The bodies of the river: mobility and social strategies on the Maroni

Abstract

Our article is dedicated to the study of the social function of a river in Western French Guiana in the mobility and cross-border migration of populations. The Maroni River located on the borderland of French Guiana and Suriname is the epicentre of constant movements between the towns of St.-Laurent-du-Maroni (in Guyana) and Albina (in Suriname). Marked by an exponential population growth, birth rate and a significant net migration as well as a strong impoverishment of the people, this region is also subject of political regulation which seems not to grasp the profound dynamism in terms of social organization, commercial transactions and the organization of the communities. We will therefore study this asymmetry between the realities of migration and of Biopolitic devices suffered by the populations of the Maroni River. This analysis through will then allow us to better understand the central River, perceived role as a border by the State French and lived as a hub of community relations for the people.

Keywords

• Biopolitics. Guyana. Borders. Migration. Communities.