C ONSTRUCTING A LTERNATIVES TO D EVELOPMENT

In The Darker Side of Western Modernity, Walter Mignolo proposes the following question to his readers: “Why would you like to save capitalism and not to save human beings? Why would an abstract entity be saved, and not the ecological and human lives that capital is constantly destroying?” (2011, 144). Mignolo pushes his readers to imagine a world in which humans do not live to produce and consume, but rather produce and consume enough to live. This is the basic premise of the indigenous Andean ideology

vivir bien, or live well, which can be contrasted with the Western capitalist ideology of

live better.

In contrast to Morales’ neo-extractivist model, many scholars and indigenous activists, particularly members of CONAMAQ, believe that the indigenous ayllu community system and ideology of vivir bien is emblematic of a feasible Andean alternative to capitalism. As described in chapter one, Ayllus are tight-knit highland

indigenous communities that have been spaces of contentious politics since the pre- Columbian era, rejecting exploitative systems and striving to live more harmoniously with other humans and with nature. I do not present the ayllu as a universal or utopian solution to end capitalism. On the contrary, I recognize this indigenous space as a locus of one of many ontologies that should be valued on an equal plane with Western modernity. Sovereignty and the pluriverse rely on respecting systems on a horizontal platform without unwanted imposition. For this reason, CONAMAQ must be careful of exporting the ayllu system to an unreceptive nation, while simultaneously demanding that their autonomous rights be respected. On the contrary, they, and the nation-state as a whole must recognize the profound diversity of indigenous peoples within the country.

Rafael Quispe, a former leader of CONAMAQ, recognizes that both capitalism and socialism are destructive models based in extraction, consumerism, and development. Reminiscent of Fausto Reinaga’s writings in the mid-twentieth century, Quispe notes that CONAMAQ’s ayllu system of communitarian development provides a basis of equilibrium. He supports wind energy and other clean technologies to create electricity and power transportation as an alternative to petroleum exploitation (Weinberg 2010, 21). This is what some scholars would call development with identity in which states recognize distinct cultural needs (Hale 2011, 195).

The subsequent analysis focuses on two land-based conflicts in which members and leaders of CONAMAQ clash with government sponsored development projects. Before engaging with the details of each encounter, it is worth highlighting local epistemological and ontological connections to the land. While tied up with economic needs and internal community fissions, the following conflicts are also rooted in long- term connections to place so that the death of land is the death of indigenous knowledges and life systems.

Vivir Bien is a concept that emerges predominantly in rural, agricultural areas that

are able to self-sustain. Factors such as over population and therefore lack of housing and employment curtail the ability to ‘live well’. Allison Spedding has critiqued the notion of Vivir Bien, stating that it is invented by indigenous intellectuals, and that it does not even represent the reality of rural communities, and much less urban centers. However, like most ideologies, vivir bien is an ethos to live by, not necessarily a reflection of everyday life. Nonetheless, recognizing the heterogeneity of indigenous peoples and Bolivians as a whole is crucial to recognize that the concept of vivir bien may not be implemented in the same way in the city of El Alto, as in a llama herding community in Potosí, an agriculturalist center in Santa Cruz, or an indigenous fishing village in Beni.

Eduardo Gudynas and Arturo Escobar have emphasized the need to search for “alternatives to development” as opposed to “development alternatives”. The former practice involves completely rethinking capitalist development, while the latter settles for minor reforms to a system that has been built on human and environmental exploitation (Gudynas 2013). This movement requires individuals and policy makers to reject the assumption that capitalism and Western modernity are natural, and instead imagines alternative systems other than resource extraction. While it would be irrational and unattainable to propose closing down all extractive industries in the immediate future, scholars such as Gudynas recognize the desperate need to focus conversations on how to best overcome extractivism.

People like Silvia Rivera Cusicanqui, a major ally of CONAMAQ, propose self- management, and self-sufficiency through small-scale production and sale of crafts, food, and everyday goods. Rivera Cusicanqui critiques the state’s new form of colonialism that dominates the political spectrum and all expressions of collectivity. “The only space left for us is the micro, and from there we establish affinity communities that allow us to

connect and link networks into a fabric capable of overcoming colonial practices” (Zibechi 2014). This comment is inspired by the Tambo Collective in La Paz, a cultural, educational, and political meeting place recovered by a group of young students. There, they organize fairs and exhibitions and run a garden to promote urban agriculture with the objective of promoting food self-sufficiency. They have also began to hold small informal classes on themes such as migration, and decolonization in art led by local intellectuals. I have personally spent many days attending classes with this collective, working to construct the main building, and to landscape the outdoor area.

Recognizing the colonial legacy of extractivism is crucial to breaking the historical dependency on exporting raw materials and the importance of self-sufficiency. Members of CONAMAQ have expressed that Pachamama is tired. The harmony and equilibrium that indigenous peoples maintained with her has been lost. Refusal to promote alternatives will not allow the region to move in a new direction. Claiming that the legacy is so deeply rooted that we cannot make a change is both lazy and paralyzing. The struggle for an alternative, post-capitalist development model is intertwined with the need to overcome extractivism.

In short, a complete overturning of the norm is necessary. Not a reform, or a Western-style revolution, but a pachacuti—a shift in perceptions of time, space, being and dwelling. The Andean pachacuti seeks the reconstitution of a political collectivity that understands reality in their own ways rather than those dictated by Western modernity. This decolonial option places human and non-human lives first, promoting thoughtful production and consumption as a means of survival not as a way of life. Vice President Garcia Linera has declared that, “We respect Mother Earth, but we are not going to live like 300 years ago” (Ross 2014). However, CONAMAQ’s mission is not about returning to the past, it is about reviving ancient practices and intentionally

molding a more sustainable lifestyle that respects both the old and the new. We will see in the following section that these ideological battles sometimes clash with the immediate needs of poor communities that prefer development as a short-term way to confront poverty, over long term systemic changes.