One Is None and Two Is One : Development from Above and Below

U OE E L3BRARIES ONE IS NONE AND TWO IS ONE: DEVELOPMENT FROM ABOVE AND BELOW IN NORTH-CENTRAL PANAMA By lUZ GRACIELA JOLY A DISSERTATION PRESENTED TO THE GRADUATE COUNCIL OF THE UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA Copyright (?) I98I hy Luz Graciela Joly This work is dedicated to the memory of Graoiela Isabel Adames and Manuel Dolores Joly who gave me their lives, and to the Baturales i PlayeroSy and Interioranos of the Costa Abajo who incorporated me into their lives. PREFACE The proverb "One is none and two is one" in the title of this work illustrates several points. First, it incorporates the sociolinguistic component of the ethnography, both as theory and as method. Theoretical- ly I » agree with the definition of ethnography as an inscription of social discourse, that is, a record of the ethnographer's personal experience in conversing analytically with other humans about their lives (Geertz 1973: 13). When as an anthropologist I assme the role of an activist and par- ticipant observer (Elmendorf 1976: U, 7-8) in the events of other humans, they are not subjects of study but fellow members of our species who have knowledge and experiences to share with me and with whom I can argue, dis- cuss, and converse rationally about o\ar behavior in "a process of mutual learning" (Freire 1971). In talking about their production for subsistence and marketing, as well as in talking about all other aspects of their lives, the human groups in the Cosicc Abajo (Lower Coast) or north—central Panama, who 6ire Spanish speakers, frequently lose proverbs or sayings that "take us into the heart of that of which they are the interpretation" (Geertz 1973:18). These speech acts give \is empirical evidence that these humans make ra- tional and value judgements about themselves and events in their lives. On the basis of their ccmplementary differences, therefore, the emic (to mean what people say and do) and the etic (to mean the theoretical and methodological tools) approaches in anthropology foim a symbiotic union in this work in an effort to avoid their weaknesses. Both provide answers. As stated by that great role model, anthropologist Ruth Benedict, "The trouble with life isn't that there is no answer, it's that there are so many answers. ... By turns their answers fit my needs" (Mead 197^:2). The use of proverbs to reflect actions in words is methodologically consistent with the technique of "event analysis," which was one of the tools in my ethnographic kit. Event analysis is the "tracing of inter- connections of behavior in time and space and in relation to the condi- tions of the situation" (Arensberg and Kimball 1972:22U; Kimball and Pearsall 1955; Kimball and Partridge 1979:9^). Behavior interconnec- tions are mits of interaction within a systemic network. Verbal behavior is a form of interaction which converts the event into a "speech event" when the "activity or aspects of the activity are directly governed by rules or norms for the use of speech" (Hymes 1972:56; 197U:52). The norm or rule governing the use of a proverb as a speech act in the Lower Coast is to incorporate it as an additional statement that conveys further clari- fications and/ or interpretation of what is occurring or what is being said. Hence, I am following this rule by incorporating a proverb in the title of this dissertation to clarify and/or interpret the events being described and analyzed. The proverb "One is none and two is one" clarifies and interprets the major analyses of this work as follows: The proverb is used to describe the principle of interdependence, that is, "a union to raise the power of action above what it would be were the units to remain apart" (Hawley 1968:331-332). This meaning applies to this work not only in the symbiosis of the emic and the etic, but also in the fact that the major variables being described and analyzed only make sense as interdependent units within a system. V — First, the developnent process cannot he effective unless planners and programmers of binreaucratic systems "from above" take into account the in- digenous community development systems "frcm below" of the peoples intend- ed to be the so-called "targets" or "beneficiaries" of the plans and programs. Secondly, the three major human groups in the Lower Coast NatiO'a- leSy Playepos 3 and Intevioponos — are interdependent on each, other in their systems of relations. Third, there is interdependence between the production and marketing of agricult\iral products and the community development systems along the Rio Indio, the river system of the Lower Coast that was selected for intensive study. The establishment, expansion, and function of these ccmmimity development systems in Rio Indio has been greatly in- fluenced by the marketing of cash products in this century d;iring "times of value," the phrase used in the regional dialect to refer to a series of cash bocms. Moreover, the conmunity development systems of these three human groups are related to social and economic forces on the Isthmus since Spanish colonialism to the present. The proverb "One is none and two is one" also applies to the support received from numerous persons and institutions. First, the writing of this dissertation would not have been possible without the intellectual guidance and moral encouragement of my doctoral committee ; Drs . Solon T. Kimball, Chairperson; Allan F. Bums, Anthony Oliver-Smith, and Anita Spring as anthropologists; and Louis A. Paganini as cultural geographer. Dr. Kimball, in particular, has kindly directed me through my graduate studies since my first arrival from Panama to the University of Florida that cold winter quarter of 1976, and was a patient and excellent tutor in the writing of this work. During the graduate years of the Master's and Ph.D. programs at the University of Florida, I appreciate more than they realize the teachings vi 1 and support of faculty, staff, and fellow students. In particular, I am grateful to Dr. Charles Wagley and his Tropical South America research program that made possible tinder a 3-^nonth sumner grant in 1977 the preliminary survey in Panama for the purpose of selecting a site for later dissertation research. The 19 months of research for this dissertation, frcm August 1978 through February I980 , were sponsored by an Inter-American Foundation Learning Fellowship for Social Change in Latin America and the Caribbean. lAF not only provided funds for the research, but also intellectual guidance through its unique program of conferences to evaluate and advise through the peer group of fellows, the professors in the Screening Ccmmit- tee, and members of the lAF staff. I found most beneficial the interdis- ciplinary advice received fron the following members of the lAF Screening Committee: sociologist Alejandro Fortes; economist William Glade; agricul- tural economist William Thiesenhusen ; and anthropologists Lairra Nader, Charles Wagley, and Johannes Wilbert. I also appreciate the interest in ny work shown during their visit to Panama in October-November 1979 by lAF Director and Representative for Mexico, Central America, and Panama, Ms. Sally W. Yudelman and Ms. Patricia Haggerty, respectively. Most of all, I am thankful for the care-taking role of lAF assumed by Fellowship Officer Elizabeth Veatch and General Services Officer Melvin Asterken, In Panama, the research was supported by institutional affiliation with the Direadon del Patvimonio HistSriao^ Instituto Nacianal de Cultuva; the Univevsidad Santa Mania la Antigua; the Viaaniato Apostdlico del Daniin; and the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute. As with any institution, their value lies in their personnel. At the Directorate of Historical Patrimony of the National Institute of Culture, I am particularly indebted VI y to Dra. Reina Torres de Arauz, Director, for authorizing the research under Agreement Number of November 6, 1978; to Dra. Marcia A. de Aro- semena, Sub-Director and Chief of Scientific Investigations, who during the preliminary survey recommended the need to study Afro-American and mestizo human groups in the Caribbean side of the Isthmios ; and to Prof. Marcela Camargo, Chief of the Museo del Hambre PanamenOy who directed and coordinated all the facets of the travelling exhibit of artifacts and photographs entitled "Those who already conquered the Atlantic: UabiLPa- tes and Playeros of the Costa Abajo," to inform the Panamanian public about preliminary results of the research and at the same time commemorate the third anniversary of the Museimi, December 1979 through February I98O. At the Catholic University Santa Maria la Antigua advice and guidance were always generoxasly given by Dr. Roberto De la Guardia, Historian at the Office of Humanities; and Prof. Carlos Castro, Director of the School of Sociology. I am grateful to Monsignor Jesus Serrano, Bishop of Colon and Apostolic Vicar of Darien, who during the preliminary survey suggested the Lower Coast as an area for research. The Claretian missionaries of the Vicarate introduced me to the Naturales of Rio Indio during the preliminary survey; later during the research, they provided support at the missionary centers in the Lower Coast and engaged me in stimulating dis- cussions about social issues, particularly the Reverends Luis Gonzalo Mateo, Jose Maria Morillo, Celestino Sainz, and Nicolas Delgado. At the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, support and advice were kindly given by archeologists Olga Linares and Richard Cooke of the Section of Human Ecology; librarian Alcira Mejia; botanist Robert Dressier; and ich- thyologist Ira Rubinoff, Director of STRI. viii Professors at the national University of Panama also cooperated with the research. I appreciate the historical advice given by Dr.

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