Enjeux et limites du processus de patrimonialisation comme outil de résistance : le cas de la communauté raizal sur l’île de San Andres
Abstract
In the archipelago of San Andres, Old Providence and Saint Kathleen, the actions which value, preserve and promote the cultural and environmental heritage are represented by two main policies: the recognition of the territory as a biosphere reserve (Seaflower) by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (Unesco) and the ethnic recognition of Raizal people in the Colombian constitution, passed in 1991. However, the information that was collected through my first field work shows that the common perception of this legal framework is based on a distrust feeling. A feeling that is permanently fed by the local corrupted institutions, socio-cultural and economical exclusion practices toward the Raizal people, who constitute a minority more particularly in the island of San Andres. Furthermore, the Raizal activists who are leading activities with the aim of making a stronger heritage are facing historiographical and linguistic disagreements. Finally, the isolation of this insular society, reinforced by the existing conflict between Nicaragua and Colombia, is a major obstacle to the making of a transregional heritage in relation with the neighbor Creole cultures (from Central America to the West Indies). Based on the results of the exploratory stage of my ethnographic inquiry, this article questions the notions of heritage from an anthropological perspective. To what extent do the institutional frameworks of heritage constitute an identity resistance?
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