Kampung Laut, only 9 percent own a boat.
Meanwhile, the rest depend on local financiers, known as tauke, and are essentially financially bound to them. Taukes will lend fishermen to buy boats. Fishermen will be bound by contracts and prohibited from selling their catch elsewhere.
This situation makes it even harder for Duano fishers to become self-sufficient and financially independent, further chipping away at their dwindling income. “While now the catch is shrinking,” said Asri Tara.
To make ends meet, some have to find other work to do. Sometimes, when the weather is foul, they don’t sail to sea but instead earn their day’s meal as motorcycle taxi drivers or sell snacks.
A similar fate for Duano women and the tradition of gathering bamboo clams (Ensis leei). It is very closely related to the Duano people, specifically their women.
Usually, fisherwomen use wooden boats to get to clam locations. Upon arrival, they will walk along the shoals and search for clam nests. The tools used are simple: bamboo fishing rods with bait.
But now the tradition of gathering bamboo clams is fading. Women fishers turn to land to find another source of income such as fish cutters.
Cik Ijah (60), a Duano woman admits that she stopped gathering bamboo clams five years ago as she no longer owned a boat. She is even more reluctant to head out to sea because the shoals where clams are found often sink due to rising sea levels.
She now sells snacks at her house. Cik Ijah also works as a fish cutter at night.
That night in January 2023, under the light, Cik Ijah was busy sorting fish in the shelter. Her hands moved swiftly sorting fish according to size, then she cut them open.
“Now I don’t venture to sea anymore, I don’t have a pompong (small wooden boat with an engine attached),” Cik Ijah said.
Traditional Duano fishers are a part of the traditional fishing system on the East Coast of Sumatra in Jambi. They are confronted by the onslaught of climate change, and the destruction of the mangrove ecosystem – a vital catchment area for small fishers like them.
Fishermen’s multiple burdens
The small outboard-engine pompong driven by Amri slowed down as it was about to dock at the dock in Kampung Laut, Kuala Jambi Subdistrict, on Wednesday afternoon (4/01/2023). On the dock, fishermen were busy with their respective activities. Some weighed and transported their catch using wheelbarrows.
After mooring his boat on a pole, Amri, carrying a fish container, headed straight for a fish collector. Shortly after weighing his catch, Siti Hayat (50), a well-known fish collector in the village, handed Amri some money.
“From the time he left at dawn until the afternoon, he got Rp85,000,” said Siti Hayat when met at her fish storage on the same day.
Siti Hayat has worked with Amri for ten years. In addition to collecting fish, she also provides capital loans to Amri and other fishermen to purchase boats. This is provided that they agree to sell their catch to Siti.
Most traditional fishermen in her area lack the resources to buy a boat. When difficult times come, fishermen often borrow from Siti Hayat. Now in her area, she said, there are about a dozen fishers who cooperate and sell fish to her.
However, Siti Hayat admits that she is more cautious about lending to fishers as decreasing catches become more concerning.
“Now look at the results, it’s become less right. If like this we don’t dare to give loans. So once they have paid off, I will let them borrow again,” said Siti Hayat.
Asri Tara believes that the Duano tribe in Kampung Laut Jambi was the first to establish a settlement in the area. He believes that the Duano people in his area came from Riau. They then migrated south until they reached the east coast of Jambi.
“The Duano tribe’s identity is the sea. We cannot be separated from the sea and the coast. All our livelihoods come from the sea,” Asri said.
Now traditional fishers face multiple burdens. They seem helpless in their own seas. In addition to the high cost of fishing, they are also faced with weather anomalies and damage to the mangrove ecosystem.
With a small boat, traditional fishermen cannot go further out to sea because their lives are at stake when facing high waves. Meanwhile, their coastal areas, which should be rich in resources, have been damaged by exploitation and are no longer reliable.
In August 2022, mangrove forests on the east coast of Jambi along Sungai Sayang Village, East Tanjung Jabung, were cleared for oil palm plantations. Satellite imagery processed by KKI Warsi, a non-profit organization that focuses on conservation issues, showed that the mangrove area cleared in Sungai Sayang reached 110 hectares.
Fishermen said that the destroyed mangrove forest was once a habitat for crabs and shrimp. The ecosystem damage has affected small fishers, including the Duano tribe.
The Duano tribe’s identity is the sea. We cannot be separated from the sea and the coast. All our livelihoods come from the sea.
Asri tara, Duano tribe elder
Wak Ninggal, a Duano middle-aged man said he used to comb coastal areas to make ends meet. He even traveled along the east coast as far as South Sumatra.
