Minang people keep hunting boar far from their homeland

Minang people keep hunting boar far from their homeland

By Indra D. Himrat

JAKARTA (JP): Minang people go boar hunting not only in their
homeland of West Sumatra, but also outside the island. While
boars are hunted in their homeland to protect crops, now migrant
Minang people go boar hunting for sport.

To them hunting boars is not only recreational, but also an
occasion when they can strengthen the social ties with fellow
countrymen who live far away from their hometown.

"We migrant Minang people in Jakarta are no longer farmers
living in one village. We do non-agricultural activities for a
living such as working for private companies or the government or
running our own businesses. So we go boar hunting for sport and
for recreation. Of course, our hunting is also useful to local
people because it reduces plant-destroying vermin," said Surya
Neldi, 34, of the Minang People's Association of Boar Hunting
Sport in Jakarta (PORBI Jaya).

Neldi was the secretary of the organizing committee of a boar
hunt held on Dec. 13 by PORBI Jaya in a forest area around
Jatiluhur Dam, some eight kilometers from Purwakarta, West Java.

This boar hunting event was participated in by some 300
people. Most of them arrived in private cars, others in chartered
vehicles. "None of them came by public bus because they had to
bring their dogs with them," said Yasril, a participant.

The participants came not only from Jakarta but also from
towns in West Java such as Purwakarta, Subang, Tasikmalaya, Bogor
and Sukabumi. They all took their dogs with them. These dogs,
which are vital in a hunt, chase and render helpless the hunted
boars.

"Without dogs, we'd be just roaming the forest for nothing," a
participant from Jakarta commented. Besides taking dogs, some
participants also took machetes and other weapons with them.

The boar hunting site chosen was Jatiluhur village and Kuta
Manah village, both to the east of Jatiluhur Dam.

"It is cool in these two places. Besides, boars often devour
the local people's plants," said Adi Donar.

Most local people earn a living from farming. At the time of
the hunt, some were harvesting cucumber, cassava or corn. Some of
the locals also hunt boars because it is advantageous to them.

"Hunting boars is advantageous to us. It will reduce the
number of boars as some will be killed during the hunt. Others
will move to other places because in the course of the hunt,
participants shout out loud," said Maman, a youth leader of
Jatiluhur village.

Indeed, you shout out loud when you hunt boars. Boars or other
game will move away because they feel disturb by the noisy
shouting in the Minang language.

When a hunt is in progress, it is very noisy in the forest
because, apart from hunters shouting to alert others of their
presence, the dogs continuously bark. Once set free by their
masters, the dogs run fast in search of hiding boars. They do not
stop until they find some.

"These dogs return to where they were set free," said Heri, a
regular participant.

"A well-trained hunting dog can fetch some Rp 15 million,
while a novice dog can be bought for only Rp 350,000," said Surya
Neldi.

According to him, a well-trained dog is very expensive
because of its sharp sense of smell, it runs fast and only chases
boars. It will never chase other animals and will not disturb
people, he added.

"Understandably, such a dog is very expensive because it takes
a lot of time, money and effort to train it through lots of
hunts," he said, adding that a well-trained dog would be bought a
leash costing between Rp 150,000 and Rp 2 million.

So, you must have a lot of money to go boar hunting. Of
course, you will have to spend some extra money on taking care of
your dog, However, Adi Donar denied that boar hunting was limited
to well-off people.

"No, it's not limited only to rich people. We all have our
businesses to run. So, it is quite natural for us to take up this
sport once or twice a month. We'll be running here and there and
also shouting. You see, walking through the forest is really
refreshing and takes our minds off our routine work," he said.

Many go boar hunting to have some kind of recreation and also
to foster relationships. Donar said that since he actively
started hunting he had developed a robust and healthy body.

"Besides, I can also run long distances," he added.

Other participants will hold up Amir Husin, 74, as a model.
Husin is a pioneer of boar hunting. Despite his age, he is still
in good health and can run well in a forest.

Another advantage of boar hunting is that the participants can
improve their relationships with one another and establish good
relations with local people, who usually welcome the hunts
because they help reduce the threat boars are to their crops.

"This time three boars which used to devour the local people's
plants have been killed. Some local people even contact us if
there are a lot of boars in their area," said Surya Neldi.

In every boar hunt, at least 10 locals are involved. They help
the hunters find the boars' hiding places. A muncak, someone
well-versed in the art of hunting, accompanies them.

"Migrant Minang people must always cooperate with the locals
living in the area where the hunt is carried out," said Neldi.

Boar hunting has its own game rules. "Participants must not
damage or destroy the plants in the hunting ground, either grown
by locals or protected by the government," said Haji Adi Donar,
53. He added that this rule was important to ensure that boar
hunting did not impede environmental conservation.

Donar produced his PORBI Jaya membership card to show that the
every member could read on it government Regulation No. 13/1994
on game hunting, Law No. 5/1967 on basic stipulations on forestry
and Law No. 5/1960 on the conservation of natural resources and
the ecosystem, stipulating, among other things, that nature may
be utilized by hunters.