Panglima Laot and the Fourth Precept of Pancasila: Traditional Ocean Governance in Aceh

• Pages: 14-29

LEX PORTUS VOL 11 ISS 1 2025

ISSN 2524-101X

eISSN 2617-541X

DOI 10.62821/lp11102

Panglima Laot and the Fourth Precept of

Pancasila: Traditional Ocean Governance in Aceh

Muhammad Insan Tarigan*, Heru Saputra Lumban Gaol**

*Assistant Professor, Faculty of Law, University of Surabaya (Jl. Kali Rungkut, Surabaya 60293, Indonesia), a Doctorate Fellow, Faculty of Law,

Universitas Gadjah Mada (Jl. Sosio Yustisia No. 1, D.I. Yogyakarta 55281, Indonesia) https://orcid.org/0009-0000-0222-1497

**Assistant Professor, Faculty of Law University of Surabaya (Jl. Kali Rungkut, Surabaya 60293, Indonesia) https://orcid.org/0009-0004-0132-3247

ABSTRACT

The marine environment is facing numerous challenges that threaten the sustainability

of marine resources. These challenges include overexploitation, irresponsible exploitation,

and ineective governance under national laws. In response, various approaches have been

taken to attempt to protect the marine environment, including traditional methods. One local

tradition that is recognized as eective in managing the environment and coastal resources is

the Panglima Laot institution in Aceh. The continued existence of the Panglima Laot plays a role

in regulating all matters relating to coastal and marine areas through Adat (customary) Laot

Law, which remains in eect to this day. Therefore, the objective of this research is to explore the

relevance of the Panglima Laot to the values of Pancasila. This research was conducted using

a normative-juridical method, employing descriptive analysis. This research concludes that in the

understanding and implementation of local wisdom, the presence of Panglima Laot is intimately

connected to the values of Pancasila, especially the fourth principle. In the contemporary era,

the role of the Panglima Laot is becoming increasingly essential to the advancement of ocean

governance at both the national and global levels.

CITATION

Tarigan, M. I., & Lumban Gaol H. S.

(2025). Panglima Laot and the

Fourth Precept of Pancasila:

Traditional Ocean Governance

in Aceh. Lex Portus, 11(1), 20–35.

https://doi.org/10.62821/lp11102

KEYWORDS

Panglima Laot, Pancasila, ocean

governance, Adat, marine

environment, sustainability, marine

resources, coastal and marine areas,

Indonesia

The journal is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-

NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License

Introduction

It is self-evident that coastal areas and their resources have certain carrying capacities

and limits. Therefore, it is incumbent upon those responsible for the management of

coastal resources to utilize them in a manner that ensures the long-term viability of these

resources. This entails extracting a proportion of the resources without compromising the

capacity of these resources to reproduce and renew themselves. In the case of the area, the

natural formation and condition of the area cannot be converted to other purposes without

maintaining a minimum area, space, or amount of resources in pristine condition to maintain

the sustainability and balance of the coastal ecosystem (Nikijuluw, 2017). In other words,

although the utilization of coastal areas and resources is of great importance to Indonesia, at

the same time conservation management must also be carried out.

Indonesia possesses a vast array of marine resources, encompassing biological, mineral,

energy, maritime industry and services, marine transportation, and environmental

services, as well as cultural potential. The eective management of these resources is,

however, hindered by a multitude of issues, including community poverty, space utilization

conicts, environmental degradation, global climate change, and unsustainable resource

management (Akbar & Nurpita, 2019). Indeed, the Decree of the Minister of Marine Aairs

and Fisheries Republic of Indonesia Number 45 of 2014 explicitly states that Indonesia is the

largest archipelago in the world and has the potential for abundant sh resources, which may

21LEX PORTUS VOL 11 ISS 1 2025

be considered a capital for national economic development. Fisheries development, in this

context, may be considered an essential component of national economic development, with

the aim of improving the living standards and welfare of shermen and sh farmers (Hastuti et

al., 2023).

The long-term sustainability of the marine and coastal environment continues to

be threatened by various adverse eects resulting from human activities and natural

phenomena. A range of problems are evident in the development of coastal and marine

areas in Indonesia, including pollution, habitat degradation, excessive exploitation of natural

resources, coastal erosion, conversion of protected areas into other developments, and natural

disasters( Tjiptabudy et al., 2016). This evidence suggests that the governance of marine and

coastal areas controlled by the state is inadequate to ensure the sustainable management

of the marine environment. Consequently, there is a growing recognition that communities

should be actively engaged in the conservation of marine and coastal ecosystems. The term

“inclusive governance” has been coined to describe a form of community involvement in

conservation actions (Kementerian Kelautan dan Perikanan, 2020).

Nevertheless, research conducted by Rahayu et al. indicates that the growth of

community-based management (CBM) in Indonesia remains constrained by the role of

the local government as the sole catalyst. Additionally, the research reveals several factors

that may impede the advancement of CBM, namely the lack of infrastructure support, low

community participation in developing CBM, and the absence of optimally established

partnerships (Rahayu et al., 2017). In fact, several coastal resource management practices

through the CBM approach exist in Indonesia, both those that are well developed and those

that are still in the pioneering stage. As a maritime country, Indonesia has a long history and

diverse maritime cultural heritage. This diversity is a unique wealth for the Indonesian nation.

One of the unique aspects of Indonesia’s vast maritime cultural heritage is the customary

institution of PanglimaLaot (Utama et al., 2020).

Panglima Laot is a customary institution within the shing community in Aceh that

regulates and leads shing activities. The Panglima Laot is located in the area where the

shermen live and the shing community is based. All shing activities are led by a Panglima

Laot (Zahrina, 2014). The Panglima Laot is a maritime cultural heritage of the Kingdom of

Aceh, which is based on Aceh Qanun No. 10/2008 on Adat Institutions. The existence of the

Panglima Laot has become a local wisdom (Mujiburrahman et al., 2021), a manifestation of

the characteristics of traditional adat law where the values and heritage of ancestors are still

respected and maintained for generations.

In practical terms, the Panglima Laot plays a signicant role in the regulation and

maintenance of environmental conservation and adat laws related to the sea in Aceh. These

are accomplished through the implementation of established measures and regulations. For

centuries, the Panglima Laot has played a vital role in the conservation of marine ecosystems,

particularly coral reefs in the waters of Aceh. This is an integral aspect of the Panglima Laot

tradition, which continues to inuence the community to preserve Aceh’s seas (Susetyo et al.,

2023). This has attracted academics and researchers to undertake further study of Panglima

Laot from a variety of perspectives.

A considerable number of studies have been conducted on the practice of Panglima Laot.

For instance, Mujiburrahman et al. conducted research on the subject entitled “Panglima

Laot: Maritime Cultural Heritage and Sustainability of the Coastal Environment in Aceh.” The

research ndings indicate that panglima laot has a social system that prioritizes environmental

sustainability. This system is able to limit human behavior in exploring coastal and marine

natural resources (Mujiburrahman et al., 2021). Furthermore, Heru Susetyo et al. conducted