The phenomenon of bubu tradition in the cycle of time: Portrait of reciprocity in rural Madura

Bubu is a form of reciprocity that occurs in Madura generally and Langkap Village particularly. Generally, the exchange is made by the community as a form of “donations” to the celebration host. The host hopes for a return in the future. The reciprocal incident that occurred in Madura was not just a hope but more of an “obligation” to pay the “donation” or bubu that had been given on the previous occasion. This study seeks to describe the form and meaning of the bubu as well as to explain the changes that occur in the bubu phenomenon which used to be only in the form of voluntary donations into various forms of bubu with their meanings. The research design used was an ethnographic study with a moderate method where the researcher was occasionally directly involved in the tradition. The results of this study reveal several forms of bubu that occur in Langkap Village with different ways and meanings with the same motivation. The bubu given is a transaction of accounts payable and investment with the hope of a return in the future. More than that, there are social sanctions that will await if the bubu that have been given are not returned with the same value.

Social conflicts between actors in marine resource management in Palabuhanratu, West Java, Indonesia

Marine resources have become a niche of life for fishing groups on the coast of Palabuhanratu Sukabumi, West Java. The dependence of the fishing groups on natural resources has led to competition in the process of obtaining resources. The purpose of this study is to analyze stakeholders in marine resource management in Palabuhanratu. This research was conducted in Palabuhanratu, West Java, Indonesia. The research employed a qualitative approach with 60 informants, divided into 20 local fishermen, 20 migrant fishermen, and 20 external fishermen. The results of the study show several analyzes of the research objectives. First, several actors have an interest and influence in marine resource management in Palabuhanratu, including government actors, local fishermen, migrant fishermen, external fishermen, and marine tourism. Migrant fishermen have a high interest and influence in the process of exploiting marine resources in Palabuhanratu. Second, the relationships that exist between actors in the interaction process for the marine resource management in Palabuhanratu can take the form of negotiations and conflicts. Conflicts that occur are in the form of destroying other fishing gear, controlling the area, and protesting, while negotiations occur in the form of a cooperative relationship between groups of fishermen in catching fish and agreeing on boundaries for each type of fishing gear.

Implementation of nagari expansion policy in Nagari Preparation for Koto Gadang Jaya, Kinali District, West Pasaman Regency

The regional government of the West Pasaman Regency has implemented the nagari arrangement using the expansion of nagari. However, there are problems regarding the policy of nagari expansion in the Nagari Preparation of Koto Gadang Jaya. Therefore, this study aims to determine the strategies and problems of expanding the preparatory nagari in Koto Gadang Jaya, West Pasaman Regency. This research is qualitative research using a descriptive approach. Data collection techniques used interviews and documentation. This study used Edward III theory with communication variables, resources, dispositions, and bureaucratic structures. The research findings showed several problems related to implementing the expansion policy of the Nagari Preparation Koto Gadang Jaya; first, on communication variables in the indicators of transmission, clarity, and consistency; second, on the resource variable in human resources, financial resources, and infrastructure facilities indicators; third, the bureaucratic structure variable in the standard operating procedure indicators and fragmentation. Meanwhile, the excellent variable is disposition. This research concluded that the implementation of the policy of expanding the Nagari Preparation Koto Gadang Jaya has not been going well; several problems must be resolved by the party responsible for the policy.

Sexual agency of young widows in Malay culture: An ethnographic study in Serdang Village, South Bangka

Patriarchal culture is part of Malay society. However widows in Serdang Village, South Bangka gain agency in the midst of patriarchal culture. They find strategies in meeting their sexual needs after getting their agency. This study looks at how women find their agency and strategies to fulfill their sexual needs in the midst of the Serdang Village community which is still heavily associated with its Malay culture. The ethnographic research method was carried out to explore the agency of young widows in the village using Agency Theory from Lois McNay and Gayle Rubin’s thought “The Charmed Cyrcle” as an analytical knife to dissect the problems that exist in Serdang Village. This study found that young widows use strategies to fulfill their sexual needs, either by connecting with a boyfriend without getting married, watching adult videos, connecting with customers on a consensual or paid basis. This study concludes that the agency that has been built by the widows allows them to express their sexual needs freely.

Pitungan and birth variations of first-born among Javanese ethnic population in Indonesia

There is a phenomenon among the Javanese ethnic population, in which many wedding ceremonies are held whenever the Javanese calendar points to particular months such as Besar, Rejeb, and Ruwah, because marrying in those months is believed to bring good fortune. This study aimed to analyze the influence of wedding date determination through pitungan and feeling safe on birth variations of first-born and the number of children the wife gives birth to. The research was conducted in Blitar City, Blitar Regency, and Surabaya City with 193 married couples. Linear Regression and Chi-square were the statistical tests used in this research. Chi-square and Linear Regression tests proved that pitungan affects the birth variations of first-born (p = 0.004; p = 0.004) and the number of children a couple has (p = 0.007; p = 0.002). Both Chi-square and Linear Regression proved that feeling safe (roso slamet) does not have any significant effect on birth variations of first-born (p = 0.162; p = 0.767) and the number of children in household (p = 0.863; p = 0.680). The conclusion is that there is an important relationship between pitungan and birth variation in which the more pitungan is done, the sooner first-born is given birth to and the more children a married couple has.

