Wanagkiki

Pilimakujawa is one of the oldest villages in the Gimpu plains, administratively located in the South Kulawi District. The community living in this village comes from the To Ri’untu ethnic group, which means “descendants”—who inhabit along the cliffs of the Lane River, Lamati River to the Lariang River, which is the longest river in Sulawesi. Before settling in the current village, the indigenous people of Pili inhabited a village called Kaliua. According to history and the stories of the elders, Kaliua was an ancient village that sank due to a flash flood that struck in the past. The flash flood in this village was caused by a Golden Gong belonging to the Pili community that was to be handed over to the Kulawi people.

At that time, several envoys from the Kulawi leader came to Pili to request the Golden Gong belonging to the Pili people, with the Kulawi envoys half-forcing the request. Finally, with a heavy heart, the Pili people handed over the Golden Gong, and a ceremony was held for its release at Lobo (traditional house) by gathering all the residents of Pili village, except for those who were in the fields and inside who could not attend the ceremony. Then, the leg of a cat was cut off to be used to strike the Golden Gong. However, at that moment, the sky opened up and heavy rain fell, causing a flood that drowned all the Pili residents gathered at Lobo, including the envoys from Kulawi. The only ones left at that time were a few people who were in the fields and in the forest. They became the remaining descendants of Pili to this day. After that, the community moved to Makujawa—which is the neighboring village of Pili that no longer had inhabitants, thus merging the two into a village called PiliMakujawa.

The Indigenous Toriuntu Pilimangkujawa community has a protected area passed down through generations, namely Wana Ngkiki or protected forest. Wana Ngkiki is a protected forest because it contains protected wildlife such as: Maleo Birds, Anoa, Monkeys, Allo Birds. The Indigenous Toriuntu Pilimangkujawa community has its own spatial arrangement regulated according to customs and/or assisted by the village government—owned individually or communally. The Indigenous Toriuntu Pilimangkujawa community also has several areas divided according to customs, namely:

• Village or Ngata, is an area used as a settlement for the community consisting of Ngata Makujawa and Ngata Pili.
• Fields or Bonea, is an area used for farming, usually planted with rice, secondary crops, and corn.
• Hardwood garden or Pampa, is an area used for Coffee, Cocoa, Avocado.
• Reserve garden or Oma, is an area of former gardens left for more than ten years and designated as a reserve garden for indigenous people who do not yet have land to farm covering 2 hectares—which is obtained through permission from the village head and customary institution. This area is also used to collect rattan, nantuk wood, and lekatu wood with the permission of the customary institution and village.
• Forest or Ponulu, is an area of forest set aside for community cultivation and contains to’olo or customary protection areas because it has water sources used for daily consumption.
• Pasture land or Kaohoa, is an area of former rice fields used for livestock to find grass/food.

The spatial management in the Powatua customary area (Pilimakujawa Village) is divided into three, namely:

• Pepunulua, is individual/family ownership.
• Panguru, is communal ownership. For example, opening gardens in groups/together and the harvest is shared equally (among the group that opened the land).
• Molamara, is communal ownership and all indigenous people have rights to it (according to custom).

In this management, the Wana Ngkiki area is included in the Molamara management—owned by all Indigenous Toriuntu Pilimangkujawa community. The main rule established in this area is that this forest cannot be opened for gardens, logging is prohibited, and rattan management is forbidden. However, the community is still allowed to enter Wana Ngkiki with the permission of the customary leader. Sanctions for rule violators include warnings, confiscation of wood, and fines. These main rules are passed down orally from generation to generation. All rules and decision-making related to the Wana Ngkiki area are regulated by the PiliMakujawa Customary Institution through customary deliberations or Megombo Ada involving the entire community. The following is the structure of the PiliMakujawa Customary Institution:

• Kapala Ngata (Customary Leader), as the decision-maker.
• Wakil Kapala Ngata (Deputy Customary Leader), as someone who represents the customary leader.
• Guru Tulisi (Secretary), as someone who records during customary meetings.
• Suro (Spokesperson).
• Tina Ngata (Mother of the village), as the problem solver for women.

The practice of protecting the Wana Ngkiki area carried out by the Indigenous Toriuntu Pilimangkujawa community contributes to the preservation of forest ecosystems and the conservation of flora and fauna. In its management, the Indigenous Toriuntu Pilimangkujawa community focuses on protecting the area from logging/rattan collection and not opening gardens, as well as focusing on protecting the area as a habitat for wildlife considered important/high value, such as: Maleo Birds, Anoa, Monkeys, Allo Birds. In addition, the flora around/in Wana Ngkiki is also well protected, such as: Taiti Wood, Cempaka Wood, Bamboo, and Rattan. The protection of this area is also intended for the sustainability of life/reserves in the future. If green open areas like this forest are well maintained, the community believes it can avoid flood disasters and have good water absorption areas.

The Indigenous Toriuntu Pilimangkujawa community has a legal basis through the Regional Regulation of Sigi Regency Number 15 of 2014 concerning the Empowerment and Protection of Indigenous Law Communities in Sigi Regency. However, there is still no specific regulation governing the recognition and protection of rights or related to areas protected by the Indigenous Toriuntu Pilimangkujawa community. The Wana Ngkiki area is part of the Lore Lindu National Park—this causes the Indigenous Toriuntu Pilimangkujawa community to have limited access.