I didn’t have to think long when The Nature Conservancy, a global environmental organisation headquartered in Virginia, invited me to document the opening of the fishing season in Misool in Raja Ampat. Famous for its diverse cultures and customs, natural beauty and magnificent marine life, the waters around Misool Island hold 75% of all known species of corals and ornamental fish in the world, while the region boasts the highest level of marine biodiversity on the planet. As I set foot on this special island, I see hundreds of limestone islands rise up from turquoise waters around me, while a colourful bird of paradise soars through the thick rainforest high above. The island is heavily carpeted by thick, green dense forests and mangrove swamps. Amidst this lush greenery, I’m about to meet the Indigenous people of Kapatcol, a small fishing village in the West Misool District. I’ve been told that they will soon conduct a Sasi Laut ceremony, a longstanding cultural practice that is known to promote sustainable fishing practices and helps to keep the local marine life in balance. The practice is not an unimportant one in a country where monitoring and enforcement by the government is largely lacking.

Sasi Laut describes a traditional ceremony, performed by the local communities, and either held at the beginning or at the end of the sea harvest season to guarantee abundant fishing returns for the local communities. At its heart stands a sustainable fishing area management practice that ensures that fishing grounds are not overfished. Outside of the harvest season the specified area gets closed, allowing fish stocks to recover until the next fishing period begins. The term ‘Sasi’ comes from the local community’s native language and translates as ‘oath’, and ‘Laut’ means ‘sea’. The Sasi Laut tradition gets passed down from generation to generation and has been around for centuries.

As 85% of Raja Ampat is covered by ocean, most locals here work as fishermen. The philosophy behind the Sasi Laut is to respect and ask for permission from the creator to take his creations from the sea for sustenance. For them, the Sasi ceremony is a sacred ceremony, and everyone must obey its rules to maintain its sanctity. Sasi Laut provides significant benefits to the preservation of marine life in Raja Ampat because the chosen fishing grounds are usually areas that produce high priced marine products, such as lobsters and sea cucumbers.

After being closed for fishing for an entire year, the specified Sasi area was soon to be opened so I travelled to the region to document the opening ceremony. While Sasi is a tradition that exists among most Indigenous communities in Papua and other regions of eastern Indonesia, the ceremony especially stands out in Kapatcol as it is held by the first women’s Sasi group in Papua. Traditionally managed by men, women are at the helm of operations in Kapatcol and their ownership rights are fully recognised by the village government, church, and customary holders.