Case Study: Sasi Lompa Fish in Haruku, Central Maluku

The communities in Negeri Haruku – Sameth, Haruku Island, Central Maluku, Maluku has unique traditions to preserve its sustability of natural products. Haruku Island is one of the small islands located in Lease Islands group (Ambon, Haruku, Saparua, Nusalaut, Pombo and Molana), which is located in the East of the City/Ambon Island. The adat leaders in Negeri Haruku – Sameth enforce the prohibition period and the period allowed for residents to catch fish in the sea or river. Local people call it the Sasi Lompa tradition.

As a form of acknowledgement to this local wisdom, Ministry of Marine Afairs and Fisheries facilitates it by Regent Regulation No. 81 Year 2017 which acknowledge the application of adat law and local wisdom in the management and protection of marine resources in Haruku, Central Maluku Regency.

Sasi Lompa or Sasi Laut are an annual tradition which are held by the community on the island of Haruku. Sasi Lompa come from two words, which are Sasi and Lompa. Sasi is a ban on Maluku which aims to preserve nature, while Lompa is a type of small Sardinian fish that lives in brackish water. Seeds or hatchlings of lompa fish are usually starting to be seen in groups on the coast of Haruku between April and May. At this time, sasi lompa is declared valid (closed sasi). The people are forbidden to catch fish, because the size are still too small, which are shown by fixing the sasi sign in the form of wooden pillar which ends are wrapped with young coconut leaves (janur) which indicates that Sasi has been put into effect. In general, Sasi Lompa regulates the following:

● Lompa fishes, when located in the sasi area, cannot be catched or disturbed using any gears with any ways. ● Sea motorboat can not enter to Learisa Kayeli river with the machine turned on or off. ● Kitchen utensils must not be washed in the river again. ● Garbage must not be thrown to the river, Sampah tidak boleh dibuang ke dalam kali, but at a distance of about 4 meters from the edge of river at places determined by Kewang. ● If bait is needed for fishing, lompa fish can only be caught with a hook, but still must not to be done in the river. ● For the community member who violates this regulation will be subjected to sanctions or penalties according to the provisions in the sasi regulations, which are in the form of fines. As for the children who commit violations, they will be subject to a sentence of being hit with rattan 5 times, which indicates that the child must bear the burden of the mandate of the five great soa (great family/surname) existed in Haruku.

An example of this would be the Sumatran tradition of lubuk larangan, the local wisdom in breeding fishes. The local wisdom grouped into the biodiversity beneficiaries refers to the mindful and sustainable utilization of biodiversity by society. An example of this would be the taboo system in the people of Kampung Naga and Kampung Kuta that prohibits over-clearing of forests; they developed an agricultural system which has succeeded in preserving rice germplasm and reducing pest attacks and diseases. The last group, the biodiversity knowledge disseminator, refers to the local wisdom of spreading knowledge about the benefits of biodiversity for human survival. This local wisdom, for example, is related to the habits of certain communities when using certain plants in maintaining health, beauty and refreshments that have been carried out for generations. Knowledge of biodiversity for healthcare has partly developed into the traditional herbal medicine industry, some of which is in a modern herbal medicine (jamu) industry.