Tombak (Haminjon)

The indigenous community of Bona Ni Dolok was established around the year 1747 AD by several ancestors, namely Ompu Raja Sane Simanjuntak, Ompu Onggak Panjaitan, Ompu Guru Naingan Sianipar, Ompu Raja Singa Simanjuntak, and Raja Daud Napitupulu. From the beginning, this area developed into a settlement for various clans with hamlets such as Sosor Purbatua, Lumban Sigumpar, Sigumpar Nauli, Sitari Alaman, Bona Dolok, Sialogo, Sihulambu, Lumban Tanjung, Lumban Hariara, Lumban Sitiotio, Huta Bagasan, and Lumban Ambar.

The descendants of Raja Sane Simanjuntak then settled in Lumban Sigumpar, while the descendants of Onggak Panjaitan developed in Sigumpar Nauli. Together with the Napitupulu clan, they formed an alliance to face external threats by establishing village fortifications. Over time, other hamlets emerged such as Sialogo, Sihulambu, and Sitari Alaman, opened by the Simanjuntak, Panjaitan, and Pasaribu clans.

Additionally, the Adian Batu area is inhabited by the Simanjuntak and Sianipar clans who formed a Papangan (Paradaton) together. The community manages the customary land through generations with local wisdom, for example, planting banyan trees (hariara) as markers of settlement and using sipilit plants or tuho wood as field boundaries.

Now, the descendants of these ancestors have reached eleven to thirteen generations who continue to live and farm in the Bona Ni Dolok area. This history emphasizes the continuity of ancestral ties, land, and customs as the foundation of identity and living space for the local indigenous community.

The Conservation Area managed by the community in the village of Bona Ni Dolok was initiated by the Alliance of Indigenous Peoples of the Archipelago (AMAN) in North Tapanuli (Taput) in 2021, focusing on the submission of documents and the implementation of identification and verification activities of the Customary Area (WA) and Customary Forest (HA) as a follow-up to Regional Regulation Number 4 of 2021 concerning the Recognition and Protection of Customary Law Communities.

Tombak or Forest consists of a cover of wet mountain forest with dense mixed trees. The diameter of the trees in this area is about one meter or more, many are cultivated with frankincense, pine, and aren. Tombak Haminjon is rarely visited by the community, so its natural ecosystem is still preserved. Resources such as wood are often utilized by the community for building houses, schools, and churches.

Tombak Haminjon or Frankincense Forest is a forest planted with frankincense as the main commodity. It is said that the frankincense tree has long been cultivated by the ancestors of Bona Ni Dolok, before the Dutch colonial period. This forest has a water source that flows to the settlements for irrigating rice fields, community plantations, and daily needs. The frankincense forest has boundaries marked by large trees and ditches.

In addition to frankincense, this area also has limited rattan and honey for household needs. Additionally, wood is commonly used for building houses, schools, and churches. The forest is also utilized as an important ecosystem contributing water for living needs and irrigation of plantations.

In Tombak Haminjon, the indigenous community has the freedom to manage and utilize the natural resources contained in the forest, as long as they maintain the forest ecosystem. The forest cannot be sold, and areas planted with frankincense and pine become individual rights in terms of land use. The indigenous community can sell timber products, but it is limited to the community. The following are the customary regulations inherited orally and passed down through generations by the indigenous community;

• Areas that cannot be sold.
• Forest management uses a mutual assistance system.
• Areas planted with frankincense/pine are individual rights in terms of land use.
• Timber products can be sold, but limited to the community.
• Communities are free to manage or utilize the natural resources in the forest with the condition of maintaining the forest ecosystem.
• Theft in the forest area is prohibited. If caught stealing, the penalty is multiplied based on the stolen goods.

Customary sanctions are decided through customary deliberation, in the social structure of the Bona Ni Dolok indigenous community, the customary leadership is held by the Raja Huta or sipukka huta from the clan that opened the village, namely Simanjuntak, Panjaitan, Sianipar, Pasaribu, and Napitupulu. The Raja Huta plays an important role in customary deliberations with the elders, especially in conflict resolution, acceptance of newcomers, and regulation of customs in the village. Additionally, there are leaders who are responsible for organizing customary events, usually chosen from the organizing clan. Another function is carried out by Sipature Aek, which regulates the distribution of drinking water to the community with a term of three years. The highest decision-making forum is called Tonggo Raja, which involves all Raja Huta and the community to establish decisions, hold customary courts, resolve disputes, and plan rituals or customary traditions. Leadership is hereditary but can only be carried out by the descendants of Raja Huta who are considered capable of leading and resolving issues. All decisions are made through deliberation and consensus involving Raja Huta and village elders.

