The Dutch colonial ethnographer Van Eerde wrote in the 1920 that there was no bigger contrast in Indonesia than the highly civilized people from Bali - with their costumes, dances and difficult religious ceremonies - and the primitive Kubu in southern Sumatera, which wandered through the forest naked, lived in simple huts and searched for food. 50 years later members of these two ethnical groups met eachother during a transmigration project in Jambi. Shortage of land forced Balinese people to leave their loved island, while the government forces the Kubu to abandon their 'poor living in the wilderness' for concrete houses in a transmigration village, pieces of agricultural land for several years and one year free food. As Van Eerde expected, contrast could not be bigger. While the Balinese were happy with a new chance for their future, the Kubu refused all help.
The Kubu preferred the forest. They saw themselves as a part of the forest and choosed to live in freedom. They didn't feel attracted to village life with it's many rules and civil servants. This is kind of aristocratic to hear from people who live in the forest indeed.
Local hunters and collectors
The Kubu are the original inhabitants of southern Sumatera. They have been living there as hunters and collectors for centuries in the tropical rainforests of the lowlands of Jambi and South-Sumatera. They collected a big variety of edible forest products and hunter for all kinds of animals, in the early times elephants as well. The only exception was the tiger, the Kubu have a special relation with that. Besides the Kubu eat wild tubers, fruits, leaves, fish, seafood and smaller animals like turtles, snakes and rats.
The Kubu only used their javelins to kill their victims. Dogs can't be missed for hunting on wild animals. Arrow and bow, pipes and other weapons were not known among the Kubu, however they made very much different traps to catch smaller animals. This way of life demands a big mobility, which creates a big limit to the size of the groups of Kubu. Temporary camps are often not lived in by more than eight families. Above all the consistence of these groups also changed over the time, often because members left to gather with other groups or to start their own group.
Treathened way of life
Until several decades ago the biggest part of southern Sumatera was still covered in primary rainforest. Villages with agricultural soil were only found along big rivers, which linger slowly through the lowland swamps, and in the higher valleys. The last years the landscape has changed drastically. Because of woodchopping, mining and plantations, many areas have been made accesible through roads, while the construction of the Trans Sumatera highway caused a flood of people from Jawa, Madura and Bali.
All these circumstances had lead to the damage of the rainforest of the lowlands, the traditional Kubu lands. And with this destruction also many flowers and animals disappear, which are important for their nomadic way of life. The proces of cultural and physical extinguishing was predicted decades ago, but now it seems unstoppable.
However the Kubu are not capable to top the ever closing farmers, bulldozers and chainsaws, they still succeeded to adapt to the rapidly changing environment. They have some agriculture right now, against their original way of life. They deforest small pieces of forest for growing rice, corn or different kinds of carrots. Above all these cultivations attract animals, so they can hunt more effective.
Most Kubu nowadays have close contacts with the farmers in the environment without being village inhabitant themselves, or wanting that to be. They settle themselves on locations where they are free to hunt, and they often work as worker; they help with the harvest and they create new agricultural soil in the near environment. They also gather and trade products from the forest like honey, ratten and various kind of harshes. There is an increating demand for their handycrafts: baskets and fishing equipment. In trade the Kubu receive rice, tobacco, salt, iron products, medication and cotton cloths.
Flashlights, guns, radio's and other products get an ever increasing importance, and de debris is a witness from their increasing contacts with the outside world. Besides the common teeth, shells and bones of wild animals, there are batteries, tin cans, bottles and plastic mess as well. Because of this changes living environment, some kind of economical symbiosis was created between the Kubu and the farmers, however they are still distant from eachother for what social status is concerned. The villagers - often strong muslems which have the feeling being a part of the new Indonesia in development - show little respect for the 'half naked, all eating, uncivilized Kubu' which maintain their old and irregular way of life.
The Kubu, on their turn, still reject living in villages. The heavy work on the soil, the small moving freedom and the many obligements which the villagers have to do, like education, developmental- and political activities and
gotong royong (communal exchange of labour) are fearfull to the Kubu. That's why they are constantly in opposition against the pressure and temptations from the outside world who wants to force them to become villagers.
This explains why the Kubu never accepted houses in areas with transmigration projects and why they didn't hold on long in villages what were built for their 'development and civilization'. They choose for freedom of living in the forests, living on the edge of civilization as a loose worker.
Only when this only possibility is taken away, they show themselves more openly: as beggers in woodchop camps, at bus terminals and along the roads. Maybe people can see this as their adaptation to the modernized form of hunting and collecting where money, food and sigarettes are the aim, but it's a living habit that has not been choosen by the Kubu themselves. It's not only needed that their environment is protected and saved, but also a severe reconsideration of the future of the Kubu is needed.
