(Estimated Pub Date) the Challenge of Ethnic Conflict to National and International Order in the 1990S: Geographic Perspectives- October 1995

Approved for Release: 2018/06/01 C00123268
The Impact of Resource Development
The expansion of national cultures from the core to
peripheral areas is a direct product of the increased
demand for land and resources, and this, in turn, often
reflects national policies that govern the distribution
of resources in the previously developed core areas.
Colonization of the “empty” periphery often is viewed
by national policymakers as al way of relieving pres-
sure for redistribution of land "in the older core, where
a combination of concentration of land in the hands of
the elite, rapid population increase in rural areas, '
degradation ofpeasant-controlled land through ero-
sion and declining fertility, lack of employment
opportunities contributes to substantial land hunger:
Moreover; wealthy and influential members of the rul-
ing elites, along with members of the military or rep-
resentatives of international enterprises, often
promote colonization as a means of obtaining large
blocks of land. Mineral resource development, espe-
cially that related to high-value commodities such as
oil and gold, is another cause ‘of conflict. Frequently,
mineral resource development is linked to multina-
tional enterprises such as oil companies or interna-
tional mining concerns. These;developments may also
have international links through organizations such as
OPEC, the Latin American Free Trade Association, or
the Andean Pact.
C
Invariably, development of tropical lowland areas is
seen as favorable to national and international inter-
ests, and maintenance of land in an “undeveloped”
state is viewed as wastefitl, eve'n if it provides suste-
nance for native populations that have lived therefor
centuries or millennia. Conservation interests lobby for
slow-growth or no-growth policies but to little avail.
Even when areas are set aside in parks or reserves,
effective provisions for protecting them are lacking, and
the allocation of large blocks ofland to Indian commu-
nities may create a backlash among landless or land
hungry peasants and members of the urban working
classes, who fail to understand the reasons for giving so
much land to so few people. Often these protests are
supported by members of the upper and middle classes
who oppose the removal of large blocks of land from
access for large-scale development.
As might be expected, governments have not
attempted to solve the "Indian problem” by dealing
with the root causes that are noted above. Rather; they
have responded to pressure groups by passing legisla-
tion that is unenforced or by buying off the groups or
their leaders in other ways. Examples are minimalist
land reform legislation or creation of largely unpro-
tected national parks, reserves, or dedicated Indian
territories. If these time-tested Latin American strate-
giesfail to work, heavier-handed approaches may be
attempted, such as calling in the army or police; but
these strategies are resorted to less and less because
of their negative consequences, both internally and on
the country is international standing. Mexico ’s rela-
tively benign treatment of the Zapatista National Lib-
eration Army, at least until February I 995, is a good
example of how intemational opinion can affect gov-
ernment response to dissident groups.
In Brazil, the tendencies to expand development into
the Amazon Basin have been stimulated by the gov-
ernmentis expansionist development policies. Since
colonial times Brazil has aggressively extended its
political frontiers at the expense of all its neighbors.
More recently, a national policy of building roads into
the interior and clearing the tropical forest for farm-
ing and ranching, which was fostered in part by the
geopolitical strategies of some military oflicers, has
led to large-scale development of that country's Ama-
zon lands. When Brazil builds road and colonizes near
its political frontiers, it triggers a counterresponse by
neighboring Amazon Basin countries such as Peru,
Colombia, and Venezuela, which build roads of their
own and encourage colonization offormerly undevel-
oped lowland tropical forests to counter what is seen
as a possible Brazilian threat to national sovereignty.
Ecuador has embarked upon a similar policy of set-
tling its Amazon lowlands with highlanders in
response to a longstanding border dispute with Peru.
It remains to be seen how theflare-up offighting in
early 1995 will affect these policies.
>
1
1
91
Approved for Release: 2018/06/01 C00123268