Ethics of local government heads: A study of leadership in Surabaya, Bandung, and Purwakarta, Indonesia

The most significant aspect of a leader’s behavior is ethics because it is a guideline for interacting, acting, and involving in government in an ethical manner without abusing power. This article aims to find out how the ethics of regional heads are applied in the administration of regional government. The research method used was qualitative with a literature study approach. Data collection was done by literature study by collecting various materials from books, journals, research results, and mass media (news). The results of research conducted on three districts/cities in Indonesia involving three leaders of the Mayor of Surabaya, the Mayor of Bandung, and the Regent of Purwakarta in 2015 show some real examples of regional heads who apply ethical values in their leadership, which can be seen from their performance and competence as well as ideas (innovation) and relationships with the community. It has gone well by applying ethical principles in its performance such as accountability, transparency, legal assurance, and justice. Competence in leadership includes the application of ethical values including emotional intelligence, self-management, social awareness, and relationship management. This study concludes that government ethics greatly influence the implementation and desired results, as well as on leadership, which will affect the performance carried out.

Uplifting the socio-economic empowerment of women through handicraft industry

Empowerment is seen as being capable of making choices about job, marriage, mobility, entertainment, and the number of children. The present study focused on the role of handicraft businesswomen, their experiences, and the role of handicraft business as a tool of empowerment for women in Gilgit, Pakistan. The study was limited to the experiences of women producing handicrafts and viewed as socio-economic empowerment for those who are producing handicrafts. This study employed a qualitative research design. The thematic analysis of interviews of the craftswomen showed that they were empowering themselves economically and socially through handicraft business. The research findings reinforced the objectives of the study that the craftswomen perceive empowerment as economic independence and the income generated through handicrafts strengthens their economic as well as social position in society. This study concludes that their economic and social position becomes stronger after starting to earn income. These women also felt like the source of change in terms of motivation, inspiration, and encouragement for the other women in the society. They viewed and regarded the skill of handicrafts as the source of income and financial support for their families.

Public organizational performance: Policy implementation in environmental management in Bandung City

This study is motivated by the performance of the Department of Environment and Hygiene Services of Bandung City which has not been optimal. This is partly due to the poor services in the underground water mining sector, thus it is a current synthesis. This study aims to explore and discuss organizational performance through policies that have been implemented. The research method used was a descriptive qualitative approach, using data collection techniques of observation, interviews, and literature study. The results of the study indicate that the performance of public organizations has not been optimal due to low responsibility, responsiveness, and accountability, as well as internal constraints that occur structurally, the competence of human resources and non-human resources that are not appropriate so that it affects performance in the underground water mining sector that does not comply rule. This study concludes that the organizational structure and human resources in public organizations have not been effective and efficient so that the completion of public services is hampered.

Uncovering motives and rivalry of China-Australia amid the COVID-19 pandemic in the Pacific region

The rivalry between China and Australia in the Pacific region shows high tension. This rivalry has increasingly intense in the form of providing assistance to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic, where both countries have various motives of interest by providing the assistance. This article aims to describe the economic and political motives of China and Australia in order to provide assistance in handling COVID-19 to countries in the Pacific region. This article used a descriptive method by collecting several sources from books, journals, official documents, and scientific articles on the internet. It finds that China and Australia have economic and political-security motives from the assistance provided to countries in the Pacific region. The large natural resources in the Pacific region and its transformation into a world maritime trade route become the economic motives. The political motives for China are the principle of “One China” and a “Good Image/Perception” for China, while the political motive for Australia is strengthening Australia’s solidarity in the Pacific region. This article concludes that China’s presence in the Pacific region, which includes assistance in combatting COVID-19 and other concerns, puts China a threat to Australia, making the rivalry between the two countries is no longer inevitable.

A regional head election’s political corruption and new styles of clientelism

Intense competition in the regional head election (Pilkada) has implications for the increasing costs that candidates have to prepare to win the competition. The high cost in the regional head election makes many regional heads, when elected, commit political corruption and practices that are more adapted to the situation, namely the new styles of clientelism. This study aims to determine the shift in the relationship between political corruption and clientelism and to see new forms of clientelism. The approach used in this research was a literature study. Documents were selected using an application from the Publish or Perish database. The results of this study indicate that first, the power of money in politics in Indonesia creates a significant dependence on economic power, which influences a high level of political corruption. Second, there are two new styles of clientelism, including buying and selling votes and patronage in the bureaucracy. This paper concludes that the various modes of political corruption and new styles of clientelism that occur underline political vulnerabilities at the local level due to the broad elaboration of regional authority discretion.