When the City Forest Is Ours: Urban Environmentalism and Youth in Bandung, Indonesia
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When the City Forest is Ours: Urban Environmentalism and Youth in Bandung, Indonesia Meredian Alam MPhil (Univ. of Oslo), MA (UGM), BSocSc(Hons.) (UGM) Student Number: 3197024 Thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for award of the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Sociology and Anthropology School of Humanities and Social Science Faculty of Education and Arts The University of Newcastle NSW 2308, Australia September 2017 This research was supported by UNIPRS and UNRSC 50:50 Scholarship Declarations Statement of Originality The thesis contains no material which has been accepted for the award of any other degree or diploma in any university or other tertiary institution and, to the best of my knowledge and belief, contains no material previously published or written by another person, except where due reference has been made in the text. I give consent to the final version of my thesis being made available worldwide when deposited in the University’s Digital Repository, subject to the provisions of the Copyright Act 1968. Signed Meredian Alam Published Material Portions of this research thesis have been published in the following journals and conference proceedings: Alam, M. and Nilan, P. (2015) Urban growth, youth and environmentalism driving Local Initiatives in Bandung,Indonesia, in T. Petray and A. Stephens (eds) Proceedings of The Australian Sociological Association Conference, Cairns, 23-26 November 2015. ISBN: 978-0-646-94798-3 Parts of this paper appear in Chapter 1 Alam, M. (2016) Politicised space and contentious youth in urban environmentalism in Indonesia. Komunitas: International Journal of Indonesian Culture and Society 8(1), pp.1-12. Parts of this paper appear in Chapter 11 ii Glossary ‘Ayo Lawan’ : Let’s fight. ‘Melawan atau Mati!’ : Resistance or die. Abah Baksil : The term for the leader of the Babakan Siliwangi Residents Forum. Backsilmove : Back to Babakan Siliwangi Movement Camani : Black feathered cock. Forum Warga Peduli Babakan Siliwangi : Babakan Siliwangi Residents Forum Gedung Sate : The parliament building in Bandung. Grindadráp : Faroese term for the pilot whale killing festival. Hayu Ulin di Babakan Siliwangi : Trees in Babakan Siliwangi. Hutan Kota : Urban forest. Iman dan taqwa : Belief in and submission to God (Islamic term). Jowo : Java or Javanese. Jumpa Militan : Meeting of militants. Juta : Million. Kabupaten : Regency. Kafe : Café. Kawasan Bandung Utara : North Bandung region. Kawasan Strategis Propinsi : Strategic region at provincial level. Kerakyatan : Sense of being at grass roots level. Kota : City Lebak Gede : The original name for Babakan Siliwangi. Lingga-Yoni : Standing stone which depicts symbolic iii male and female genitalia. Milyar : Billion Ngalokat Hahalang Babakan Siliwangi : To purify and protect Babakan Siliwangi forest. Nongkrong : Chilling out with friends in a café or public space without doing much. Pedagang kaki lima : Street vendors Pembangunan Tanpa Mata : Blind development. Perahu Doa : ‘Prayer Boat’- title of Tisna Sanjaya’s artwork. Rupiah : Currency of Indonesia. Sanggar Mitra : Arts Curatorial Workshop situated near the entrance of Bandung Zoo. Sanggar Olah Seni : Arts Workshop situated in Babakan Siliwangi forest. Sawit : Oil palm, or palm oil plantation. Siraman moyang : Traditional flower showering. Rencana Tata Ruang Wilayah/RTRW : Spatial Plan of Bandung. Penghayat aliran kepercayaan : Sundanese spiritual collective. Yayasan : Foundation (NGO). iv Acronym PT EGI Perseroan Terbatas. Esa Gemilang Indah (EGI) BCCF Bandung Creative City Forum ITB Institute Teknologi Bandung (Bandung Institute of Technology) Unpad Universitas Padjajaran (Padjajaran University) Sabuga Sasana Budaya Ganesha (SABUGA) UNIKOM Universitas Indonesia Komputer (Computer Studies University in Bandung) Eling Pendidikan Lingkungan (Environmental Education Program) AMDAL Analisis Dampak Lingkungan (Environmental Impact Analysis) IMB Ijin Mendirikan Bangunan (Construction Licence) GP Greenpeace KPK Komisi Pemberantasan Korupsi Indonesia (Corruption Eradication Commission) NTF The North Face CND Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament Pramuka Praja Muda Karana (Indonesia’s Scout Movement) FHB Forum Hijau Bandung (Bandung ‘Green’ Forum) NVDA Non-Violent Direct Action WALHI Perwalian Lingkungan Hidup Indonesia (Indonesia’s Friends of the Earth) v Timeline of Events- Babakan Siliwangi Year Event(s) Until1930 The history of Bandung records that Babakan Siliwangi was originally seven hectares of rice paddy fields, called Lebak Gede until 1930. The rice fields were cultivated by farmers who worked for a Dutch colonialist until 1942, when the land came under the ownership of the municipal government. 