(EcoNusa/David Herman Jaya)
Getting underway the 2022, I am impressed with what Sorong Regent, Johny Kamuru, said in the EcoNusa Outlook 2022 on 10 February in Jakarta. He said boldly, “In Tanah Papua, we do not need people with strong word and very good at speech. But what is needed is people with strong compassion, sincere heart and willing to serve.”
My memories went back to Glasgow, Scotland, last year, when world leaders convened for climate crisis summit. What I saw and heard there was in fact negotiation and transaction among the major countries on climate change issue. Sorry to say so, because it appeared that the more essential part of concrete actions to curb the climate disaster was overlooked.
Meanwhile, experts agreed that the issues on environment, climate crisis, economy, health related to Covid-19 including social and political impact will become major threats in 2022. Moreover, climate action failure, extreme weather, and biodiversity loss will pose the real threats which will affect human and earth in the next decade.
What is more obvious now does not merely concern with climate change, but rather climate crisis and disaster since human has mismanaged natural resources. In a smaller scope in Indonesia, particularly in eastern Indonesia, Tanah Papua and Maluku also cope with the impact of climate crisis. Let alone when forests are cleared out, earth and ocean are excessively exploited.
What is needed by the community is concrete action, instead of strong words and smart orator. It is exactly the same as Regent Johny’s earlier statement. It might be a coincidence to note that Johny’s word is so true. I am thinking about Rasa Timur (literally sense, feel of east) as the theme for spirit booster to EcoNusa to run its mission for the peoples in eastern Indonesia in 2022.
EcoNusa jointly with the people of eastern Indonesia intends to build that kind of sense among the Indonesian people and global community. Building this sense is deemed a unified compassion to care each other and to work hands-in-hands to protect forests, ocean, and nature in the eastern Indonesia as the last frontier to cope with climate crisis. It is the frontier that will support the future life.
Besides, the sense of east here is deemed an expression of gratitude and bliss when nature remains the source of life. However, that sense also includes worrisome feeling when there are many greedy people in need of taking control over and grabbing the indigenous people’s rights. Such greed will exploit the sources of life which merely benefits certain group of people and those in power.
Without having the same sense, I have doubts that we could do something. But if we have sincere heart, that kind of sense or feeling will grow. We can feel our sense as the eastern people. When we got that sense, we will do something real. We can build eastern Indonesia region better.
Strong and sincere heart to serve is the imperative requirement to build the sense that could help ease the community sovereignty in eastern Indonesia. This is what I mean by the sense of east. I think this is the momentum to share the compassion and supports, to nurture together man and nature lives which are packed in a so-called Rasa Timur.
Bustar Maitar
