The Bambam area suffered further hardships from 1950 through 1965 - a time of raids and rebellion. A group of fanatical Muslim rebels took over the town of Mambi and began forcing people in other villages to convert to Islam. In response, the people of Bambam formed the Peoples' Defense Organization (Organisasi Pertahanan Rakyat). With assistance from the nationalist Battalion 710, the OPR attacked Mambi and drove the rebels back to the coast near Mamuju. After this, the 710 Battalion began abusing the people of the Bambam area, so the OPR forced the 710 to retreat. The OPR cut off all trails into the area, and continued to guard it until civil order was restored in 1964.

Where are they located?
The majority of the Bambam people reside in the Mamasa regency in the highlands of West Sulawesi province of Indonesia. Villages are scattered throughout the watersheds of the Salu Mambi, Salu Dengen and Salu Mokanam rivers. It is a very mountainous region, with peaks reaching heights of up to 3000 meters.

Home and family are top priority to most Bambam people. The nuclear family consists of parents and unmarried children, but often a household includes elderly parents or newly married children. On the surface, relationships appear to be very harmonious. Anger is rarely expressed. Conforming, keeping the peace, and maintaining the status quo are cultural values. The people are generally very cooperative and sociable, which goes hand in hand with their way of working together. Whether it is preparing fields, planting, weeding, harvesting, repairing paths or building a house, people like to work with companions. Sometimes wages are paid, but often it is a matter of helping someone in return for their help at another time. The rice growing cycle is central to the Bambam lifestyle. Daily activities and planning are based on the cycle of repairing paddies, planting, weeding and harvesting. Feasts and ceremonies are also tied into this cycle. Tasks are clearly defined by gender.

While the rice growing cycle is central to the Bambam lifestyle, in recent years the economy has been most affected by the coffee and cacao crops. These provide the needed cash for purchasing goods brought in from outside.

There are three religious groups among the Bambam: the Christians (Protestant and Catholic), the Moslems, and the Mappuhondo (animists). The traditional beliefs of the Mappuhondo affect the beliefs of those who call themselves Christian or Moslem.

Traditionally, one finds favor with the gods by having penaba sambulo-bulo "straight breath". This is being good, which means caring for others, not lying, doing what one says they will do. The gods will not like it if you seek to destroy the plans of others. You need to look out for the good of others.

"Tometampa" the creator god made man, animals, plants, everything which is in the world. He is the creator god, but is not consider the boss of the gods. Each of the gods controls their domain (river, hill, village, type of work or task, etc). The Christians believe in the creator God and that He is in charge of all things.

When a Bambam person dies he goes sau' anitu "downriver to the ghost place" which is the place of the dead. People are not sure where that place is, "maybe at the edge of the world". The river is crossed (salu sidilambam), and they cannot go across if they have no water buffalo to pull across carrying all their belongings. That is why the family must butcher at least one water buffalo for their funeral.
Christians still butcher buffalos for funerals, but they say they do this because they'd be ashamed if they did not.

Most Bugis make their living by hunting, fishing, farming, raising livestock or making handicrafts. Typically, the Bugis who live in the mountain ranges gain their livelihood by working the soil, while those living in the coastal areas generally work as fishermen. The Bugis traditional dress is called Wajo Ponco, which is believed to have originated from Melayu (Malay) dress. Currently, the dress is only used for traditional ceremonies and dances. The Bugis believe very strongly that certain days are good days, with good fortune for events and activities held on the first Wednesday and last Thursday of each month. Conversely, they consider Saturday to be a bad day, with misfortune more likely to happen on this day. In Bugis tradition there are different levels of social status that are based upon one's ancestors. These different levels include descendants of a king, descendants of nobles (La Patau), descendants of district administrators (Aru Lili) and descendants of various kinds of slaves. Two of the most important cultural values for the Bugis people are called siri (personal honor) and siri-pesse (communal honor). A Bugis person must defend, maintain, and build one's own siri. The effort to obtain and maintain siri varies according to the context. For instance, in an economic context, siri means working hard and being faithful. In a personal context, if a person's siri is offended serious forms of revenge will be considered. Islam reinforced the traditional Bugis concept of siri in such a way that today the typical Bugis person sees siri as the key to his or her self-identity as a Bugis Muslim. The Bugis line of descent is bilateral (traced through both parents). After marriage the newlyweds may choose to live near either the husband's or wife's family, although initially, they live at least briefly near the wife's family.
The Bugis people are famous for their fervent adherence to Sunni Islam.

Many Mandar live by farming rice fields or orchards while some work as fishermen. In the Sendana and Malunda areas, their produce includes copra and cocoa. The rice fields of Polmas are irrigated, while other regencies still use the traditional means of depending on rainfall. As a society that used to be an independent kingdom, the Mandar people recognize three social classes. The high class consists of the nobility (Todiang Laiyana), the middle class is the commoners (Tau Maradika), and the lowest class is the slave class (Batua). The nobility are referred to as Daeng for the "royal class" and Puang for the "proper class".The history of the development of the Mandar family system has been marked by several periods. First was the Tomakala period, which was during the time when there was no regular government and no law. Second was the the transition period (Pappuangang), when the social relationship system began to form. Third was the Arajang period, which had systematized structures, regulations, and values. Arajang guidelines are still influential but they have been fused with Islamic and modern structures. Currently, the king does not rule by hereditary right, but is chosen by the traditional leaders (hadat). In the Mandar tradition, if the headdress of community leaders is worn angling to the left, it is a call for the king to reconsider his leadership and policies. If all the elders come and walk in front of the palace while wearing their headdress angling to the left and also carrying spears and keris (sacred knives), this is sign for the king to step down from his throne voluntarily. If the king does not step down voluntarily, then they will try to depose him with force (even to the point of killing him). If they are not able to accomplish this by force, then many of them will leave their villages. In the Mandar viewpoint, a king is regarded as a bad king if the people leave in this manner.
The Mandar people are Muslims.

The Pannei make their living in various ways. They work as farmers, fishermen, craftsmen, traders/merchants, and government officials. The craftsmen usually are known as tukang or panre. The term tukang is used for the group of society that work as carpenters or stonemasons. The term, panre, is used for those that are homebuilders (panre bola), gold and silver crafters (panre ulaweng), and blacksmiths (panre besi). They also use specific terms to describe clothing tailors (pa'jai), cloth weavers (pa'tennung) and those who manufacture iron (pa'lanro).Other jobs include government positions and the military. Government officials are known as pajama kantoro (office officials), which also includes teachers. Those in the military usually are known as surodadu (soldier).In the past guerilla-fighters were called pa'barani (courageous person). These warriors served the Bugis kingdom against other kingdoms initially, and later fought against the Dutch colonialists. The pa'barani were reputed to always be eager to fight; engaging in conflict or war without regard for personal safety, for the glory of the king and kingdom.
Almost all Pannei people are followers of Islam.

According to a survey done by a translation team in 1987, there are approximately 4000 Sarudu people. In the Sarudu subdistrict, which is the center of the Sarudu area, there are 11 villages and the population is mostly Sarudu. In addition, many Bugis people live in the Sarudu area, and there are also people from several Kaili dialects that live among and near the Sarudu. Like the Sarudu, all of these people are Muslim.

Up • North Sulawesi • W-Sulawesi • C-Sulawesi • S-Sulawesi • S-E Sulawesi