MENEBANG JATI MENGEJAR RUPIAH Studi Etnografi Hutan Jati Muna

The forestry studies were so far raised more on the issues of forest fires, land seizures, deforestations, and conflicts between local community and the government or between the farmers and companies. However, they did not pay attention to the forest damage. Whereas, the forest damage occurred due to socioeconomical, cultural, and political processes. Therefore, this study was conducted to identify factors that encourage groups of community around the forest to destruct the forest and to gather data or information about the socio-economic, political, and cultural implication of the forest damage. There are three mutually related issues of teak forest in Muna Regency, that are the change of the government regime, the shift in policy on teak forest exploitation, and culture pursued by local communities in utilizing the teak forest and its relationship to the forest damage in Muna Regency. This study was conducted through a qualitative approach using ethnographic method in the teak forest areas of Kontu and Patu-Patu, Muna Regency, Southeast Sulawesi. The ethnographic analysis contained the description of the teak forest damage in Muna and revealed the meaningful illustration of local community around the forest objectively. In this study, the author conceptualized the teak forest damage in Muna Regency as an opened and economical phenomena which was a process of making balance by local communities around the forest to pursue a socio-economic welfare. Thus, the teak forest in Muna Regency has been a basis of local, national, and even transnational resources that can be exploited by local communities and the government. The reduced trust of local communities on local wisdom system is the departing point of the forest damage. The local wisdom that has been being a main foundation to conserve the integration of protected forest areas in Muna Regency was unable to stem the wave of change in political and economic system. In addition, the conflict of claiming over forest areas often occurred between government and local community. As the consequence of the forest damage was the imbalance that threatened people�s lives. This was the departing point where the system of cultural order (global wisdom) began to be formed, and unfortunately closer to the forest damage