The issuance of the Regional Regulation on the Recognition of the Mentawai Indigenous Peoples provides legal protection for Indigenous rights at the district level. However, new laws and inaction by the central government have paved the way for timber companies to exploit their land, natural resources and culture.
Bambang Sagurung is an indigenous journalist based in North Siberut, Mentawai Islands. From 2008 to 2010, Bambang worked as a journalist for Sasaraina, a local media run by the Mentawai Islands administration. He joined Tabloid Puailiggobuat, an alternative media in Mentawai in 2006, which is now known as Mentawaikita.com, an online media platform that focuses on indigenous issues. Before he started his career in journalism, he worked as a field staff for an Indonesian Conservation International program in Siberut Island. Bambang also reported for LKBN Antara (State-owned news agency) for the West Sumatera Region between 2017 and 2018.
The determined fight against timber estates in Mentawai Islands
For years, the people of Mentawai have fought against the exploitation of their forests. The latest permit for timber estates issued by the government in Siberut Island was in 2017, without having consulted local communities