Reconstituting the citizen assembly post-political conflict in San Luis Amatlán, Oaxaca

Abstract

Purpose: To analyze the role of the community assembly as a determining instrument to exercise governance in local indigenous politics, because the various disputes between political factions erode the social fabric and increase the inequality gap.
Methodological design: A qualitative, ethnographic study in the municipality of San Luis Amatlán, Oaxaca. Fifteen in-depth interviews were carried out with authorities throughout the municipality and with the adult population. The analysis was done with the analytical categories of governance in the Internal Regulatory Systems, in addition to the participants’ opinion on the performance of the municipal administrator.
Results: It was found that the recovery of the municipal community assembly, as well as the assemblies in agencies and rancherías caused greater trust among the participants, together with an increase in the possibility of tracing a joint route to recover local governance through the election of the municipal council.
Limitations of the study: Although the ethnographic approach sought to give voice to multiple community actors and social sectors, the research had a greater relationship with the authorities because they coexist more closely with the resource administration processes and their oversight.
Findings: The community assembly is a fundamental element of the Internal Regulatory Systems which are consistent with the local customs and habits. The function of the assembly is not only to build consensus, it also acts as a means of control and administrative surveillance. Also, there is persistent conflict derived from the institutional design of indigenous municipalities, which have forms of resolution in their uses and customs such as the assembly, which is a space to address problems directly and without intermediaries.