Understanding indigenous cultural rights in Indonesia

Abstract

This chapter examines the dynamic of indigenous peoples' rights in Indonesia, particularly their cultural rights as part of their Non-Territorial Autonomy (NTA). It analyzes in what way the network governance and legal pluralism can benefit indigenous peoples and their NTA in Indonesia. The chapter discusses the theoretical framework outlining diverse and interrelated theories: network governance and legal pluralism, and other relevant governance concepts, such as decentralization, culture defence and the rights of minorities. Furthermore, in the local context of the South Kalimantan Province, indigenous cultural rights which are manifested in cultural ceremonies and indigenous livelihood are often denied by the government. For instance, the indigenous thanksgiving ceremony, namely aruh is rejected by the local government, merely because they consume traditional alcoholic beverages and perform gambling activities in their ceremonies. The implementation of state law pluralism can be seen in Indonesia's context in the definition and requirements of "indigenous peoples" in the Constitution and the current laws.