Policing Economic Growth: Mining, Protest, and State Discourse in Peru and Argentina

Ariel Taylor,Michelle D Bonner

doi:10.25222/larr.63

Abstract

Since the 1980s, liberalized and newly stable markets have helped usher in an unprecedented mining boom across the Latin American region. However, despite the fact that this boom contributes to notable economic growth, protests in opposition to the expansion and practices of mining companies have also grown, often with violent results. How protests are policed matters, but more important for democracy is how state actors respond when violence is employed. We examine two instances of police repression of mining protests: one in Cajamarca, Peru, and the other in Catamarca, Argentina. We argue that, despite significant differences in context, there are important similarities in state discourse between countries. In particular, a vocabulary of protester wrongdoing and calls for a remedy of “dialogue” are employed in both cases as a way to facilitate the continuation and expansion of both mining and the repression of protests.

Highlights

Mining is a contentious issue across Latin America
In an effort to better understand these limits, we examine how state actors in two distinct Latin American countries, Peru and Argentina, explain accountability for the repression of mining protests
While we include the voices of state actors who oppose government choices and we recognize they might be in more abundance in other media sources, we are most interested in the frames used by those with the power to determine how mining protests are policed

Summary

Introduction

Mining is a contentious issue across Latin America. Conflicts over government policies, industry practices, and indigenous rights reflect deep divisions between different definitions of development. Given that economic liberalization and democratization have been simultaneous projects in Latin America since the 1980s, this is an important area of inquiry For these reasons we ask: How do state actors frame police repression of anti-mining protests in two distinct settings, one in Peru and one in Argentina? Resource extraction remains a contentious issue in Argentina, but until recently, disagreement has not resulted in the level of violence that occurred in 2012 in Catamarca when police attempted to remove a road blockade maintained by protesters For this reason the case is a interesting one to examine as it may reflect the direction of future conflicts.

Methodology

Findings

Conclusion