Wildlife, rich culture lure tourists to Ndana Island

By Yacob Herin

NDANA ISLAND, East Nusa Tenggara (JP): Deer, turtles, bats, pigeons, and pelicans are the main inhabitants of this island, south of Rote in the Kupang regency.

Caves home to legions of bats are also found on this island -- adorned, as one might expect, by visitors' graffiti.

Legends also abound. Locals will tell you about the single golden turtle on the island but don't expect to spot it. It appeared most often during the war between Rote and Ndana in the 16th century.

The war, which started out as revenge for the killing of a tribal leader, left most of the inhabitants of Ndana dead.

Many of their bodies, locals say, were dumped in a lake which to this day is blood red in color.

Rocks in the caves make a natural fortress for the Ndana people. Inside the fortress, slabs of rock are neatly piled up in a semblance of tables and chairs.

The beach and waters invite swimmers, divers and surfers and turtles lay eggs in the white sand when the moon is full.

Mosat interesting to visitors are the island's thousands of deer. Locals say only one is white-skinned, and it may not be killed.

The belief here is that these deer were first brought to Ndana as a dowry from a prince in the 18th century. Before Solo Besi, a princess of the Kona tribe, was allowed to marry the son of King Termanu, Mudak Amalo, her father, Besi Pah, asked for a dowry of five deer. This was granted, and these were the first deer on Ndana.

Wildlife here is protected by the local customs, supervised by descendants of King Thie.

This customary law was first enforced in 1908. An agreement reached by locals of the Kona tribe as represented by their village heads handed over Ndana Island to the family of Yonas Nikolas Messakh, who were descendants of King Thie of the Kona tribe, who ruled from 1882 to 1908.

In the agreement dated April 12, 1908, it was stated that the island would be handed over to the king. It prohibited anybody from living on the island, which has helped preserve wild life.

Everyone wishing to visit Ndana island is asked their objective. If, for example, you want to shoot deer, you are told that only one bullet may be used. If you fail to hit a deer with that one shot, you must leave the island. Otherwise, the visitor is told, something unfavorable may happen.

If you succeed in shooting a deer, you must also leave the island at once. If you insist on shooting another deer, or try to catch fish or birds, then, you are told, you are on your own.

On the island there is a spring called De Anafeto, meaning the water of the princess. Locals believe that if an infertile woman drinks from the spring, she will soon become pregnant.

To reach the island you must first get to the Oeseli coast, Boa (Namberala) on Rote island. A ferry from Kupang takes a few hours to reach there. From there you can proceed on a fishing boat to Ndana island, which takes another hour or two.