Archive for October 17th, 2006
The news right now is full of articles about the SE Asian ‘haze’, which blankets part of the region, in wood smoke, created for the most part in Kalimantan and Sumatra.
Reasons behind the haze are the clearing of jungle for farmland and the burning off of crop waste. How are these a part of Indonesian customs? Let’s look at farming in Indonesia.
There are 2 main systems of cultivation used in Indonesia, sawah and ladang.
Sawah is wet rice cultivation, whereby the terrain is terraced into level layers. This technique can be used up to 1,600 meters above sea level. You usually find sawah in monsoon areas of the low-lying plain, where water is abundant. Tabanan in SW Bali is a good example, and water flows 365 days a year.
Sawah is an intense form of farming, it demands rich soil, plentiful rainfall and sunshine, huge amounts of labor, to construct and maintain, and an organized water supply system. In Bali that system is called the subak.
Ladang means a shifting cultivation system. People using this basic system, use simple tools, to cultivate a section of dry land for food. Maybe 40% of Indonesians take part in ladang farming in some way.
The way ladang works, is unirrigated land is prepared by slashing and burning jungle. It is then cleared and planted with a selection of fast growing food crops. Ladang farmers will work in rows, going uphill anf over rough ground and other impediments. Men will poke holes in the ground with sharp sticks, while the women will follow, dropped rice seeds into the hole.
Ladang farming is less productive per hectare, than sawah and needs about 10 times the area to produce the same volume of food. It is practiced on soil that is unsuitable for sawah, such as the non-volcanic and will be exhausted in 2 years. The land is then left to the jungle for 10 years, allowing the farmer to return once more. If the jungle does re-grow and the area is covered by alang alang grass, the soil will be permanently unsuitable for farming.
In Indonesia, ladang farmers tend to live in permanent villages, rather than following a nomdadic lifestlye. Ladang farming is especially popular in the drier eastern islands such as Flores, Timor and parts of Sulawesi.
Here in Bali, if you go to the Bukit peninsula, you will see a vastly different style of farming, basically cattle and a few crops. Also is East Bali, there is a point where the rice belt stops and the corn belt starts. Its dues to the terrain, rainfall and soil.
The SE Asian haze is something that must be addressed, but just how the government, is going to deal with ladang farming remains to be seen. Recently in the news was an article stating that we collectively have reached thep oint where our environment on Earth is in ‘debt mode’ meaning the amount of resources we use and the amount of pollution we create, cannot be rectified by nature. Maybe Indonesia is a micro version of that, by which I mean that initially, a commnity of people in Sumatra clearing a hectare of land wouldn’t make any difference to anyone. Now the population has increased and the areas getting cleared are much larger, we’ve reached the point where their actions are affecting the whole region.
source : www.baliblog.com
October 17th, 2006
The British government unveiled a memorial to the victims of the 2002, Bali Bombing. Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall were present at the
London ceremony.
Four years to the day, the memorial saw relatives of the 28 Britains killed in the attack, finally have have a place to go to mark the event. The memorial had a carved dove to represent each of the victims. Representatives of all 21 other nations that lost citizens were present.
I imagine it must of been hard, for the relatives of the victims, knowing there were ceremonies going on in Bali and Australia, but not having their own place, and not being able to travel that far. Now they do and hopefully it will help them.
source : www.baliblog.com
October 17th, 2006
Check out this topic currently being discussed on the
Bali Forum at BootsnAll:
Chris-in-sf is planning his round-the-world trip and is thinking he’ll be in Bali for New Years - unless, of course, Bali is overrun with tourists and the accompanying high prices at that time of year. Have you rung in the New Year in Bali? Chime in with your input! And if you’re not already a member, sign-up here - it’s free!
source : www.baliblog.com
October 17th, 2006
Balinese Hindu mythology and local history, are colorful affairs, with many cute stories of how Balinese people have faced probelems and dealt with them. One of the famous stories in Bali is that of
Pan & Men Brayut.
According to legend Pan and his wife Men, were a poor couple who were always fighting. They always made up in a state of passion, ending up with 18 children. The family was somewhat unrully and the parents struggled to survive, always, fighting and making up again (if you live in a trailer, this might sound familiar). Variations of the story, give each partner the credit for initiating the passion. The family name Brayut, is a Javanese word meaning ‘a family burdened with many kids’.