The protection of the forest area/Tombak Haminjon provides benefits such as being a source of livelihood through the cultivation of frankincense and a source of food and medicine, supporting the irrigation needs of the village and fields, as well as maintaining the forest ecosystem, including the biodiversity (Kehati) within it. The biodiversity found in Tombak Haminjon includes;

Flora:

• Trees
• Thorns
• Frankincense
• Hau (mangrove tree)
• Tambicu (a type of small wood)
• Antahasi
• Pine
• Silom
• Modang
• Mallo
• Sialagudde
• Rattan
• Pakkat
• Bual-bual
• Hau Dolok
• Sarmeme
• Attarasa
• Bagot (Aren).
• Plants
• Tahu-tahu (pitcher plant)
• Tandiang (a type of large fern)
• Corn
• Coffee
• Pineapple
• Medicines
• Sae-sae (flu medicine)
• Rugi-rugi (medicine for shortness of breath)
• Bosi-bosi (medicine for stomach and back pain)
• Tabar-tabar (to ward off evil spirits from the body)
• Simarbonang-bonang
• Sirukkas (medicine for lungs, waist, etc.)
• Sibagoltas (medicine for stomach pain and immune system)
• Sarindan (medicine for stomach and liver)
• Dragon Scale (medicine for shortness of breath)
• Appapaga [Pegagan] (medicine for stomach pain; internal and external wounds)
• Pijor Holing (medicine for stomach pain)
• Simarateate (liver medicine)
• Frankincense (medicine for wounds, itching, stomach pain, life support, immune system)
• Bane-bane (Ward off witchcraft from spirits)
• Sanggul-sanggul Begu (ward off witchcraft)
• Stone Cross (medicine for flu)
• Bijora (eye medicine).
• Source of Clothing
• Bayon pandan.
• Source of Spices & Seasonings
• Andaliman
• Ginger
• Turmeric

Fauna:

• Hije (a type of deer)
• Belu (wild goat)
• Goppul (a type of bear)
• Aili (wild boar)
• Tanggiling (Pangolin)
• Sibabue Bird
• Pancawarna Bird
• Patiaraja Bird
• Anjiong Bird
• Ambaroba Bird
• Herlu Bird
• Eagle
• Owl
• Monkey
• Squirrel
• Imbo (a type of monkey)
• Civet
• Millipede
• Ihan (Batak endemic fish)
• Catfish.

In addition to biodiversity, there are also important points guarded by the Bona Ni Dolok Indigenous community, namely;

1. Aek Sirau (important point within the area)

2. Parhutaan: Lumban Sigumpar, Bonan Dolok, Sialonagogo, Sihulambu, Sitarealaman, Sosor Purba Tua, Lumban Tanjung, Sigumpar Nahli, Lumban Ambar, Huta Bagasan, Lumban Sitio-tio, Adian baturang.

3. First villages: Lobu Sinaming, Lobu Sitabuan, Lobu Sigumpal (the first village cannot be inhabited and is used as Ripe-ripe).

4. Parjampalan

5. Mual Sigumpar

6. Hariara Tree

7. Tambak: is the grave of the opung who opened the village.

The recognition and protection of the Rights Holders (AKKM) for the indigenous community of Bona Ni Dolok have obtained legal legitimacy through the Decree of the Minister of Environment and Forestry No. 6054 of 2024 concerning the Designation of the Bona Ni Dolok Customary Forest, as well as the Decree of the Regent of North Tapanuli No. 452 of 2023 concerning the Ratification and Protection of Customary Law Communities (PPMHA) of Bona Ni Dolok. This designation strengthens the position of the indigenous community in managing their territory based on the local wisdom that has been passed down through generations. The Bona Ni Dolok customary area has also been documented in the BRWA customary area profile, which serves as an important basis for this formal recognition. Currently, the Bona Ni Dolok indigenous community continues to strive to maintain environmental sustainability through reforestation activities in areas that have been deforested, as a manifestation of their commitment to restoring the forest ecosystem while ensuring the sustainability of future generations.