INDIGENOUS PEOPLES AND THEIR STRUGGLE FOR CITIZENSHIP AND COLLECTIVE IDENTITY IN INDONESIA
Dr. Triyanto; Rima Vien Permata Hartanto

Civic Education Dept., Faculty of Education, Sebelas Maret University

Abstract

One of forms of socio-cultural pluralism of Indonesia is the existence of indigenous peoples with their customary law system. Indonesia as an archipelagic country, the number of indigenous peoples is estimated at around 40-50 million, out of more than 10,000 ethnic and sub-ethnic groups spreading throughout the inter-regional region. Indigenous peoples are anthropological entities that grow naturally on a certain part of the earth, and consist of various small primordial communities whose citizens have blood relation to each other. The existence of such indigenous peoples places them in a minority position. This sense of minority is more or less similar to the understanding of marginal society; those in a series of common life in the public space are often on the edge, or more precisely marginalized by the dominant. Indigenous peoples are very vulnerable groups in our society and the country in general. This article disscuss the struggle for citizenship and collective identity among indigenous peoples in Indonesia.

Keywords: indigenous peoples, struggle, citizenship, collective identity

Topic: Pluralist Society: Freedom and Tolerance