Rombong Nurani's Suku Anak Dalam community faces a major dilemma: the forests on which they depend are slowly disappearing, replaced by palm oil and rubber plantations that do not provide life, but also force them to adapt to their limited circumstances-an adaptation that feels like imprisonment.

"There are no more forest products for us, everything has turned into palm oil and rubber. Only the forest is young wood, nothing," said Mr Ceriga, head of RT 14 Sungai Surian, Pulau Lintang Village, Bathin VIII Sub-district, when met at his home.

Ceriga is one of the residents of the Suku Anak Dalam Rombong Nurani community who was appointed as the administrative head of the neighbourhood association in Pulau Lintang Village. That afternoon, Ceriga and the residents of the Suku Anak Dalam community of Pulau Lintang Village were invited to discuss with the media brought by Pundi Sumatra. 

From Ceriga's story, Rombong Nurani is an Anak Dalam tribe originating from the Pelakar area around the Pamenang border. Since 2016, this indigenous community has been resettled by the Ministry of Social Affairs through the Sarolangun District Social Service. However, the provision of houses is considered like a “prison” for them. According to Ceriga, this action is a way to prevent the Suku Anak Dalam from returning to the forest and coming into conflict with companies that own land concessions. 

‘We were given a place to live, no electricity, we were given livestock, but we didn't know how to take care of them, so many died,’ he said.

The same thing was also conveyed by Permai. The Suku Anak Dalam community still has difficulty accessing basic services, education, and population administration that is not yet comprehensive. 

"Finding medicine in the forest is already difficult. If you seek treatment, you are referred to the hospital in Bangko," he explained. Looking further, Suku Anak Dalam has been forced to adapt to social storms. If they continue to live without empowerment, this community will be increasingly excluded and marginalised from the surrounding environment and changes.... 

Pundi Sumatra together with IFAD (International Fund for Agricultural Development) provided assistance to Suku Anak Dalam in three locations in Bathin VIII District, Sarolangun Regency. Although focusing on efforts to encourage food security for the community, empowerment activities also focus on efforts to strengthen the independence of the Suku Anak Dalam community through its local institutions.

One intervention was to encourage the active involvement of the youth of this indigenous community through the Youth Movement Group (GPAD) formed by the youth of Rombong Nurani. GPAD was formed as a guardian to prevent deviant associations, maintain ethics between youth, and increase the principle of gotong royong while maintaining the local wisdom of the Anak Dalam Tribe. 

Antoni, appointed as the group leader, said that the formation of GPAD was driven by parents' desire for their children not to forget the customs and culture of Suku Anak Dalam in the midst of changing times. 

‘We want to help younger siblings who haven't gone to school to learn too,’ said the teenager who is currently studying at the end of his vocational high school (SMK). 

Antoni, known as Toni, also shared that they disagree with the practice of early marriage, which is often experienced by women in their community. "Marrying young has many obstacles. Their minds are immature and they each have a long journey ahead of them," said Toni. 

Anton also recounted various customs and taboos passed down from the family. According to him, this will prevent juvenile delinquency and bad deeds that may occur in the group. 

Based on Pundi Sumatra's baseline data, there are about ten children who attend school in the Rombong Nurani community. Three of them are already in vocational school, and the rest are still in elementary school. The small number of children attending school is influenced by the economic level of their parents. Unfortunately, these children are often forced to study in the dark. Ceriga said that they have been living without electricity for more than ten years. 

‘Some bought solar panels, but it's the same as using a generator and it can only run for a short time,’ he said. The limited access to electricity does not dampen the children's enthusiasm for learning. Pundi Sumatra facilitators together with GPAD participate in learning activities to help catch up with the children in learning.

With GPAD having several divisions, such as the Youth and Community Empowerment Division, Sports Division, and Arts and Culture Division, this community shows that they are not passive in the face of change, but proactive in creating a space for the preservation of their ancestors' local knowledge. The formation of this movement is expected to erase the bad stigma that exists in the outside community about Suku Anak Dalam who are known to have forgotten their customs or are considered dangerous because they are carried away by excessive modernisation. 

Pundi Sumatra facilitator Prayoga Aidil explained that GPAD will be an internal driver to accelerate the process of Suku Anak Dalam's independence, especially building cederisation at the teenage level.

‘The IPAF Cycle 6 project, which is only 3 years, is certainly short, so mobilising youth groups as agents of change is important to help Pundi Sumatra's mentoring programme,’ he said. Furthermore, it is planned that the GPAD group institution will be legalised by the village government. 

This collaboration needs to be intensified to ensure that SAD communities are not just spectators of the changes happening around them, but can be the main actors in determining their own future.