Local Leadership and Social Cohesion at Malaysia-Indonesia Border

Abstract

Before establishing the concept of modern state, border communities have a common identity and culture -based social melieu they inherited. However, after the establishment of borders, collective identity has been divided into a number of national identity in relation to their respective nationalities. For communities in the border, political identity is the identity that is based on different political orientation. Thus, how the community at the frontiers of politically integrated into the national development? What political structure and power relations that bind social cohesion remote communities diperbatasan with national politic? To answer these questions, this study examines the local leadership and power relations in border communities and their role in bringing local communities in developing countries. Source data is through interviews with informants and survey at three locations namely Lubuk Antu, Kg. Mongkos and Teluk Melano is a village on the border of Sarawak (Malaysia) and West Kalimantan (Malaysia).