new african histories DAMS, DISPLACEMENT, AND THE DELUSION OF DEVELOPMENT Cahora Bassa and Its Legacies in Mozambique Allen F. Isaacman and Barbara S. Isaacman Dams, Displacement, and the Delusion of Development new african histories SERIES EDITORS: JEAN ALLMAN AND ALLEN ISAACMAN Books in this series are published with support from the Ohio University National Resource Center for African Studies. David William Cohen and E. S. Atieno Odhiambo, The Risks of Knowledge: Investigations into the Death of the Hon. Minister John Robert Ouko in Kenya, 1990 Belinda Bozzoli, Theatres of Struggle and the End of Apartheid Gary Kynoch, We Are Fighting the World: A History of Marashea Gangs in South Africa, 1947–1999 Stephanie Newell, The Forger’s Tale: The Search for Odeziaku Jacob A. 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Isaacman OHIO UNIVERSITY PRESS w ATHENS Ohio University Press, Athens, Ohio 45701 ohioswallow.com © 2013 by Ohio University Press All rights reserved To obtain permission to quote, reprint, or otherwise reproduce or distribute material from Ohio University Press publications, please contact our rights and permissions department at (740) 593-1154 or (740) 593-4536 (fax). Printed in the United States of America Ohio University Press books are printed on acid-free paper ƒ ™ 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 5 4 3 2 1 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Isaacman, Allen F. Dams, displacement, and the delusion of development : Cahora Bassa and its legacies in Mozambique, 1965–2007 / Allen F. Isaacman and Barbara S. Isaacman. p. cm. — (New African histories) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-0-8214-2033-1 (pb : alk. paper) — ISBN 978-0-8214-4450-4 (electronic) 1. Cahora Bassa Dam (Mozambique)—History. 2. Economic development projects—Mozambique. 3. Zambezi River Valley—Rural conditions. 4. Forced migration—Zambezi River Valley. I. Isaacman, Barbara. II. Title. III. Series: New African histories series. HC890.Z65I83 2013 333.71509679—dc23 2012049113 We dedicate this book to the people of the lower Zambezi valley, whose lives have been forever altered by the Cahora Bassa Dam. Contents List of Illustrations ix Acknowledgments xi Abbreviations xiii Cahora Bassa Timeline xv Chapter 1 Introduction Cahora Bassa in Broader Perspective 1 Chapter 2 The Zambezi River Valley in Mozambican History An Overview 29 Chapter 3 Harnessing the River High Modernism and Building the Dam, 1965–75 57 Chapter 4 Displaced People Forced Eviction and Life in the Protected Villages, 1970–75 95 Chapter 5 The Lower Zambezi Remaking Nature, Transforming the Landscape, 1975–2007 122 Chapter 6 Displaced Energy 150 Chapter 7 Legacies 167 Notes 189 Glossary of Select Local Terms 255 Bibliography 259 Index 283 vii Illustrations MAPS 1.1 Zambezi catchment 2 1.2 Lower Zambezi 2 1.3 Mphanda Nkuwa and Cahora Bassa Dams 3 2.1 Zambezi ethnic groups 29 2.2 Principal trade routes 32 3.1 Mozambique 63 4.1 Aldeamentos and communal villages 101 FIGURES 2.1 Pre-Kariba and Post–Cahora Bassa mean flows of Zambezi River at Mutarara 41 2.2 Alluvial garden, 1967 45 2.3 Fisherman, 1967 52 3.1 Road to the construction site 69 3.2 Working underground 78 3.3 Blasting rock 79 3.4 Building a tunnel 80 3.5 Dam wall under construction 81 5.1 Mutarara bridge, 1935 127 5.2 Mutarara bridge, 1996 130 5.3 Contemporary riverine garden 136 5.4 Women pounding maize 138 ix 5.5 Men with fishing weirs 142 6.1 Pylons passing a Tete village 151 7.1 Upriver from Mphanda Nkuwa 168 7.2 Marialena Dique 182 TABLES 2 .1 Maximum flood levels, lower Zambezi (Mutarara and Marromeu), 1938–55 44 6.1 Access to electricity in Mozambique (by province), 2003 161 x w Illustrations Acknowledgments We began this project on Cahora Bassa in 1997, while conducting fieldwork for our book, Slavery and Beyond: The Making of Men and Chikunda Ethnic Identities in the Unstable World of South-Central Africa, 1750–1920. In the fifteen years we were working on this project, many friends and colleagues, through their intellectual insights and thoughtful critiques, helped us sharpen our