Men Brayut was a weaver, and so Pan, her husband, had to most of the household chores. Eventually, after their brood has grown up and married, Pan & Men renounce the material world and join a retreat, something that elderly Balinese men sometimes do. Its possible to see the story of Pan & Men Brayut, depicted in Balinese art all over the island.
•Neka Art Museum Ubud:
Ubud’s I Gusti Nyoman Lempad, did some fine ink drawings featuring Pan & Men Brayut. Lempad is often referred to as Bali’s greatest artist, his ink drawings immediately recognizable. His drawings of the Brayut story can be seen at the Neka Art Museum in Campuhan (near Ubud). In Lempad’s ink drawing, subjects such as making pork sate and daily family activities ar covered.
•Bale Kambang Klungkung:
While enjoying the royal court at Kerta Gosa in the center of Klungkung, you can check out the wayang style murals featuring the Brayut story, inside the Bale Kambang, located behind it.
•Pura Dalem Jagaraga Singaraja:
Pura Dalem Jagaraga near Singaraja, has stone reliefs of the Brayut story, laong with animated carvings of other aspects of traditional and modern day Balinese life.
•Gedong Library Singaraja:
The Gedong Library contains a lengthy poem about the life of Pan & Men Brayut, entitled ‘Gaguritan Brayut‘.
Indonesia has Buddhist, Hindu and Muslim influences. The Buddhist and Hindu art often features manifestations of various Gods. Men Brayut is sometimes associated with Buddhist tradition, and legend has it that in this tradition she was the evil Hariti, who devoured her children. The story goes that she kept eating her kids until the day she converted to Buddhism, where she became their protector. Hariti is also a goddess of fertility.
You can view a stutue of Men Brayut, as Hariti, at the 11th Century temple in Candi Dasa, and also at Goa Gajah, in the Ubud area.
source : www.baliblog.com
October 17th, 2006
SE Asia’s haze, caused by dry season jungle clearing and crop waste, reached critical levels today. Visibility in some parts of Sumatra was down to 50 meters, and in Singapore the air pollution index was at 127 (over 100 is unhealthy). Here’s more from the Jakarta Post.
Indonesian brush fires cause flight cancelations, health warningsJAKARTA (AP): Brush fires on Indonesia’s Kalimantan (Borneo) and Sumatra islands caused flight cancelations and health warnings Monday, prompting appeals for the central government to intensify measures against the haze that has reached Singapore and Malaysia.
Neighboring Southeast Asian nations on Friday called on Indonesia to swiftly ratify a regional treaty to fight cross-border haze, saying they would delay financial assistance if it does not.
State Minister for the Environment Rachmat Witoelar told The Associated Press on Monday it was only a matter of time until legislators amended laws needed to ratify the ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution.
“We are not alone in fighting the haze,” he said.
Meanwhile, smoke from more than 100 fires on Sumatra’s Jambi province Monday reduced visibility to less than 50 meters, said local government official Donny Osmon.
“The condition was so bad that officials were forced to close the airport today for safety’s sake,” he said.
Malaysia said it had a worsening of air quality Monday as smoke returned to its skies over the weekend.
“The haze has become dangerous to people’s health,” said Jambi Governor Zulkifli Nurdin, who asked Jakarta to increase its efforts to stop the blazes with cloud seeding and airborne firefighters.
Local officials praised the steps taken by environmental ministers from Thailand, Malaysia, Brunei and Singapore to pressure Indonesia to ratify the haze agreement, but a leading local environmental organization said it failed to adopt adequate preventive measures.
“It failed to come up with a concrete agenda both in the short- and long-term,” said Chalid Muhammad, executive director of the Indonesian Environmental Forum.
Indonesia should have proposed emergency laws to empower the government to revoke permits from plantation companies found to be using illegal cut-and-burn methods, he said.
Here in ali skies are clear. Thankfully the winds blow the smog to the north, which is away from us.
source : www.baliblog.com
October 17th, 2006
Sunday night here in Seminyak Bali we had a very refreshing downpour. I didn’t see it, only heard it, as I was in bed, but it was pretty decent. Though temperatures are still comfortable, way more comfortable than in Central Java (40C) right now, the mercury is creeping up.
I’ve noticed that while typing on my porch I need a fan now. A month ago I didn’t need one. Probably be using AC in a month’s time to sleep. The wet season in not here yet though, and for tourists that’s great news. Here’s the 10 day weather forecast for Bali.
source : www.baliblog.com
October 17th, 2006