The Archaeological Remains of Long Mutan, Krayan Tengah
 |
The appearance of the stone archaeological remains in Long Mutan, Krayan Tengah. Photo credit: author.
In his groundbreaking book, Bangsa Indonesia - The Indonesian Nation- (Jakarta, Yayasan Idayu, 1980), Mochtar Lubis notes that the traces of Nusantara’s civilization are not all traceable. This is because not all ethnic groups in the archipelago had a writing culture (on lontar leaves), or carvings (on cave walls or stone surfaces). Even if such traces exist, they don’t always connect into a cohesive narrative; they are fragmented, making reconstruction difficult.
The Archaeological Remains of Long Mutan, Krayan Tengah
However, this is not the case with the people of the Krayan River. Historical records, often referring to the people of Borneo as "Pagan," have labeled the inhabitants of this area as the Kerayan people.
Who are these "people of the Krayan River"?
The answer to this question is likely already provided. A fairly comprehensive narrative can be found in a 320-page book, published by the Dayak Literacy Institute (2022), written by two Dayak authors.
However, the answer that might truly satisfy depends on the “when” or which phase? Are we talking about the people of the Krayan River during the pre-independence period? The post-independence period? The Confrontation Era? The Reform Era? Or the present day?
Krayan is located on the Borneo highlands, at an altitude between 900 and 1,100 meters above sea level. As the social conditions have evolved over time, the people of the Krayan River have also experienced their own changes. During prehistory, up until the 1970s, the people of Krayan were a homogeneous community.
They had a relatively advanced civilization, as evidenced by the discovery of agricultural tools, farming technology, and stone jars found in Long Mutan and Long Padi villages in Krayan Tengah. The ancient graves of the Krayan River ancestors in Tang Payeh indicate that stone culture had been known by their ancestors since ancient times.
The Impact of the Christian Missionary Alliance
Then, in the pre-independence era, came the Christian Missionary Alliance (CMA) mission to Krayan in 1929. By then, five main clans of the Krayan River people were recognized: Lengilo’, Tanah Lun, Nan Ba’, Puneng Krayan or Fe’ Ayan, and Sa’ban. Each clan eventually developed into sub-ethnic groups of Dayak LunDayeh. Over time, they “took control” of their respective customary lands.
In the post-independence period, Krayan's isolation and geographical condition remained largely unchanged compared to today. According to the testimonies of elderly locals, alongside the work of the state, the presence of the missionaries significantly improved the local people's living standards.
Nearly all of the frontier fields in the area were pioneered and serviced by the MAF (Mission Aviation Fellowship) flight service. While it may be uncomfortable to state, this was the reality at the time.
By the time, many local people received education thanks to the efforts and facilities provided by the missionaries. The result was a new generation of teachers and pastors—agents of change in the Krayan region.
During the Confrontation with Malaysia, Krayan became a base for Indonesian troops during the “Ganyang Malaysia” movement called by President Sukarno. On July 27, 1963, Sukarno announced the movement against Malaysia, known as “Ganyang Malaysia.”
This open call for confrontation quickly gained momentum. On May 3, 1964, in a massive rally in Jakarta, President Sukarno announced the Dwi Komando Rakyat (Dwikora). This war cry was supported by Soebandrio, the Indonesian Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister, who was also the leader of the Border Defense Command (Koperdasan).
On December 2, 1963, Soebandrio arrived in Pontianak with a special mission to meet with Azahari and Yap Chung Ho, as well as members of the Sarawak Communist Party (PKS), known as the Advance Youth Association of Kuching, Sarawak.
Following this meeting, Azahari and Yap's group was trained by Indonesia's Central Intelligence Agency (BPI) in Bogor. The Old Order government’s friendly stance towards the Sarawak Guerrilla Forces and the North Kalimantan People's Army (PGRS)/Paraku was part of Indonesia's foreign policy to support Sukarno's vision of a Jakarta-Phnom Penh-Hanoi-Beijing-Pyongyang axis, opposing the West and imperialism.
Krayan's geography and the isolation of its people remained largely unchanged until the Reform Era. During this period, the region saw significant changes, such as the creation of new districts when Bulungan regency was split. RA Bessing, the Bulungan regent, played a key role in opening up new districts like Malinau and Nunukan. As a result, local populations began to take part in governance and local development efforts.
In the present day, Krayan has broken free from centuries of isolation, thanks to the opening of new roads linking the area. The southern loop from Ba' Binuang to Long Layu, Lembudud, and Long Bawan, and the northern loop from Ba' Binuang to Ba Liku, Long Umong, and Long Bawan, have connected the region with Malaysia's eastern territories.
Additionally, roads now link Ba' Binuang, Nunukan, and Malinau, which began to open during President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono’s administration. Although not yet fully paved, the opening of these roads has dramatically changed Krayan's landscape, including its social dynamics due to the influx of development.
Uncovering the Civilizational Traces of the Krayan River People
Given the rapid social changes over time, we can conclude that the answer to the question “Who are the people of the Krayan River?” depends on the social transformations they’ve undergone. This book focuses on the “civilizational traces” of the Krayan River people.
As with all traces, we must investigate the narratives or social realities behind what is visible (artifacts, historical remains, myths, and legends). For instance, the tabau stone artifacts in Long Mutan, Krayan Tengah, may seem like simple, unremarkable stones at first glance. However, by understanding how they were made and their function, we can appreciate the advanced civilization of their creators.
The tabau stone was a tool for determining when to begin agricultural cycles to achieve optimal results. By marking the sun’s direction, the stone acted as a kind of "agricultural technology" that, upon reflection, demonstrates the advanced thinking of our ancestors at that time.
Is this simple tabau technology tacit or explicit knowledge? In our opinion, it is neither! If it were tacit knowledge, it would not be explicitly stated in any medium. It would simply be an unspoken knowledge passed down through generations. On the other hand, it is not explicit knowledge either, because it was not systematically, methodically, or coherently documented according to scientific principles.
This is where the book Jejak Peradaban Manusia Sungai Krayan (The Traces of the Civilization of the Krayan River People) finds its purpose and context. It is an initial discovery that requires further investigation and refinement so that the essence and fuller reality of what we call and categorize as "civilizational traces" can be revealed through a hermeneutic effort. This will help eliminate or minimize the bias between past and present.
Traces serve as clues to build the narrative or social reality behind artifacts. This is what we aim to do. Just as in historical research, interpretation by the writer is unavoidable.
However, it is not arbitrary interpretation, but responsible interpretation. We (Dr. Yansen and Masri Sareb Putra) have reconstructed the social history, conducted surveys at the research site, and held interviews with community leaders, sources, and historical witnesses.
The information we gathered has been carefully filtered, categorized by what makes sense, is valid, and can be substantiated. Thus, the writing of this book resembles a game of Scrabble: assembling scattered letters into words, words into phrases, phrases into sentences, sentences into paragraphs, and so on.
-- Lingu Tawak Lengilo
