Strands of The Ecuadorian Indian Movement: The Case of Fici and Ficapi in Imbabura Province

Abstract

AbstractThe literature tends to present an essentialized view of the Indian movement in Ecuador. This article identifies two distinct strands of the Ecuadorian Indian movement(s). The “indigenous” strand, which primarily constructs an “ethnic” (indigenous) identity, is usually taken to embody the whole Indian movement. This belies the existence of a “campesino-indigenous” strand that has witnessed a significant shift from an original emphasis on “class” to the current construction of a dual “class”—and “ethnicity” -based identity. A heterogeneity of orientations within the Indian movement(s) is supported by research in Imbabura province. Interviews with the leaders of both strands and some Quichua campesinos were conducted immediately following a national Indian uprising in June 1994 which paralyzed the country for nine days. Curiously, it was also an uprising in which the indigenous people of Imbabura did not participate. Their non-participation can be linked to the interaction between the two strands.