The creative use of the law by indigenous communities. The case of the Kalfulafken mapuche community

Abstract

This article is based on analysis of the process of ethnopolitical organization undertaken by the indigenous families of Carhué as a community and recognition from the provincial state, the greatest expression of which can be seen when they began the process ofapplying for legal status in 2018. The objective of this article is to reflect on the creative use of the law by those stakeholders who are directly affected, and how they interpret and use it to carry out their projects. It considers the role of the state in local areas and how po-pular (legal and extra-legal) practices are continuously shaped by and interrelated with these laws.

To this end, we will first return to some issues on which indigenous peoples appeal and seek to participate in the international arena, to later examine the relationship of original communities with the Argentine State at the local level through the specific case of the Kal-fulafken de Carhué Mapuche community.

The methodology with which we approached this work was that provided by the perspective of Social Anthropology, triangulating ethnographic technique, looking for sources, and bibliographic reading. This examination began with a bibliographic survey of the theoretical and empirical background on the subject in question. We then compiled primary and secondary sources, as well as complementary cases through work in the zonal archive. Subsequently, various work guidelines were defined in consultation with the community to deepen the investigation’s objectives and advance with the procedures to apply for legal status.