-
MASTERS OF OUR OWN LAND
-
I am at the port. Where are you?
-
The tourists who come to Raja Ampat
usually stay at the resorts owned by
-
outside investors, business people.
-
They (investors) come to Raja Ampat to
make money out of Raja Ampat,
-
and take it away to where they come from.
-
So, I thought, "as a son of Raja Ampat, I
own the place, I should be like them."
-
If I may say, Raja Ampat is like a newborn
baby, that has suddenly become a celebrity.
-
And what people are looking for is its
sexiness.
-
When the sexiness is gone, what will
Raja Ampat be?
-
The resorts are owned by investors with
big capital.
-
They can buy out customary land with
their money and the people
-
become the victims.
-
Therefore we don't want any more
resorts here.
-
I used to go fishing at night and sell my
fish to the resorts.
-
At what price?
-
Only enough to buy food for a day.
There was nothing left the next day.
-
So, I built this homestay to give me
enough income.
-
I didn't have money. I didn't have anyone
to back me up.
-
But I had wood, which can be found in
abundance in Raja Ampat.
-
There's also a lot of rattan rope here.
-
There's also a lot of natural material for
roofing here.
-
My ancestors and even my parents use it.
-
Even God provides the land, ready to use.
-
So, I built a homestay and the outcome
has been good for me.
-
Locals have built the homestays in
Raja Ampat.
-
Before, the young people of Raja Ampat,
especially those from Meosmanswar
and South Waigeo, worked at the resorts.
-
They learnt about tourism while working
in the resorts.
-
Once they understood tourism, they decided
to quit and open their own homestays.
-
Year after year, the number of homestays
has increased.
-
Today there are 55 homestays.
-
After two years, an investor came and
asked my staff, "Who owns the homestay?"
-
They said, "Mr. Matias Mayor owns it."
-
But perhaps because I didn't look neat
or dashing, he did not believe it.
-
So he asked again and they answered,
"He owns the homestay - Mr. Matias Mayor."
-
He then opened his suitcase. I saw red
(100,000 rupiah bills) and blue
(50,000 rupiah bills) money in it.
-
But I thought to myself, "What is the
value of that money?"
-
If he pays me 200 million rupiah ($20,000)
and I distribute it to all my family members,
the money would be gone in a week.
-
I want to be an entrepreneur and I want to
be, what we call "Ember", the master of
our own land.
-
I have a big dream. In the near future, two
or three years from now, my homestay
will be like the resorts.
-
And I will have many staff from the villages
around here,
-
so we can all work together here and make a living.