“I am here to explain the issues happening to indigenous women and girls, especially in Riau Province in Indonesia, from 2020 to 2023. Clean water crisis and access to water. Indigenous women often perform rituals on certain days in the river. They bathe and collect drinking water from the river, which they have preserved since the time of their ancestors. Then came the oil palm companies. The forest encroachment by oil palm plantations was the main factor that damaged the river’s ecosystem. Deforestation because of oil palm plants causes rivers to lose support from heterogeneous forest plants fundamental to the ecosystem. Apart from that, it also causes severe siltation due to sedimentation, which can even change the flow of river water. The Ekok River, belonging to the Talang Mamak peoples in Riau Province, for instance, used to have commonly found fish such as sepat, puyu, puyau and snakehead fish. But the river has become shallow and polluted. I compare it to what indigenous women experience in Bokong village, East Nusa Tenggara Timur (NTT). Some women are responsible for collecting drinking water, and they obtain it from the nearest spring, which takes about 25-30 minutes, only for two gallons of water. One woman in each family at that village has to collect six gallons for a day or two day’s supply. Carrying water for a long distance also creates an enormous physical burden and can expose women and girls to safety risks and exploitation. The problem of poverty, lack of knowledge due to low education and the desire for a better life in a foreign country have resulted in some indigenous women being deceived by human trafficking syndicates that recruited them as illegal migrant workers in foreign countries,” she elaborated.
Indigenous women in Kampar, Riau Province, have become victims of such cases. One woman in Kampung Durian was a victim of expulsion, with only modest compensation without discussion and consent. They sometimes also face extortion as companies send armed thugs at their homes. Companies usually lure them with a profit-sharing mechanism. For example, the Company will plant on their land, and the profit will be shared if it is profitable. Women are unable to do anything, because they depend on their husband’s income and decisions, which they have to respect. Indigenous women are vulnerable to being removed from their areas, which are turned into mines, oil palm plantations, industrial tree plantations and others.
When the land and forests are removed, women’s indigenous knowledge also disappears. They have difficulty finding materials, such as raw materials for weaving and natural dyes. They also lose a place to practice farming knowledge. They are no longer the seed keepers in their community. The leaves of rumbia (Metroxylon sago) are most commonly used by the indigenous Akit women in Riau Province to make roofs for houses. They tie the leaves using ropes made of bamboo. However, since the forests have been cleared, they could not continue the tradition of building traditional houses made of thatch leaves.
Indigenous women have a significant role and are at the forefront of realizing economic resilience, social roles, and preserving the natural environment. In traditional institutions, they have specific functions in forest management, such as finding and maintaining rumbia leaves or pandan leaves. Indigenous women use pandan leaves as a raw material for making woven or traditional household crafts. In the utilization of river areas (tasik) or the sea, indigenous women use them to catch fish, as a source of clean water, a place for household activities and irrigation.