But now, following the destruction of the coastal ecosystem, plus erratic and unpredictable seasons, he is trying to survive by fishing. Like Amri, Wak Ninggal has no choice and must go further out to sea. This has the consequences of high operational costs and the risk of being exposed to large waves.
Losses are inevitable if the catch does not match his costs. Previously, the catchment area around Jambi’s east coast was still promising. In the past, fishers could earn a decent amount of income. Fish, crabs, clams, and shrimp filled their nets and buckets.
“Now it’s difficult, the fish season has changed its cycle,” said Ninggal.
Mangrove degradation
The Journal of Natural Resources and Environmental Management explains that from satellite imagery recorded in 1989, 2000, and 2018, mangrove density continues to decline from year to year.
In 1989, mangrove density cover was dominated by high-density cover although there were several locations with low-density cover that were sparse, but not too significant.
In the meantime, Eva Achmad et al in their journal entitled Mangrove Density Study and Shoreline Changes 1989-2018 in Coastal Jambi Province (2020) wrote disruption to the mangrove cover density began in 2000 when almost all sub-districts bordering Jambi’s coast experienced an increase in the category of medium and sparse cover.
In the journal, Eva explained that Jambi’s coastal mangrove forests have been damaged due to land conversion into plantations. In addition, Eva explained that there has been exploitation carried out for economic interests.
Hendri, Head of the East Tanjab Marine and Fisheries office, did not deny that damage to mangrove forests has a direct impact on fishermen. Hendri said marine and coastal ecosystem degradation in the easternmost district of Jambi has reached 60 percent.
“Coastal buffers such as mangrove forests are also being degraded,” Hendri said.
Hendri also said reduced marine resources is one of the causes of declining fishermen activity in coastal Jambi.
With this condition, the average marine fisheries catch fell by 0.73 percent and fish catches in tons in Jambi have decreased from 2010 to 2022.
To earn an income, Hendri said fishers are forced to travel further out to sea above 4 miles or 6.4 kilometers at the outer threshold. To do so, the vessel must have a capacity above 3 GT (gross tonnage).
The farther they sail, the greater the risk as these fishers are not covered by insurance. Hendri said registered fishers are given a specific ID. It does not include insurance coverage and can only be used to buy subsidized fuels.
“70 percent of our fishermen already have an ID. As far as insurance was concerned, there was a program. But since the Covid-19 pandemic and budget cuts, this program (fishermen’s insurance) has stopped,” Hendri said.
Hendri realizes they need insurance. The local administration is restructuring its budget to fund the fishermen’s insurance program. It will collaborate with a state-owned insurance company to create an insurance scheme for traditional fishers in the area with a premium of IDR 16 thousand ($1.05) per month. This will include coverage for accidents and deaths at sea.
“We discussed it in 2023. Next year (2024) we will cooperate with insurance companies. In the future, the local administration will subsidize the premium, we can subsidize half,” Hendri said.
Extreme weather
Data and Information Coordinator of the Jambi Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) at the Sultan Thaha Station Anisa Fauziah said, from September to March, the Jambi waters experienced a high wave season.
The peak of high waves and transition will occur from October to December, marked by high waves between 2-4 meters. In these months, according to Anisa, the Asian Monsoon actively heads to the Jambi waters, so the potential for extreme weather will strengthen.
It is likely that high waves will still occur in January-March. According to Anisa, in that month, Tropical Cyclone Freddy caused higher wind speeds to reach 15-20 knots.
“In the sea, the wind speed of 15 knots has produced high waves, and usually when this condition occurs we issue a warning to fishermen not to head out to sea first,” said Anisa.
Anisa explained that the weather in Jambi waters will normalize again in April-September, a safe period for fishers to go to sea.
Indonesian Forum for the Environment (WALHI) coastal and marine campaign manager Parid Ridwanuddin said that fishers in various regions in Indonesia are severely affected by extreme weather caused by the climate crisis because fishing activities at sea rely heavily on friendly weather.
“Within a year fishermen can only go to sea for 180 days or six months. So what do fishermen do for the remaining six months? They temporarily change professions. Some tend to garden, others find other jobs like motorcycle taxi drivers,” Parid said.
According to WALHI the number of traditional fishermen in Indonesia has continued to decline in the past decade. This is reported in the 2021 Marine and Coastal Resources Statistics document.
Community strengthening and collaboration is very critical to ensure that coastal ecosystem and fisheries management practices work as part of climate crisis adaptation and mitigation strategies.
Dedi Supriadi Adhuri, Sr. Researcher, National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN)
In 2010, there were 2.16 million traditional fishers. But in 2019, that number dropped to 1.83 million; that is 330,000 fishers between 2010 and 2019.
