Unique Rural Fairness and Justice: Bali Cannot Do Without Subak "Rural Vision" 03

Text / Baohua Communications Planning and Execution Chen Yuling

"Without Subak, Bali would not be Bali." This statement by Professor Windia, who has studied Subak for many years and helped promote it to World Cultural Heritage status, fully sums up the purpose of our visit to Bali.

This "Subak" system, which appeared in the tenth century AD and was recorded in writing for the first time, is an irrigation system organized by farmers. Because Bali is suitable for rice cultivation all year round, the people of Bali developed a unique way of operating to coordinate rice farming and allow all farmers to obtain irrigation water during the growing period. Through regular meetings and discussions among large and small Subaks, this system builds consensus and, with a fair and democratic system, coordinates and distributes irrigation water from upstream to downstream, allowing water to flow from a small irrigation system, Subak A, somewhere up in the mountains, to the next Subak B, C, D... all the way down to the coast.

This unofficial, non-binding grassroots organization could not be shaken even when Bali changed dynasties, and even when the Green Revolution swept the globe. In 2012, through the efforts and cooperation of domestic and foreign scholars and government and civil organizations, the "Subak" system officially became a World Cultural Heritage site.

Lin Shengfeng: If Agriculture and Traditional Beliefs Are Reintegrated, a New Force Will Develop

Subak culture is a mechanism with a thousand-year history. How can it be compared with Taiwan's experience? In an interview, director Lin Shengfeng pointed out that Taiwan's irrigation system is the Irrigation Association, which, unlike Subak, cannot develop the adhesive relationship among irrigation systems, landscapes, and people. In the development of modern agriculture, Taiwan has neglected the connection between agriculture and traditional beliefs. If they are reintegrated, such as the farmers' almanac, solar terms, and festivals, a new force among farmers may develop.

The Production Process Was Not Easy, Ten Years to Sharpen a Sword, Released Today

Starting December 4, every Tuesday at 10 p.m., the documentary series "Rural Vision," ten years in the making by director Liu Song and chief planner Lin Shengfeng, will premiere on PTS. It also sets a record since PTS's 20th anniversary: for the first time, the "English version" and "4K Chinese version" will be simultaneously released worldwide on the "PTS+" platform. Looking back on those 16 days interwoven with novelty, breakdown, and a touch of madness, and then comparing them with this documentary that was finally produced with such difficulty, I think all of this should still be worth it.

"Rural Vision" official fan page: https://goo.gl/EidHU3

"PTS+" platform: