Indonesian coastal residents stand firm while Java Sea swallows up their village
2024.04.26
Karawang, Indonesia
About 200 people remain in Cemarajaya, a village in West Java province where sea waters have eroded the coastline, destroyed homes and livelihoods, and forced more than 1,000 of their neighbors to flee during the past two decades.
Throughout this village in Karawang regency, residents have filled sandbags and created small embankments in an effort to hold back the Java Sea from overflowing and flooding their rickety houses, as it has eaten away thousands of acres over the years.
The coastline has receded by about 2 km (1.2 miles) since 2016, residents said. One nearby village has submerged completely.
On Wednesday, residents who have refused to leave showed a BenarNews reporter what used to be a wide beach.
Over time the sea has eroded it, leaving only Cemarajaya village, resident Ahmad Ramli said.
“Land that was previously used for agriculture over time turned into fish ponds and mangrove forests, now some of it is submerged,” Ramli told BenarNews. “The residents here used to be farmers, now they are fishermen.”
Ramli said he would most likely move in the future and follow scores of neighbors who have already left.
“The government has provided a replacement location and house for them several kilometers from here, but I haven’t gotten it yet,” Ramli said.