THE EXISTENCE OF NAGARI IN WEST SUMATRA ON STATE POLICY HEGEMONY

Abstract

The Minangkabau community in West Sumatra employs a social system referred to as nagari. The term nagari should be defined to describe an administrative body that serves the lowest level of government bureaucratic duties in West Sumatra. The Dutch East Indies attempted to colonize Nagari, and as a result, the system of government encountered a number of transformations.  The nagari faced different attitudes in each government regime during the independence era, which was similar to what occurred then. This research investigates Nagari’s dynamics and existence in state legal systems. This paper juxtaposes the official postures of different governments concerning the existence of Nagari. It is noteworthy that Nagari not only has at the grassroots level of governance but also functions as an institutionalization of the significance of interpersonal connections within the Minangkabau social order. This research utilizes an applied socio-legal methodology to examine the configuration of state law and its consequences for Nagari as a legal subject. The research findings indicate that Nagari, which represents the institutionalization of the Minangkabau social order, has undergone bureaucratization and instrumentalization since the colonial period. The bureaucratization of the Nagari has left a major trauma for Minangkabau political authority which is reflected in the structure and organization of the Nagari. The understanding of Nagari within the Minangkabau community has been impacted by the influence and dominance of governmental policies, resulting in challenges for rapid progress in reconstruction endeavors. The state must reduce domination and hegemony over the nagari in the process of establishing regulations governing the nagari.