arguments and avoid embarrassing errors. We owe a special debt of gratitude to four scholars. Richard Beilfuss, who shared with us his vast knowledge of the ecology of the Zambezi Valley, was a generous and patient teacher. His influence is apparent in our numerous ci- tations of his work and that of his colleagues. Arlindo Chilundo helped plan the initial phase of oral research, and, together with a team of students from the Universidade Eduardo Mondlane—Xavier Cadete, Germano Mausse Dimande, Eulésio Viegas Felipe, Paulo Lopes José, and António Tovela— participated with Allen in the fieldwork conducted in 2000 and 2001. The oral interviews collected in the lower Zambezi valley by this research brigade provided much of the data on which this study rests. Chilundo’s commitment to higher education in Mozambique prevented him from continuing on this project. Wapu Mulwafu, working with two students from the University of Malawi—John Mandala and Donald Khembo—and one from the Univer- sidade Eduardo Mondlane—Xavier Cadete—interviewed peasants living near the confluence of the Zambezi and Shire Rivers in 2000. Their research provided valuable insights about the social, ecological, and cultural effects of Cahora Bassa in that region. Finally, David Morton interviewed farmers living near Mponda Nkuwa, the site of a proposed new dam downriver from Cahora Bassa. When we began this project, we knew very little about the construction and far-reaching consequences of large dams. Besides Richard Beilfuss, we were extremely fortunate to consult with and learn from Carlos Bento, Bryan Davies, Leila Harris, Patrick McCully, Lori Pottinger, Daniel Ribeiro, Thayer Scudder, and Chris Sneddon. Together, they patiently answered our ques- tions and identified critical bodies of literature for us to consult. xi A number of scholars read various drafts of our manuscript. The final product is far better, thanks to the detailed comments of Heidi Gengenbach, Leila Harris, Jim Johnson, Premesh Lalu, Elias Mandala, Stephan Miescher, David Morton, and Derek Peterson. Portions of this project were presented as lectures and seminars at the Center for Advanced Studies in the Behavioral Sciences (Stanford University); Colgate University; Cornell University; the Rockefeller Study and Conference Center (Bellagio); the Universidade Edu- ardo Mondlane; the University of California, Santa Barbara; the University of Michigan; the University of Minnesota; and the University of the Western Cape. Participants and audience members at all of these institutions, includ- ing James Campbell, Laura Fair, Jim Ferguson, M. J. Maynes, Anne Pitcher, Helena Pohlandt-McCormick, Daniel Posner, Arvind Rajagopal, Anupama Rao, Ciraj Rasool, Richard Roberts, Abdi Samatar, Joel Samoff, Eric Shep- pard, Ajay Skaria, France Winddance Twine, and Eric Worby, offered critiques and suggestions that helped us sharpen our thinking. Finally, we commend Jean Allman, coeditor of the Ohio University New African Histories series, for her thoughtful and supportive comments. It was a pleasure to work with her and Gillian Berchowitz, the editorial director at Ohio University Press. The staff of the Arquivo Histórico de Moçambique, the Arquivo Nacional da Torre do Tombo, and the Hoover Institution always happily assisted us. We are also grateful to the International Rivers Network and Justiça Ambiental for sharing their considerable holdings on Cahora Bassa. We wish to thank the American Council of Learned Societies, the Center for Advanced Studies in the Behavioral Sciences, the Rockefeller Foundation (Bellagio), and the University of Minnesota for their generous support. The idyllic conditions at the Center make it the perfect place to work on a manu- script, and there is no better ambiance in which to complete such a project than Bellagio. We also received the assistance of the Cartography Laboratory at the University of Minnesota, whose maps grace our book. Finally, we owe an incalculable debt to the hundreds of men and women— peasants, fisherfolk and dam workers—who readily shared their memories, experiences, and perspectives.