City University of New York (CUNY) CUNY Academic Works All Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects 2005 Shades of Dispossession: Neoliberalism and the Social Production of Credibility, In Machu Picchu, Peru Pellegrino A. Luciano Graduate Center, City University of New York How does access to this work benefit ou?y Let us know! More information about this work at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu/gc_etds/1665 Discover additional works at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu This work is made publicly available by the City University of New York (CUNY). Contact: [email protected] Shades of Dispossession: Neoliberalism and the Social Production of Credibility, In Machu Picchu, Peru By Pellegrino A. Luciano A dissertation submitted to the Graduate Faculty in Anthropology in partial fulfillment of the req uirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, The City University of New York. 2005 UMI Number: 3187459 Copyright 2005 by Luciano, Pellegrino A. All rights reserved. UMI Microform 3187459 Copyright 2005 by ProQuest Information and Learning Company. All rights reserved. This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. ProQuest Information and Learning Company 300 North Zeeb Road P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, MI 48106-1346 ii © 2005 PELLEGRINO A. LUCIANO All Rights Reserved iii This manuscript has been read and accepted for the Graduate Faculty in Anthropology in satisfac tion of the dissertation requirement for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. ___________________ _________________________ Date Professor Shirley Lindenbaum Chair of Examining Committee ___________________ __________________________ Date Professor Louise Lennihan Executive Officer __________________________________ Professor Michael Blim Supervisory Committee __________________________________ Professor Maria Lagos Supervisory Co mmittee __________________________________ Professor Patricia Mathews Salazar Supervisory Committee The City University of New York iv ABSTRACT Shades of Dispossession: Neoliberalism and the Social Production of Credibi lity, In Machu Picchu, Peru By Pellegrino A. Luciano Advisor: Professor Shirley Lindenbaum This dissertation ethnographically examines the inconsistencies experienced by district residents in the historic and nature Sanctuary of Machu Picchu, ove r the Peruvian government’s drive to implement neoliberal policies. Heritage conservation in the southern Peruvian Andes is increasingly shaped by current neoliberal policies . The people who live in the district of Machu Picchu live in a protected area th at gives the state expropriating powers to claim the land as a public good. The central problem is that under neoliberalism, a public asset is used for private gain at the expense of residents. Inhabitants experience changing juridical relationships as a contradiction between the neoliberal claim of a free market, and the hand of the government creating conditions that select some over others. v My inquiry focuses on the actions of a mobilization formed out of small - middle scale entrepreneurs’ operating i n a tourism economy. I explore the intersection between governance and the market economy through the lens of dispossession, and I argue that by reframing public goods in neoliberal terms, the stage was set for dispossessing inhabitants. Heritage conserva tion and economic structural adjustment involve incompatible forms of credibility that either justify the “takings” of rights, civil -status and the public resources accommodating larger capital investments, or discredit the legitimacy of governing authorit ies. vi DEDICATION To My Dear Wife Ruth vii Acknowledgments My most profound debt is to the people of Machu Picchu for receiving me so warmly and for their patience and tolerance while I conducted my research among them. I especially thank Teresa & Luis Ca llañaupa, Emilio Callañaupa and Raul Sanchez for their assistance in getting me situated during the early phases of the fieldwork. I am no less indebted to the members of Frente de Defensa de los Intereses de Machu Picchu , Oscar Valencia Aucca, Margarita Kaiser, Charo Castillo, Corina Condori Quispe, Regina Zapata and Marina Arias. I also thank Graciela Fernandez and Hector Alegria for their kindness during my stay. I hope that those who are not mentioned by name will also accept my thanks for taking the time to teach me and to make me feel welcome in Machu Picchu. Conscious of all the kindness they have shown me, I wish them all the best, and personally have only the kindest regards for them. I am indebted to many people who contributed directly and indirectly to making this project possible, and to whom I wish to express my eternal gratitude. I gratefully acknowledge the wise