Social conflicts in times of environmentalism: living law rights to land in settlements with a conservationist focus

Abstract

In this paper, we discuss the social conflicts linked to agrarian and environmental policies in the history of the Virola Jatobá Sustainable Development Project (SDP), in the municipality of Anapu, State of Pará. The social and legal practices of family units living in the SDP were used as the basis for understanding the concept of land rights under living law. During the processes of occupation, creation and implementation of the SDP, we observed the renewal of the living law concept which originally emanated from the notion of land belonging to those who work it, reinforced by notions of relative autonomy and environmental care. The description of living rights reveals the peasants' resistance strategies in their struggles for land and negotiations with government to guarantee their land rights. The environmental appeal of the SDPs did not manage to overcome the institutional problems of implementing these policies in the Transamazonica region, rather it masked social conflicts by imposing rules justified by sustainability.

Keywords

• Social conflicts
• Agrarian and environmental policies
• living law
• Sustainable Development Project
• Peasants