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The Political Ecology of Indigenous Territorial Struggles in the Darién

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The Political Ecology of Indigenous Territorial Struggles in the Darién, Panama: Land Invasions, Partial State Recognition, and Racialized Discrimination in the Emberá - Wounaan Collective Land Struggle by Marie - Line Sarrazin A thesis submitted in conformi ty with the requirements for the degree of Masters of Arts Department of Geography and Planning University of Toronto © Copyright by Marie - Line Sarrazin 2015 The Political Ecology of Indigenous Territorial Struggles in the Darién, Panama: Land Invasions, Partial State Recognition, and Racialized Discrimination in the Emberá - Wounaan Collective Land Struggle Marie - Line Sarrazin Masters of Arts Department of Geography and Planning University of Toronto 2015 Abstract By studying the case of land invasions on t he Collective Land of Arimae and Emberá Puru, this thesis examines the material and symbolic conflicts underpinning the struggle for the recognition of indigenous collective lands in the Darién province of Panama. D ata was collected primarily through semi - structured interviews and participant observation over a three - month period in Arimae in 2014. I argue that land invasions on indigenous territories are facilitated by the State’s ambivalence in the recognition o f indigenous territorial rights, by discours es that devalue indigenous culture s and practices, and by the corruption of local State institutions. These element s, coupled with land invasions, promote internal rule violation and leadership cooptation in Arimae, which weaken community governance instit utions. Yet, many community members retain a strong desire to fight for a legal recognition of their territory in order to halt land invasion s , to protect the forest, and to secure the future of the ir children . ii L’ é cologie Politique des Luttes Territoriale s Au tochtones dans le Dari én, Panama: Invasions des Terres, Reconnaissance Partielle de l’ É tat, et Discrimination Raciale dans la Lutte des Terres Collectives Emberá - Wounaan Marie - Line Sarrazin Maîtrise ès arts Département de Géographie et Urbanisme Université de Tor onto 2015 R é sum é P ar l ’ é tude de cas des invasions des terres de la Ter re Collective d’ Arimae et Emberá Puru, ce mémoire examine les conflit s matériaux et symboliques qui sous - tendent la lutte pour la reconnaissance des Terres Collectives autochtones dans l a province de Darién au Panama. Les données furent principalement recueilli es au moyen d’entrevues semi - structurées et d’observation participative sur une période de trois mois à Arimae en 2014. Je soutiens que les invasions des terres autochtones sont fac ilitées par l’ambivalence de l’État dans la reconnaissance des droits territoriaux autochtones , par des discours dévaluant les cultures et pratiques autochtones ainsi que par la corruption des institutions étatiques locales. Ces éléments, combinés aux inva sions, promeuvent la violation des règles internes et la cooptation des chefs à Arimae, ce qui fragilise les institutions de gouvernance communautaire. Malgré tout, plusieurs membres de la communauté d’Arimae conservent une forte volonté de continuer la lu tte pour la reconnaissance de leurs droits territoriaux dans le but de mettre fin aux invasions, de protéger la forêt, et d’assurer le futur de leurs enfants. iii Acknowledgments I wish to thank a number of people and organizations for supporting me throughout this project. First, I am thankful to the General Congress of Emberá and Wounaan Collective Lands for supporting my work, as well as the Community of Arimae and Emberá Puru for welcoming me in their community. This work would not having been possible with out the generosity of the inhabitants of Arimae and Emberá Puru, who willingly shared their knowledge and know - how with me, included me in their everyday conversations and, broadly, allowed me to be part of their lives for three months. This is an experien ce I will never forget. A warm thank you to my supervisor, Dr. Christian Abizaid, for his availability, his thorough feedback and, especially, his encouragement. Christian’s optimism and unwavering confidence in my ability constantly pushed me forward, des pite the ups and downs of academic writing. Thank you to the members of my committee, Dr. Sharlene Mollett and Dr. Thembela Kepe, for their critical comments and recommendations. I also wish to extend my thanks to scholars who, in Panama and in Canada, fac ilitated my journey, both logistically and intellectually, and contributed to my understanding of the local context, namely: Dr. Kate Kirby, Dr. Julie Velásquez Runk, Javier Mateo - Vega, and Professor Francisco Herrera. Of course, I want to thank my family, particularly my mother, my father and my sister, for their unconditional support. Je tiens à vous dire un grand merci pour votre appui et votre confiance. A special thanks to my twin sister, Émilie, for having been my most devoted source of moral support, advice, constructive criticism and motivation, despite the physical distance that now separates us. My friends and colleagues of the M.A. program of the Department of Geography also had a large role to play in making my experience at the University of To ronto, and in Toronto more generally, memorable. Specifically, I want to thank the PGB office 200 crew, Léa, Emily and Rachel, for making my last months of writing less isolating and more enjoyable. Finally, I am grateful to the Social Sciences and Humani ties Research Council of Canada, through the Master’s scholarships program, for their financial support to this research. Fieldwork iv for this study was also made possible thanks to a Graduate Expansion Fund Research Fellowship of the Department of Geography of the University of Toronto, and the 2014 GreenSaver Alastair Fairweather Memorial Award in the Environment of the School of the Environment. Lastly, I want to thank the Conference of Latin Americanist Geographers (CLAG) as well as the School of Graduate Studies of the University of Toronto for financially supporting my participation to the 2015 CLAG Meeting in Fortaleza, Brazil, where I had the opportunity to present the preliminary findings of my research. v Table of Contents Acknowledgments ................................ ................................ ................................ ..................... iii Table of Contents ................................ ................................ ................................ ...................... vi List of Tables ................................ ................................ ................................ ............................ ix List of Figures ................................ ................................ ................................ ............................ x List of Appendices ................................ ................................ ................................ ..................... xi List of Acronyms ................................ ................................ ................................ ...................... xii Chapter 1 Introduction ................................ ................................ ................................ ................ 1 1.1 Statement of the problem: Indigenous land rights in Panama and Latin America ............. 1 1.2 Objective and research questions ................................ ................................ ..................... 7 1.3 Thesis outline ................................ ................................ ................................ .................. 8 Chapter 2 Literature Review ................................ ................................ ................................ ....... 9 2.1 The political ecology of difference ................................ ................................ .................. 9 2.2 Understanding territorial struggles ................................ ................................ ................ 11 2.2.1 Indigenous self - determination ................................ ................................ ........... 11 2.2.2 The State and the maintenance of the status - quo ................................ ................ 12 2.3 The ethno - territorial model ................................ ................................ ........................... 14 2.3.1 Boundaries and property rights ................................ ................................ .......... 14 2.3.2 Racialization and identity ................................ ................................ .................. 17 2 .4 Conceptual framework ................................ ................................ ................................ .. 20 Chapter 3 Study Area and Methods ................................ ................................ .......................... 22 3.1 Presentation of the research site ................................ ................................ .................... 22 3.1.1 The Darién region ................................ ................................ .............................. 22 3.1.2 Arimae and Emberá Puru ................................ ................................ ................... 24 3.2 Reconnaissance visit and research agreement ................................ ................................ 34 vi 3.2.1 Producing useful material for the community during fieldwork ......................... 36 3.3 Data collection methods ................................ ................................ ................................ 37 3.3.1 Participant observation ................................ ...............................
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