La Falda Invasion

The National Context

It is not possible to address the 1930s stage of the campaign by remaining within the confines of Huasicancha alone. Instead we must draw together a number of threads to construct a quite complicated net of national, regional, and local social, economic, and political factors. This is hardly surprising since we have seen in chapter 4 that a number of Huasicanchinos were, by this stage, involved in work on the contratos viales, seasonal migration to coastal plantations, and migration to Huancayo that involved a combination of formal educational and work experiences. The Mantaro Valley was increasingly becoming a region of small-scale commercial operations (Long and Roberts 1978) and in August 1937 the Minas Cercapuquio S.A. was established.^[4] Reference to chapter 3 will remind us that it was precisely during this period that Manuel Pielago, operator of Hacienda Tucle, was rationalizing operations, expanding his flocks, reducing areas of pasture available to villagers, and attempting to tighten control over his own employees, the shepherds.

Though like all periods of crisis in Peruvian national politics, the issue is controversial; it is important for us to attain some distinct characterization of political conditions at the national level. Huasicanchinos were themselves attempting to reach some such conclusions about the national political situation, and discussions to this end were now part of daily village discourse. From 1930 to 1933 "the centre did not hold." Julio Cotler (1979: 229) describes the situation as follows:

All the while the popular masses were organized rapidly particularly around APRA and its chief Haya de la Torre. It was from here that the confrontation between the propertied class, now politically disintegrated, and the popular masses, in the process of consolidation, defined the situation as prerevolutionary. Nevertheless, three years later, in 1933, this period closed with the trend being thrown into reverse. The propertied bloc united around Benavides . . . and the military, defeating the popular movement which had tried to destroy the oligarchic state.

There was indeed a period of civil war that most immediately affected the coastal towns but nevertheless had the effect of opening political debate after a long period in which it seemed irrelevant. A massacre in Trujillo in July 1932 set the course for mutual hostility between APRA and the military for subsequent decades. Leguia's successor, Sanchez Cerro, was assassinated in 1933, as a result of which APRA went underground once more. Meanwhile, in the central sierras, in November 1934 uprisings occurred in Ayacucho and Huancavelica while unrest was sufficient in Huancayo itself that the Third Infantry Batallion was dispatched from Lima (Tello 1971: 123).

To understand the role of rural insurgency, indeed of any rural political expression at this time, it is important to recognize the precise character of this period, which revolves around the specific nature of Sanchez Cerro's caudillaje and the stage of development of the Peruvian Left. Sanchez Cerro, who often described himself as El negro and whose Indianess was sufficiently shocking to the Lima bourgeoisie for one contemporary to liken him to an orangutan (Werlich 1978: 187), was not part of Peru's military establishment and could not count on its unquestioned support. His presidency therefore cannot be seen as one that posed an alternative between an authoritarian military figure and a popular, democratically run political party of the left, headed by Haya de la Torre. And among the Huasicanchinos, while a few significant figures, chiefly migrants (among them Elias Tacunan, see below) became active in APRA, others became outspoken "cerristas " (i.e., supporters of Sanchez Cerro).

Much of the discussion in Huasicancha must be seen in the context of the chaos within the Peruvian left. Mariategui, who had resisted Soviet control over the Peruvian Socialist Party, died in the same year as Leguia's term ended, and the PSP split along national versus Moscow lines. APRA was in the process of being reorganized along emphatically authoritarian lines by the Huancayo school teacher who remained a staunch advocate of this "vertical organization" throughout his political career: Ramiro Prialé (Werlich 1978: 204; see also Klarén 1973). Indeed APRA during this period is best understood less as a party of the left than as the petty bourgeois nationalist party that Mariategui called it in 1928.

The prevailing national political conditions within which Huasicanchinos operated then are characterized by a situation in which struggles over control of the state persistently neglected "the peasant question." Crises at the center arose that were not immediately resolved, and in this atmosphere peasant initiatives secured minor footholds. As the century progressed, a new element was added to the pattern: peasant initiatives in the highlands, combined with the failure of one side or another to resolve the crises at the center, acted to force the relevance of the peasantry into the programs of national political parties. The continued absence of any decisive victory of such parties, however, left the peasant question—and the relation of the parties of the left to

it—unresolved, and, hence, the failure of those parties to succeed in providing any leadership or control of the movements.

The Local Situation

Such at least was the case for the Huasicanchinos. We must remind ourselves of their composition at this stage. On the one hand, the period of uneasy tension with Tucle was giving way to open conflict. Many pastoralists continued to tackle the problem of their access to pasture by either taking jobs within the haciendas that gave them grazing rights or seeking out remote pastures, which either remained freely available for high altitude llama grazing or were rented from communities in Huancavelica. On the other hand, we have seen at the beginning of chapter 4 that many domestic enterprises were undergoing a process of fragmentation as individuals sought income sources beyond the community, while the interhousehold institutions for dealing with the situation had not been adequately established.

