Menjadi Makeang: Studi Tentang Reproduksi Identitas Kelompok di Pulau Ternate

ARLINAH, Prof.Dr.Heddy Shri Ahimsa-Putra, M.A., M.Phil; Dr. Pujo Semedi Hargo Yuwono, M.A.

2018 | Disertasi | S3 Antropologi

Studi ini berfokus pada kelompok orang Makeang di Pulau Ternate yang diwacanakan dominan di bidang pendidikan dan birokrasi pemerintahan. Realitas tersebut menyisakan pertanyaan penelitian yakni mengapa orang Makeang lebih memilih memantapkan identitas kelompoknya melalui reproduksi di bidang pemerintahan dan pendidikan? Padahal mereka memiliki elemen budaya yang memungkinkan untuk dimanfaatkan bagi penguatan identitas kelompok, misalnya ranah kesenian yang lebih minim konflik politis dan sosial daripada ranah birokrasi pemerintahan. Penelitian ini menggunakan metode kualitatif deskriptif berbentuk etnografi historis. Data dianalisis dengan mengkonstruksi narasi tentang asal-usul identitas kelompok Makeang, menguraian ekspresi identitas dan cara-cara orang Makeang melakukan reproduksi identitas tersebut dalam konteks sosial Ternate. Data yang dikumpulkan berupa kisah asal-usul, arsip, pernyataan-pernyataan informan, deskripsi tentang peristiwa konflik, tindakan pengorganisasian-diri, serta perbincangan di media sosial facebook. Proses reproduksi identitas keMakeangan di Pulau Ternate memperlihatkan perbedaan pandangan tentang apa yang disebut sebagai Makeang. Identitas keMakeangan setidaknya dapat dilihat melalui tiga sudut pandang yakni keMakeangan menurut orang Makeang di Pulau Makeang, menurut orang Makeang di luar Pulau Makeang, dan menurut orang di Pulau Ternate. Perbedaan ketiga pandangan disebabkan adanya perpindahan pemukiman, perubahan struktur pemerintahan, konflik dalam relasi sosial dengan kelompok bukan Makeang, dan kepentingan-kepentingan politis dari elit Makeang. Ciri-ciri kelompok Makeang terlihat lebih ketat dan bervariasi dalam pandangan orang Makeang di Pulau Makeang, sementara ciri keMakeangan terlihat lebih longgar dalam pandangan orang Makeang yang berada di luar Pulau Makeang dan juga dalam pandangan orang di Pulau Ternate. Ada tiga faktor yang mendorong reproduksi identitas keMakeangan hanya terjadi di ranah pendidikan dan birokrasi. Pertama, orang Makeang tidak memiliki basis kewilayahan yang kuat. Kedua, struktur sosial di kalangan orang Makeang cenderung longgar dan kedudukannya bersifat sejajar satu dengan lainnya. Ketiga, gagasan dan nilai-nilai budaya kolektif yang terbangun di kalangan orang Makeang tentang diri dan kelompoknya cenderung tidak homogen. Dalam rangka menegaskan kembali wacana dominasi orang Makeang yang telah meredup maka mereka melakukan berbagai strategi reproduksi identitas kelompok Proses yang sementara berlangsung ini diperkirakan akan memberikan dampak yang baik pada upaya reproduksi orang Makeang di Pulau Ternate untuk menjadi sebuah kelompok sosial yang baru.

This study's main focus is a group of Makeang people living in the island of Ternate who has been aiming to be the leading community in education and governmental bureaucracy. This particular expectation brings about the research question the researcher addresses to in this dissertation, that is, why the Makeang prefers to establish their identity by reproducing it within governmental and educational settings while they have rich cultural elements that may well potentially reinforce their groups identity and cause less political and social conflicts than bureaucratic affairs do? The research applied a descriptive-qualitative method of historical ethnography. The analysis was carried out through the construction of a narration regarding the origin of the Makeang's identity as an ethnic group in which the Makaeng's expressions of identity and strategies of identity reproduction as part of Ternate society are described. The collected data include stories of the Makaeng origin, the relevant archives, informants statements, records containing the descriptions of social conflicts in which the Makeang have involved, self-organizing actions, and the related conversations on Facebook. The process of Makeang identity reproduction in Ternate suggests differences in how Makeang sense of identity is construed. Makeang sense of identity is viewed in at least three standpoints, namely the standpoint of Makeang people in Makeang island, the standpoint of Makeang people living outside Makeang island and the standpoint of the people living in Ternate. The perspective divergence among the three standpoints is a result of resettlements, changes in the regional governmental structure, conflicts in the social relations between Makeang people and non-Makeang people, and also conflicting political interests among the Makeang elites. The required characteristics to be identified as a Makeang according to Makeang people living in Makeang island seem more diverse and more binding. By way of comparison, Makeang identity is characterized more loosely by Makeang people who dont live in Makeang island and the people living in Ternate island. It has been found that there are three reasons that motivate the reproduction of Makeang identity which is confined to bureaucratic and educational contexts. First, the Makeang doesnt have a well-defined territorial basis. Second, Makeang community shows the characteristics of an open and egalitarian society. Third, the perspectives and the collective cultural values concerning their cultural identity and their group tend to be not homogenous among the members of the group. In their attempt to reestablish their social prominence that has been waning, Makeang people adopt a number of strategies of reproducing their collective identity. The process of identity reproduction they have been undertaking so far is expected to give positive impact on the Makeangs situations in their endeavor to reaffirm their social position in Ternate and thrive as a renewed social group.

Kata Kunci : Orang Makeang, Reproduksi Identitas, Pulau Ternate.