The right to clear land is given to a family. The West-Toradja extended family owns fields and buffaloes as a group. Wana communities, autonomous, do not recognize ownership, and boundaries are not clearly defined. But they do recognize rights to clear land for cash crops. Individuals can move to another village if they are related to people on the new territory.
Power is based on traditional headship.
The aristocratic headman cannot decide anything without consulting the council of the elders. Each camp has its own leader. The Tobaku today, under the influence of the Indonesian government, have a system whereby the village headman and other government officials consult the council of elders and the church minister. The West-Toradja had village confederations, or the village was governed by a headman elected by the council of household heads. Tobada villages are based on matrilineal lineages.