The Relation of Paser Ethnic Subalternity in the Process of Moving the Indonesian Capital City in East Kalimantan

Abstract

The process of moving the National Capital in Panajam has had an impact on the original ethnicity that inhabits the location, in this case, the Paser ethnicity. These ethnic communities experience patterns of subalternity relations such as their settlement land and livelihood land are suddenly determined without their knowledge, are not involved in decision-making processes, they are prohibited from accessing the zero point and the Central Government Core Area, and are not given space to become local workers in the work of the State Capital projects. This pattern of subalternity relations then developed into a communal identity which became the basis for the spirit of this community to carry out struggles for emancipation. How this community defines itself as a subaltern is the formulation of the problem that will be answered by this research as well as a research objective. This research approach is based on a critical paradigm because the Paser ethnic community which is used as a research subject is in a cyborg position which requires the role of researchers as transformative intellectuals in helping them to get out of their problems. The research method used is a qualitative method with data collection in the form of interviews, FGDs, and observations, all of which are carried out in a participatory manner. The data were analyzed by finding patterns/themes of meaning and presented narratively. The results of the study found that the pattern of unequal relationships gave rise to collective anxiety and collective perceptions as a subordinated group. The conclusion of this study is the pattern of subaltern relations of the 4 dominant forces, namely the state, companies, dominant culture, and transmigrants, which makes them perceive their group as subordinate. The expected suggestion is that this community needs to continue to build awareness together to continue the struggle for the existence of culture and life while continuing to strive for community empowerment in the form of capacity building.