In addition, Parid says climate crisis-related deaths among fishers in Indonesia also continue to increase. WALHI noted that in 2020, 251 fishers died at sea. This figure has increased from 2010 when the number was only 86 people.
“Of course, this should not be allowed and underestimated because they (fishermen) are the main actors in the marine and fisheries sector,” Parid said.
He urged the government to take the climate crisis seriously. He also requested that policies affirm and protect vulnerable groups, including fishermen.
“There are other problems that affect fishermen. They are very dependent on financiers or people whose economies are above them, and inevitably fishers are forced into debt because going to sea requires large capital,” said Parid.
Meanwhile, based on data from the Jambi Maritime and Fisheries office, the sea area in this province reaches 387,967 hectares or 3,879 kilometers. This area is divided into several allocations according to the Coastal Zone and Small Islands Zoning Plan (RZWP-3-K).
One of them is for a capture fisheries zone of 227,363 hectares or 58.60 percent consisting of pelagic (fish habitat in shallow waters) and demersal (fish habitat in deep areas).
Meanwhile, marine conservation areas are 33,447 hectares or 8.62 percent. The rest, 30.74 percent is allocated to public seaport routes or zones.
Although Jambi’s capture fisheries zone reaches 58.60 percent, the number of marine capture fishers has declined over the past few years. In the latest report, there are only 5,927 marine capture fishers left in Jambi in 2021.
Number of sea capture fishermen in Jambi from 2010-2021. Data source: Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Affairs
Coastal-based ecosystem management is needed
Susan Herawati was saddened by what she saw when she traveled to fishing villages in various regions. The secretary general of the People’s Coalition for Fisheries Justice (Kiara) — a non-profit organization that focuses on marine and fisheries issues — discovered multiple burdens faced by fishermen due to the climate crisis.
The climate crisis has disrupted fishermen’s knowledge and resulted in a decline in catches, and ultimately their income. On the other hand, Susan said, empowerment programs were often not aligned with h fishers’ needs, despite becoming a state mandate contained in Law No. 7 of 2016 concerning fishermen’s protection and empowerment.
“Government support is still very minimal regarding this climate crisis. And the state does not have the right scheme or pattern of empowerment,” said Susan.
According to her, the protection of fishermen is not just insurance. When fishers cannot travel to sea, the government must provide alternative economic facilities. Unfortunately, the government does not yet have climate crisis mitigation policies and strategies for affected communities, including fishermen.
Senior Researcher from the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) Dedi Supriadi Adhuri said that the climate crisis impact is real, and no longer a prediction. Adhuri said Indonesia as an archipelagic country has already felt the impact, especially in coastal areas and communities.
If global warming cannot be controlled, coastal areas will be the first affected. A modeling developed by KKI Warsi, using Coastal Climate Central geospatial analysis, showed that hundreds of villages on the coast of Jambi will be submerged by 2050. This is due to rising sea levels that contribute to annual tidal floods.
“Coastal erosion, tidal flooding, and extreme weather are already commonly felt by fishermen and coastal communities. And this certainly affects their living space,” said Dedi.
Dedi, who is also a maritime anthropology researcher, believes that the government does not have a long-term strategy to mitigate this increasingly real climate crisis, adding that strategic steps are needed by calculating the various changes that will occur in the future.
“For example, there must be modeling for the next 30 years of sea level rise. But ironically in Indonesia, there is no modeling to see the potential changes that will occur in the future,” said Dedi.
“Now the climate crisis is already being felt. Its impact is indeed long-term and will be felt in 30 years. So if there is no long-term mitigation and adaptation strategy, it will just be a temporary fix,” Dedi says.
Dedi adds what is happening now is that foreign investment efforts are only focused on development projects.
“But the mitigation and adaptation programs to cope with the effects (of climate crisis) are almost nonexistent, said Dedi.
Dedi identifies a solution: the coastal ecosystem management sector and small-scale fisheries that are directly driven at the community level and coastal communities. They need to be involved in mitigating the climate crisis.
Management of this sector is good practice and key to addressing climate change impacts. Community-driven coastal ecosystem management deals with fishing, but also mangrove rehabilitation activities.
“Community strengthening and collaboration is very critical to ensure that coastal ecosystem and fisheries management practices work as part of climate crisis adaptation and mitigation strategies,” said Dedi. “But so far, the small fisheries sector driven by small fishermen has received less attention from the government.”
On Jambi’s east coast, traditional fishermen such as Amri, Wak Ninggal, and other traditional fishers are an example of what Dedi said. The livelihood they depend on from fishing for their daily needs is increasingly being eroded.
Not to mention that their work is full of risks. Every year fishermen drown at sea or their boats are sunk in storms.
They seem helpless in their own sea. Now they set sail as their only survival means.