Abstract
For decades, Cajamarca has housed one of the most productive gold mines in the world. Between 1992, when the operations of the Yanacocha deposits began, until 2011, when the most important expansion project of the operating company was suspended, extractive activities have been a source of controversy. Only between 2004 and 2011 three conflicts reached national relevance in Cajamarca: Quilish (2004), Combayo (2006) and Minas Conga (2011). This continuum allows analyzing different types of «responses» —especially from rural areas— to mining. The article proposes that the peasant responses have been oriented to the negotiation of benefits that compensate the affectation of natural resources and allow the localities to accede, albeit in an indirect and limited way, to the profits produced by the industry. However, when the agreements reached with the company are not met or the population perceives that the impact on the means of subsistence is greater than the benefits received, incentives are generated for political mobilization. In this context, different coalitions had emerged between rural villages and urban organizations that, though ephemeral in organizational terms, promoted mobilizations against Yanacocha’s expansion projects with remarkable effectiveness.
Highlights
El Perú fue uno de los países que más se benefició, desde un punto de vista macroeconómico, con el alza del precio de los commodities de la primera década del siglo XX (Monaldi, 2014)
extractive activities have been a source of controversy
The article proposes that the peasant responses have been oriented to the negotiation
Summary
RESUMEN Durante dos décadas, Cajamarca albergó una de las minas de oro más productivas del mundo. Entre 1992, cuando se iniciaron las operaciones del yacimiento Yanacocha, y 2011, cuando fue suspendido el proyecto expansivo más importante de la empresa operadora, la ampliación de las actividades extractivas ha sido fuente de controversia. Solo entre 2004 y 2011, tres conflictos alcanzaron relevancia nacional en Cajamarca: Quilish (2004), Combayo (2006) y Minas Conga (2011). Cuando los acuerdos logrados con la empresa no son cumplidos o la población percibe que la afectación a los medios de subsistencia es mayor que los beneficios recibidos, se generan incentivos para la movilización. Emergieron diferentes coaliciones entre caseríos rurales y organizaciones urbanas que, aunque efímeras en términos organizativos, promovieron movilizaciones en contra de los proyectos de expansión de Yanacocha con notable efectividad. Palabras clave: conflictividad social, minería, protesta, coaliciones, Cajamarca, Conga.
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