Who are the Duri?

The Duri people (also called Massenrempulu) live in Enrekang Regency, a mountainous area with a cool climate in the middle of the province of South Sulawesi, adjacent to Tanah Toraja (region of the Toraja people). The Duri area consists of 17 villages in the districts of Baraka, Alla, and Anggeraja. This area is close to a major road that is passable by automobiles.

A small number of Duri people live in the very high mountains. The majority of them live in rural areas. Some Duri, primarily men, have migrated to other areas. This is typically known as perantau (going to other areas to seek success). They converse in the Duri language, which has Cakke and Kalosi dialects.

What are their lives like?

A large part of the Duri people live by farming, tending orchards, raising livestock, and making handicrafts. Their main crops consist of red onions, coffee, rice, and various kinds of vegetables. The Duri also make traditional cheese, known as dangke. Cow or water buffalo milk is combined with fruit concentrate or papaya leaves and then poured into a small coconut shell. The resulting cheese is sold in the traditional market, packaged in a banana leaf. The traditional market is held in specific locations once or twice a week.

The Duri people possess a family oriented attitude and practice gotong royong (mutual help and cooperation). In the past, they distinguished layers in society, known as the nobility, the commoners, and slaves. Nowadays, that difference is no longer seen.

In current Duri society, social status is more determined by level of education and/or wealth. Wealth is measured in terms of ownership of water buffalo, land, gold and a nice house. Generally, those who are educated move to the city.

In their attitude toward education, the Duri are open-minded. They are also open to things that can raise their standard of living. The Indonesian language is taught in their schools. Among the Duri, adults and children both like to read, but only a very few books are available in their language.

What do they believe?

Almost all Duri people are Muslims. Only a small number still maintain animistic beliefs (which are called Alu’Tojolo). In Baraka, animists hold regular meetings once or twice monthly.

What are their needs?

The Duri reap various crops, but these are not very profitable for their economy. They need transportation infrastructure for expediting the distribution of crops that are to be sold. At this moment around 60% of villages do not possess sufficient transportation infrastructure. The result is that the distribution of their goods becomes expensive and time consuming.

Investment capital would also help their agricultural efforts. Agricultural training is needed for farming soil that is not fertile. The sale of Dangke cheese could be expanded through industrial processing and more attractive packaging. In addition, health and nutrition for children needs attention as well. Because of their interest in reading, literature in the Duri language needs to be made available.