It is apparent from the interview responses and focus group conversations that the territory for indigenous people is very important, and by having it their culture is protected. Land expropriation and divestment, both actions inherited from colonialism, have left indigenous people in a very disadvantage situation, or subaltern position in post-colonial terms (see Spivak, 1988). As seen in Chapter 5, land rights and territoriality have both been concepts of discussion. In fact, indigenous people movements emerged from the land struggle, arguing for fair land reform (see the work of Ulloa, 2004 cited in Chapter 5). Participants highlighted the importance of recovering their ancestral territory, as it is considered an essential source for their culture and wellbeing of their communities. As noted in Chapter 5, territory from an indigenous people perspective can be seen as a source of identity, spiritual and material nourishment that is associated with rights and a better life. In other words, more than a piece of land, it is considered an essential element for their community, and a mystical element that connects them with their ancestors and reflects their culture (see Box 6.7). What the findings indicated is that the territory holding, claim and/or recovery amongst the studied ICOs appears to be a key motive to be formalised. In some cases, it happens to be more direct and in others indirect.
Box 6.7 The Spiritual Dimension of the Indigenous People’s Territory
My father was expelled from this territory as he was a terrajero, he was kicked out by the land owner, that is why I grew in the resguardo Misak of jambalo” … many years later I came back and I organise with others to recover then land that was taken away by the foreigners, this is the land of our community where our ancestors and deities live
… our connection with this territory is spiritual and sort of magical [Cofounder, V1MK2, CS1].
The land for us is everything, this is where we grew and learn everything we know about life, our present is tied with the people who lived in our territory…in the same way that we will tied with the people who’ll live here…out territory nurtures us with everything that’s why we have to protect it [General Manager, VICU2, CS3].
Because as indigenous people, in our Wayuu culture, our grandparents have taught us that our mother is the earth and our father Juyá … and when our father Juyá comes to, he is the one who brings us the food and everything to survive… and as good children, we must … that is more than anything, let's say a principle or a basic value of the Wayuu is protect it and treat it well… respect the sacred [Teacher / Community Member, WAFG 1.4, CS5].
As seen in Box 6.8, Cooperativa Indígena las Delicias (CS1) exemplifies how the community desire to recover their taken territory during colonialism motivated them to organise themselves as a cooperative. Here, the findings prove that the formalisation process is driven by the external negative effects, in this case, land divestment. Their approach can be seen through the concept of creative resistance (or a contestation moment based on Bhabha, 2012), in which the members of the cooperative, generate a hybrid form by appropriating an external discourse and use this as a subtle act of resistance.
Box 6.8 Adoption of Cooperativism to Recover the Ancestral Territory
We were expelled by the owner of these lands, that were not never his… inspired by Quintin Lame we started to organise as a trade union but we lately realise that we were not working for anyone … We were subjected to the terraje’s form … thus some people suggest: why don’t you start a cooperative…. and we did …. It was the best option for us ... we did not know what cooperative was, this isn’t a practice from here … It was brought by the white men …but we adopted as we wanted to buy the lands that historically are belong to us [Cofounder, V1MK2, CS1].
Similarly, the Finca Lechera el Paraíso (CS2) shows that the need of land recovery may trigger off the formalisation process. Unlike Cooperativa Indígena las Delicias (CS1), in which the recovery of their land is encouraged by the community (bottom-up perspective), the CS2 was set up as an initiative of the Casa Mayor Yanacona (cabildo) to address the issue of land rights and property (see in Chapter 5, the Life Plan Yancona in Cabildo Yanacona, 2009). On behalf of the whole Yanacona community, their government put into action a plan of developing a sustainable enterprise in a fairly big piece of land (located nearby one of the Yanacona resguardos) to benefit their people and reappropriate the land that was taken away in the past (see Box 6.9). Drawing on institutional theory, this organisational change can be seen through both coercive and mimetic isomorphism, by which the CS2 imitates a foreign practice (i.e., setting up a venture) as a consequence of a coercive change upon their indigenous institutions during colonialism (or the legacy of it) (DiMaggio and Powell, 2000).