1940 A local residential complex was built to the west of Lebak Gede. 1990 The local state university ITB developed part of the original forest area following the granting of a lease from the government. Extensive sports facilities were established in the 1990s, using a block grant from the World Bank. 1991-1980 Bandung municipal government began to commercialise the Lebak Gede area. They also granted legal clearance for local restaurants to operate. 2003 A restaurant – called Babakan Siliwangi Resto - caught fire, allegedly due to an electric sabotage. The name stuck. 2002 The Bandung municipal government appointed PT EGI as the executor for re-planning and further development of the Babakan Siliwangi forest area. 2003 (August) There was a dispute between senators during discussion of the submitted landscaping plan for Babakan Siliwangi in the regional parliament. 2008 The mass media began to broadcast the plan for the new commercial landscape development of Babakan Siliwangi. As this plan spread across the region, disagreements and outbursts amongst local environmental organizations and collectives emerged. 2011 (September) A campaign for Babakan Siliwangi to be declared as a World City Forest was launched. 2011 The municipal government issued Bandung City Regulation number 18 of 2011, which legislated Babakan Siliwangi as green open space. 2013 (1 January) The Babakan Siliwangi Residents Forum was officially established. Tisna Sanjaya was appointed as Abah Baksil, the coordinating chair of the forum. 2013 (12 February) Backsilmove was officially created as a conservation movement to promote the sustainability of Babakan Siliwangi vi forest. 2013 (13 May) PT EGI held a press conference to state that they held a work permit for infrastructure development (Ijin Mendirikan Bangunan) and announced the construction work would commence in the following months. 2013 (14 May) Bandung community activists along with environmental activists and groups held a meeting to consolidate their collective action against development in Babakan Siliwangi forest. 2013 (20 May) Babakan Siliwangi Residents Forum along with Backsilmove successfully organised a creative festival of protest culminating in a long march from Babakan Siliwangi forest to Bandung Town Hall (Balai Kota Bandung). Throughout the parade, activists carried the graffitied zincalum fence that was erected by PT EGI to close off the forest. 2013 (25 May) An art exhibition was opened at the Cultural Centre Foundation building (Gedung Yayasan Pusat Kebudayaan) as part of the creative festival of protest. Tisna Sanjaya was the coordinator. Local artists performed. It was attended by WALHI (Indonesia Friends of the Earth), the elders of the Aliansi Keluarga Sunda Nusantara and Paguyuban Sundawani. In addition, the new mayoral candidates for Bandung signed a banner containing their pledges and commitments to terminating the private development of Babakan Siliwangi if elected. 2013 (5 June) A traditional art performance was conducted by local artists like Nanu Muda, and there was Sundanese poetry reading. National geographer and Bandung basin explorer Dr. T. Bachtiar called on all Bandung residents to plant Babakan Siliwangi forest with Lebak Siliwangi indigenous trees. 2013 (11 June) The Chairman of Commission A and the Secretary of the Regional House of Parliament issued a joint statement that the cooperation agreement between the municipality and PT EGI was contrary to Law no. 26 of 2007 on Spatial Planning and Regional Regulation No. 18 of 2011 on Spatial Planning, since PT EGI had not delivered on its financial responsibility to the city government of Bandung. 2013 (14 June) Tisna Sanjaya representing the citizens of Bandung read the petition against commercialisation of Babakan Siliwangi forest before the Regional House of Parliament senators. 2013 (27 June) Bandung municipal government revoked the infrastructure construction work permit (IMB) from PT EGI. vii 2013 (28 June) Newsheadlines about the revocation of the building permit and commercial development land for Babakan Siliwangi were widely spread by media in Bandung and across West Java. The forest was preserved for the community to enjoy. viii Abstract In 2013 Backsilmove, a youth-led environmental organisation, engaged in the reclaiming of the Babakan Siliwangi urban forest movement located in Bandung, the capital of Indonesia’s West Java province. Despite the fact that Bandung city authorities still tightly control political activism and do not provide much space for political dissent, these young people surfaced as youthful environmental activists who used diverse movement repertoires to convey an environmental safeguarding message to the public. By framing the Backsilmove case with a Bourdieusian approach to analyse that environmental movement, I aim, in this doctoral thesis, to show