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Indigenous Autonomy and the Contradictions of Plurinationalism in Bolivia

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2018

Jason Tockman  and
John Cameron
Jason Tockman
Affiliation:
Department of Political Science, University of British Columbia. tockman@alumni.ubc.ca
John Cameron
Affiliation:
Dalhousie University. john.cameron@dal.ca
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Abstract

The government of Bolivia led by President Evo Morales and the Movement Toward Socialism (MAS) party claims to be constructing a new postliberal or plurinational state. However, this alleged experiment in plurinationalism conflicts with two central elements of government and MAS party strategy: the expansion of the economic development model based on the extraction of non-renewable natural resources, and the MAS's efforts to control political space, including indigenous territories. This article analyzes these contradictions by examining how Bolivia's constitution and legal framework appear to support indigenous autonomy while simultaneously constraining it. Specifically, it explores how political and bureaucratic processes have seriously limited opportunities to exercise indigenous rights to autonomy. The article makes a comparative analysis of the implications of Bolivia's experience for indigenous autonomy and plurinationalism for other resource extraction–dependent states.

Type
Research Article
Information
Latin American Politics and Society , Volume 56 , Issue 3 , Fall 2014 , pp. 46 - 69
Copyright
Copyright © University of Miami 2014

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