Views towards the Sun Bear and Frames on the Human- Sun Bear Conflict of Local People in West Sumatra, Indonesia MSc Thesis Forest and Nature Conservation FNP 80436 Anne Margarete Windler Reg. no. 871223961010 Supervisor: Dr. Esther Turnhout Wageningen, December, 26th, 2014 1 Views towards the sun bear and frames on the human-sun bear conflict of local people in West Sumatra, Indonesia Anne Margarete Windler Student Reg. no. 871223961010 M.Sc. Forest and Nature Conservation December 2014 FNP-80436 Supervisor Dr. Esther Turnhout Chairgroup Forest and Nature Policy The M.Sc. report must not be copied in whole or in parts without the written permission of the author and the chair group. 2 3 Acknowledgements I would like to thank Linda for giving me this great opportunity to work on a project in West Sumatra. Thank you for organising an interpreter, a village and a home for me during these weeks and for making sure that everything went fine and that I was okay! Anggi, thank you for being patient with me and my Minang and helping me in Botan to understand customs and people and of course helping me with all the interviews! Emil, thank you for joining in the village as well for your own research and taking me to all the places in the villages with you. Pah Mawardi, thank you very much for introducing us to everyone in the village and guiding us through the area and special thanks to your wife for making us feel at home and caring for us everyday by bringing us food and welcoming us in your home. I also would like to thank the chief of the village for giving us such kind permission to stay in Botan for this research. Also I would like to thank the staff of the Ministry of Forestry (BKSDA) in Lubuk for being so open and positive towards this research and supporting me during these weeks. I am also very grateful to all the people in the village for welcoming us in their community and taking care of us and making my stay so special and unforgettable. Here I would like especially to thank Ermisal and his wife who made us feel like part of their family and Riki who involved us in the daily life and showed great interest in us and our work. And of course many thanks to Esther Turnhout for being such a positive and constructive supervisor throughout my research- and writing process. I also want to thank my parents for always supporting me in what I´m doing and where I´m going. This thesis was more than just an MSc thesis to me. Being part of a village in West Sumatra was a unique experience and it was very special getting to know the people and the Minangkabau culture and seeing the beautiful landscapes. Terima kasih! II III Table of contents Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................................. II Table of contents ................................................................................................................................... IV List of Figures ......................................................................................................................................... VI Abbreviations ........................................................................................................................................ VI Summary ............................................................................................................................................. VIII Chapter 1- Introduction .......................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Human-wildlife conflict ................................................................................................................ 2 1.2 Sun bears in Southeast Asia .......................................................................................................... 3 1.3 Threats to sun bears ..................................................................................................................... 4 1.4 Sun bear case in West Sumatra, East Pasaman ............................................................................ 4 1.5 Problem statement ....................................................................................................................... 5 1.6 Research objective ....................................................................................................................... 6 1.7 Research questions ....................................................................................................................... 6 Chapter 2 – Theoretical framework ....................................................................................................... 8 2.1 Views of people towards wildlife ................................................................................................. 9 2.1.1 Culture ................................................................................................................................... 9 2.1.2 Inter-human relations .......................................................................................................... 10 2.1.3 Perception of risk ................................................................................................................. 11 2.2 Theory of framing ....................................................................................................................... 14 2.2.1 Issue frame .......................................................................................................................... 15 2.2.2 Social control frame ............................................................................................................. 15 2.2.3 Power frame ........................................................................................................................ 16 2.2.4 Conflict management frame ................................................................................................ 16 2.3 Integration of framework ........................................................................................................... 18 Chapter 3 - Methods ............................................................................................................................ 19 3.1 Research area ............................................................................................................................. 20 3.1.1 The Minangkabau ................................................................................................................ 22 3.1.2 The Nagari ........................................................................................................................... 22 3.2 Research design and data collection .......................................................................................... 23 3.3 Sampling ..................................................................................................................................... 26 3.4 Ethical considerations ................................................................................................................. 26 3.5 Reflection on methodology ........................................................................................................ 27 Chapter 4 – Local views on the sun bear .............................................................................................. 30 IV 4.1 Narrative about the views people have towards the sun bear .................................................. 31 4.2 Views of people towards the sun bear ....................................................................................... 38 4.2.1 Threatening life safety ......................................................................................................... 39 4.2.2 Economic loss ...................................................................................................................... 40 4.2.3 Mysterious bear ................................................................................................................... 42 4.3 Conclusion .................................................................................................................................. 43 Chapter 5 – Frames of the human sun-bear conflict ............................................................................ 45 5.1 Sub-Frames ................................................................................................................................. 46 5.1.1 Issue frame .......................................................................................................................... 46 5.1.2 Social control frame ............................................................................................................. 50 5.1.3 Power frame ........................................................................................................................ 52 5.1.4 Conflict management frame ................................................................................................ 53 5.2 Conflict frames ........................................................................................................................... 55 5.2.1 People versus bears ............................................................................................................. 56 5.2.2 Lack of coordination ............................................................................................................ 57 5.2.3 Left alone ............................................................................................................................