Box 6.9 Political Influence Over the Organisational Motives
Our ancestors managed to influence a break through from the influence of the white men, although not total… their actions [referring to the colonisers] weakened our culture and civilization, in that sense the economy was weakened a little, authority was weakened a little, cultural events were weakened, and it was introduced into the territories when the time of the European invasion and some forms of life that were imposed on our people as education, some forms of work, exploitation to our mother earth … That is why is so important to return again our land and resurface in harmony with our mother earth … Thus, we had to build a tool that would allow the Yanacona people to react in a generational way… that life plan (referring to the Life Plan) and that tool has to be materialised… that is why we created our own business to make our land productive and benefiting our whole community [Deputy Governor, VIYA1, CS2].
Some tensions about territoriality are identified in some of the focus group conversations. Particularly (unlike the other two cases) in the CS1 and CS2, where land rights and territoriality were direct motives to set up ICOs. In others, the ICOs’
development is indirectly influenced by the law and the power exercised by the authorities upon the territory in which the ICO is taking place (territoriality).
For instance, in the focus group conducted with the Puinave community (CS4), respondents pointed out that while culturally it is important to hold and/or recover the ancestral territory because of its spiritual dimension, territory utilisation (i.e., the creation of business within the resguardo) may inflict some conflict of interests in the long term with the local authorities and the community. It was reported that the nature of having a business within the resguardo entails having an interdependent relationship with the authorities. It was pointed out that the authorities are conceived as an ‘enabler agent’, as they are the intermediaries (working on behalf of the community as they are elected) that approve or disapprove, encourage or discourage the creation of initiatives in the resguardo (see Box 6.10 and 6.11).
Box 6.10 Territoriality and Business Dependency
All our services are designed to show the tourist about our culture, our territory is beautiful and there are lots of place to visit… before we started our organisation, we asked our authorities for permission to set up a business… we explain them that it was important for the community and we will have many advantages for all in the long term
… at the end, all the tourist services offered are located in our resguardo thus we need to inform the whole community and ask for permission to our authorities
[Vice-President, PUFG1.2, CS4].
Box 6.11 Shaped Business by Territoriality
When any of our community set up a business has always take into account the rules that we all are bounded into … we respect our leaders because we chose them… the land is ours … thus we need to respect it … [Treasurer, PUFG1.3, CS4].
There is also evidence that the motivation of creating a formalised organisation to hold or recover an ancestral territory is connected to the knowledge that the ancestral territory holds a “living being”. By making the land productive it suggests that their knowledge can be kept and passed through the generations. The example in Box 6.12 is provided by the assistant general manager of the Akayú Association (CS3), who suggested in the focus group conversation that the idea of keeping their ancestral territory is due to the cultural meaning that it has for them; especially, because it is considered the source of their knowledge, where they learn how to live and survive with the existing resources (another example of creative resistance).
Box 6.12 Territory as a Source of Knowledge
It's a sector that I know, in research, let's say in the Amazonian part. To the Amazonian part, it is for us, it is the territory, the territoriality. From there, we can project: for life, for our life, and for the community for the future … We wish that also the earth, the forest is, is the solution … it is the university for us. Because it is all the knowledge there. Then without land, but there is nothing [Assistant General Manager, CUFG 1.3, CS3].
This aspect emerged as an important feature, because during the focus group discussions it was suggested that having a land implies financial responsibilities; thus, there is the general concern whether it is better to make the land productive or not in order to meet the legal requirements. Therefore, a hybrid element appears, as by mimicking an orthodox economic model (the territory) the knowledge is seen to be kept and sustained. One of the participants provided an example of this by pointing out:
In today’s society having a land that is inherited by our ancestors is not enough, although we could fully survive just with the products that is given by the land, but there are things that we have to pay: local taxes, tax of property and etc.… thus we need to create some economic strategies to keep our territory but working it in our terms [General Manager, CUFG1.2, CS3].
Interestingly, motivations can be influenced by other factors; in this case, the motive of holding the territory is influenced by the objective of keeping the indigenous knowledge, as it is considered the source that the community learns from. Such objective triggers alternatives to achieve this (i.e., setting a business).