Abstrack:
This paper explores how the project of modernity in Mentawai has been creating the relation of suspicions not only between indigenous community and the encounters due to their social, cultural and religious differences, but also between members of each community. Focusing on young generation of Mentawai who fully adopts the ?new values? brought by encounters (Minangkabau) in order to reach their perception of modernity, this paper shows that the process of being modern means embracing the new identity; Minangkabau. The research started with literature review to see the ?norms? of social, cultural and religious contestation and followed by field study mainly in Muara Siberut Region held in September 26th to August 3rd 2012 to observe the ?practices? of such contestation in the everyday-life politic context. Decentralization or regional autonomy policy in 1998 creates political opportunity for local people to struggle for their own identity and most of all, for their own prosperity. Unfortunately for Mentawai, regional autonomy hasn?t change anything. This paper assesses contentious politics (Tilly 2004; Tarrow 2008) of Mentawai people and presents alternative set of actions taken by younger generation of local indigenes. It describes the classic agenda of contentious politics; social change, opportunity structures, organizational bases, framing and repertoires. This paper concludes that politics of contention has taken place in various dimensions with various repertoires, mostly in each community itself rather than between local people and encounters. At the same time, it reports that the contention for younger generation means, contradictory to their predecessors, ?development? and ?modernity? from the mainstream point of view. Thus contentious politics, rather than between ?we? and ?them?, has taken place in themselves; an intra-contentious one.
Full Text: