Das Branding von „Bali" nach Suharto

Regionale Autonomie, globaler Tourismus und die Juridifizierung des lokalen Kulturerbes

Abstract

In 2001, i.e. the beginning of the recent decentralization process that facilitated Indonesia's transition from a highly centralized patrimonial regime to a liberal democracy with a significant degree of regional autonomy, local economies were suddenly exposed to accelerated deregulation and globalization. As was described by Karl Polanyi for similar processes in 19th and early 20th Century Europe, the regions have reacted to the boosted dis-embedding of their economy by making use of their new legislative authorities in order to re-embed economy into local society. In Bali, a major international tourist destination famous for its cultural attractions, the provincial parliament initiated the juridification of local culture in order to secure privileged access to local natural and cultural resources for the local Hindu-Balinese citizenry. In the event, Balinese political and religious leaders also harnessed the discourse and programs of national and international cultural heritage organizations to authenticate and copyright Balinese sacred traditions. This article argues that all these efforts at juridifying local culture have indeed partially succeeded in re-embedding Bali's tourism-driven economy into local society. However, this re-embedding does not seem to have strengthened traditional values and solidarity systems, as the entrepreneurial spirit has taken over Balinese community life.