counsel and warm encouragement of my principal advisor Professor Shirley Lindenbaum, who has guided this project from its inception, and of the members of my advisory committee Professor Maria Lagos and Professor Michael Blim for pushing me to develop my thoughts further, and for their careful attention to detail. I also wish to thank Professor Patricia Mathews Salazar for takin g the time to help complete the project on short notice and for her suggestions on improving my manuscript for publication. A great deal of thanks goes to Professor David Nugent for his consideration and timely response, and for his insightful comments th at have enriched the quality of my dissertation. My handling of the topics dealt with in this dissertation has benefited greatly from discussion with fellow students, particularly Martha Kebalo and Maria Gutierrez, as well as Susan Falls, Larisa Honey and Friederike Fleischer. I also convey a large debt of gratitude to Wasi Mekuria with whom I’ve had many thought provoking conversations. Also, a great deal of appreciation goes to Ellen DeRiso and Janet Kaplen for their executive support in the Anthropolo gy Department, and for enduring my silliness and off humor while at the Graduate Center. Special thanks go to Professor John Beatty for his advice, comments and at times financial support during difficult times. Since my days as an undergraduate, both he and Professor Edgar Gregersen have given me tireless encouragement to pursue anthropology. From them I learned how to appreciate the intricacies of language and culture without the reductionistic tendencies so common place in anthropology’s linguistic tu rn. A large gratitude goes to Martin H. Meisel for his help and concern and for giving me the confidence to continue my work. viii I am grateful to Sonia Marcela Alvarez, Silvia Palomares, and Nayruth Yanez for their meticulous work transcribing videos and cassettes. I thank students and fellow anthropologists at the University of San Antonio Abad in Cuzco particularly Zelmira Flores Ampuero, Walter Aguilar Ancori for their friendship and valuable discussions, and Alfredo Chavez Tamayo for his insights an d help in the university library. I would like to pay special thanks to my field assistant and fellow anthropologist Maria del Carmen Olivera Silva for her truly indispensable help and advice. This project would have never been possible if it were not fo r her knowledge of the Andes and ethnographic expertise. I am eternally indebted to her. I am also indebted to a number of institutions that gave me help and support along the way. I thank the Instituto de Estudios Peruanos in Lima for granting me res earch affiliation. I thank the Unidad Gestion de Machu Picchu for graciously granting me permission to conduct research in the Sanctuary of Machu Picchu. I thank Dr. Jose de Soto and the members of the Municipio of Machu Picchu for their administrative as sistance. I am grateful for the support of the Bernard L. Schwartz Communications Institute at Baruch College, CUNY while writing my dissertation. Many others have indirectly contributed to this project through the sharing of information, lively conversation, friendship and encouragement. In this regard, space does not permit me to mention them all. However, I would like mention for their interest in my progress: David Catacora Gonzales, Larry Testa, Ramiro Campos, Edith Nora Palomino Hurtado, Ricardo S abogal, Hilde Venero Farfan, Yenny Atahulluco, Linda and Blanca Serrano, Susana Huaman, Quintina Huaman, Mario Herrera. Finally, I would like to thank my parents Maria and Mario Luciano, my brother Manfredi Luciano and sister Ivana de LaSerna, for giving me the background to persist in my studies and attain my goals. ix TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract ………………………………………………………….……………………..iv List of Illustrations and Photographs……………………………………………….. x List of Acronym s…………………………………………………………………....… xi Introduc tion ........................................................................................................1 Chapter 1 – Pueblo, District, Landscape…………………………….……...…….35 Chapter 2 – The Vicissitudes of Class Dynamics and Global Entanglement…..……………………………..…………………….65 Chapter 3 –The Production of Blame: Secondary Adjustment and the Double -Bind…………….…….102 Chapter 4 – Encountering New Hierarchies: From Property Dispossession to Politi cal Dispossession…………….…..…….134 Chapter 5 – Learning One’s Plac e in the World: The Language of t he Global Market…………………………….163 Chapter 6 – How the Pueblo Boiled Over………………………………………..195 Chapter 7 - An Ethnographer’s Ending: Living in a State of Insecurity ………………………………….…228 Bibliography ……………………………………………………………….……….258 x LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS AND PHOTOGRAPHS Illustrations : Map of Peru