Ratu Pelabuhan: Ketidakadilan Air dan Gerakan Mesianisme Bapa Rachman di Sukabumi

Abstract

This research examines the Bapa Rachman Movement in Sukabumi in 1907, which emerged in response to agrarian injustice and the failure of the Dutch colonial government to manage water distribution. The movement was characterized by messianism and millenarianism, with Bapa Rachman claiming to be the Ratu Pelabuhan - a savior figure (Ratu Adil) who was believed to be able to liberate the community from oppression. Historical research methods were applied through the stages of heuristics, source verification, interpretation, and historiography, using colonial archives and contemporary newspapers as the main data. The results show that the roots of the conflict were not solely political or religious, but were triggered by injustice in access to water due to the collusion of local officials and the exploitation of resources for tea plantations and private factories. Bapa Rachman's messianic claims became mobilization tools to fight structural inequality. The trial revealed that residents' protests against the sabotage of the waterways had been ignored, triggering resistance under religious pretexts. The research confirms that colonial failures in nature conservation and water management were crucial factors in triggering the social movement. The conflict reflected the dynamics of local resistance to colonial exploitation, which used religio-cultural narratives as a form of resistance.