Navigating the Waters of Authority: Civil-Military Relations in the Securitization of Coastal and Fisheries Resources in Cilacap Regency

Abstract

This study aims to understand how complex coastal and fisheries systems can function effectively and achieve adequate system resilience. It examines a coastal region in Indonesia (Cilacap Regency) the only coastal area in the country characterized by overlapping civilian and military authority and a history of conflict. By integrating a social-ecological systems approach with the context of civil-military relations, this study identifies key variables shaping coastal and fisheries resource governance. These variables are subsequently used to determine the primary drivers of coastal and fisheries resilience, develop a coastal city resilience model, and formulate policy recommendations for government and resource management actors. Methodologically, the study employs Social Network Analysis (SNA) to identify and map key variables and uses Qualitative Network Modelling and Simulation (QNMS) to evaluate different governance configurations in terms of economic stability and overall system resilience. The findings reveal a clear trade-off: military-dominated governance enhances short-term law enforcement effectiveness, particularly in suppressing illegal fishing practices, but undermines inter-agency coordination, actor trust, and the role of non-state actors. In contrast, collaborative and civilian-led governance scenarios yield more balanced and stable outcomes across ecological, economic, and social dimensions. These findings contribute to the collaborative governance literature by demonstrating that sustainable fisheries governance depends on positioning the military proportionally as a supporting rather than dominant actor, as well as on integrating enforcement capacity with participatory mechanisms to strengthen long-term social-ecological resilience.