been used in a military context in Sudan. For example, the term was used to refer to the or "People's Militias" that operated in the central Nuba Mountains region in the early 1990s. Liberia Kuu is a labor-sharing arrangement in Liberia, especially for seasonal work. Asia Indonesia Gotong-royong is a conception of sociality ethos familiar to Indonesia. In Indonesian languages especially Javanese, means 'carrying a burden using one's shoulder', while means 'together' or 'communally', thus the combined phrase can be translated literally as 'joint bearing of burdens'. It translate to working together, helping each other or mutual assistance. The village's public facilities, such as irrigation, streets, and houses of worship (mosque, church or pura) are usually constructed through , where the funds and materials are collected mutually. Traditional communal events, such as the slametan ceremony, are also usually held in the ethos of communal work spirit, which each member of society is expected to contribute to and participate in the endeavour harmoniously. The phrase has been translated into English in many ways, most of which hearken to the conception of reciprocity or mutual aid. For M. Nasroen, forms one of the core tenets of Indonesian philosophy. Paul Michael Taylor and Lorraine V. Aragon state that " [is] cooperation among many people to attain a shared goal." Background In a 1983 essay Clifford Geertz points to the importance of in Indonesian life: An enormous inventory of highly specific and often quite intricate institutions for effecting the cooperation in work, politics, and personal relations alike, vaguely gathered under culturally charged and fairly well indefinable value-images— ('mutual adjustment'), ('joint bearing of burdens'), ('reciprocal assistance')—governs social interaction with a force as sovereign as it is subdued. Anthropologist Robert A. Hahn writes: Javanese culture is stratified by social class and by level of adherence to Islam. ...Traditional Javanese culture does not emphasize material wealth. ...There is respect for those who contribute to the general village welfare over personal gain. And the spirit of , or volunteerism, is promoted as a cultural value. has long functioned as the scale of the village, as a moral conception of the political economy. Pottier records the impact of the Green Revolution in Java: "Before the GR, 'Java' had relatively 'open' markets, in which many local people were rewarded in kind. With the GR, rural labour markets began to foster 'exclusionary practices'... This resulted in a general loss of rights,