The Strategy of Moslem Industrialists in Developing Local Economy in Sleman District of
Yogyakarta Special Region¹

A. Introduction
1. The Context and Relevance of the Study
The socio-political dynamism of rural communities, following reform era, is increasingly heading to rural social transformation. Here, the major focus of village movement and transformation is to strengthen the self-reliance capacity of villagers, both in term of sustainable economy and politics. Disparity on one of its poles will result in the unhealthiness of empowerment efforts that are being pioneered. Rural communities’ political maturity that has been apparently identified recently, surely will not be in secured when on the other hand their economic situation is in worrying point that can undermine their idealism at any time.

Such being in the case, it seems that a rural transformation needs synergy among many actors, be the state, market capital and society, in political transformation processes (decentralization and democratization) as well as economic ones (development and industrialization). The taking-side state, market being sensitive over communities’ issues and villagers that are creative and rife with initiatives in spurring their entrepreneurial activities will generate healthy economic-political dynamisms heading to in-justice social transformation.

So far, economic-political transformation has only been dominated by state and market (capital), meanwhile the communities are being marginalized. The communities in many instances denote the exploitation object of the state and market. Industrialization promoted by state and market often drives communities being alienated in their own surroundings. The natural resources potencies of rural communities are frequently exploited through access and management dominated by state and market. Even there occasionally surfaces tensions and clashes between industrialization organized by state and market and local communities. These clashes incline to result in suffer of losses for industrializa¬tion built up by the villagers, be in term of assets and access to markets affecting the decrease of turnover and incomes.

When Indonesia was being hit by monetary crisis, there were many lessons learned taken in term of industrial dynamism. There were many large indus-tries run by market (giant investors) and supported very much by the state could not survive and fell into bankruptcy. While small industries, like home industries operated by villagers could survive and finesse to encounter the crisis. There were as a matter of fact several business ventures, which suffered the decrease of their turnovers, nevertheless the calamity also brought many boons many being tickled pink for sudden and steep rise in turnovers.

Some¬thing that deserves appreciation over rural small business practitioners is that amid capital and equipments constraints they can survive from market stagnant instead. Apparently, it shows that small industries’ survival capability can be traded on better than the large scale industries boosted by market having been spoiled by state and banking industries in Indonesia all this time.

This study seeks to elaborate dialectics between state and market in connection with Moslem entrepreneurs’ strategy in boosting the growth of house-hold economy in Sleman district of Yogyakarta special region. Here, the term “moslem entrepreneur” refers to two things, viz. religion identity and business practice underlying Islamic values.² The major research questions of this study are: How do these Moslem entrepreneurs overcome state’s policy and market institution inclining to not take side to rural industry practitioners? What kind of strategy or method do they apply to access state’s policy and market institu¬tion in operating their ventures? Whatever boundaries and problems are they facing? Whatever have they achieved so far?

¹ Apaper presetend in Seventh Annual Conference on Islamic Studies in Indonesia (ACILS) in Pekan Baru Riau, 21-24 November 2007, heald by Religius Affairs of Indonesian Republic

² See: Robert W Hefner, Islam, Pasar, Keadilan: artikulasi local, kapitalisme dan    demokrasi, LKiS, Yogyakarta, 2000, page: 42. Please compare with Atilla Yayla (ed.), Islam, Masyarakat Sipil, dan Ekonomi Pasar, Frie¬drich Nauman Stiftung, Jakarta, 2004, and also Taufik Abdullah (ed.), Agama, Etos kerja dan Perkembangan Ekonomi, Jakarta:LP3ES, 1993, Pages: 18-30.

Abdurrozaki

 

 

Untuk medapatkan paper lengkap silahkan mendownload