We can now turn to the roles of three Huasicanchinos during this period. By the time of the Peruvian crisis of 1930 to 1933, a number of the sons of Huasicancha's better-off pastoralists had achieved some degree of formal education in Huancayo and were working there or in Lima. Elias Tacunan was one. The son of a caporal working on neighboring Hacienda Antapongo, he had trained as an electrician and joined APRA in Lima in 1931. He was active in the village during the national elections, but by 1936 had fled to Chile as a result of the persecution of APRA activists. But by then he had transmitted his interest in APRA, if in a somewhat confused manner, to a number of the Huasicanchino pastoralists, one of whom, Sabino Jacinto, was alcalde of the newly formed municipality.^[5] Jacinto was, for the hacienda and villagers alike, a symbol of the kind of independent-minded pastoralist who was a perpetual scourge to authorities. It was he who provided the frontline tactics of the campaign for La Falda.

Involved throughout the period prior to 1930 in various incidents of violence, rustling, and banditry, Jacinto had been born in a mountain estancia sometime around 1885. With the return of hacendado control of the area in the 1890s he went to Huancayo at the age of seven and was earning his own living there soon after. This was followed by eight years as a shepherd on Hacienda Laive and Hacienda Ingahuasi and then as a butter maker there. Around 1910 he was involved in a battle over land that broke out between Huasicancha and the neighboring community of Chacapampa. Although there were a number of deaths, neither side was prepared to refer the matter to outside authorities and, to this day, nobody is prepared to discuss the casualties.^[6] Jacinto was accused of violence and imprisoned, which was only the first of many sojourns in prison. He then found work as a shepherd on Hacienda Tucle where he worked from fifteen to seventeen years.^[7] But as tensions rose

between the neighboring communities of Chongos Alto and Colca over attempts to set up municipalities independent of Colca, Jacinto became involved again, and in 1927 there was a fight in which one person died and a number were injured.

This then was the pastoralist alcalde who held office as Huasicancha pursued its recognition as a Comunidad Indígena. He, and pastoralists like him, were to spearhead the de facto recuperation of lands. But first the legal proceedings had to be set in motion. And for this part a number of the young Huancayo migrants were to play their roles. One of these was Martín Ramos, and his role in this campaign forms an important part of local history. To grasp the importance of this account it is worth remembering that the 1930s was a transitional period for the Huasicanchinos both in terms of the reformulation of their domestic enterprises and in the reformulation of their political experience. Oral accounts of Martín's participation in events at this stage represent attempts to resolve many of the contradictions and uncertainties that resulted from these objective conditions.

Unlike the villagers in Ciro Alegria's El mundo es ancho y ajeno (Broad and Alien is the World), the people of Huasicancha were never assured of the responsibility or loyalty of one leader over another.^[8] Nor were they certain of the kind of wiles required for the successful pursuit of the campaign. And these are factors that are contained in the account that follows. What is being discussed at the opening of this account—told on numerous occasions by the old people of the village—is who should handle the legal side of community recognition and what kind of skills such a person would require, for they would undoubtedly be opposed by the hacienda owner.^[9]

Martín arrived back in the village. He had been away for a long time. He found the villagers drinking aguardiente provided for them by the hacendado. He lectured to them on the need to do something in the courts about legal recognition. But they told him to go away. He was just a young man who should respect his elders.

But when they sobered up, they thought well of Martín's advice and sought him out. They told him to go to Huancayo and represent Huasicancha to the government officials. So Martín said,

"I will need money. A lot of money."

So the authorities went away and that same night they went to each house and they collected a cota (head tax, quota) from each household head. Then Martín set out for Huancayo that same night, by foot.

When Martín arrived in court (sic) Duarte saw him and was furious because he knew that Martín was very cunning.^[10]

"Why is this man here," he said. "He cannot be a Huasicancha delegate. He was born in Colca. Therefore he cannot be a legitimate comunero." Martín was very disheartened and he left the court.

He returned to the village and told the authorities. It was very late at night.

"This is not a problem," they said. And the alcalde made up a new birth certificate for Martín saying that he was born in Huasicancha. Martín returned to Huancayo.

Duarte was furious to see him back. But Martín produced his birth certificate and showed it to him.

"Look!" said Duarte. "He is not yet twenty-one. He cannot be a comunero." So Martín was downcast once more. He returned to the village. But, once there, the authorities simply laughed. The alcalde was brought in once again and the date duly changed. Martín returned that same night to Huancayo. But this time Duarte complained that he was not married and therefore not a household head and could not be a proper delegate.

Again Martín traveled back to the village, certain this time that nothing could be done. But the authorities once more found a solution. It was very late, but they went from house to house and all the young women of the village were brought and lined up. Martín went down the line and picked one. He was married that night, but before they could even consummate the union, he had to leave his wife in a cold bed and go back to Huancayo.

Later the villagers built Martín a house by communal labor. Today he travels all over the mountains and no longer lives in Huasicancha.

So goes the constantly-repeated account of Martín's successful application for Huasicancha's recognition, played out against the persistent opposition of the hacendado. In fact his activities were directed toward the Sección de Asuntos Indígenas in Lima and were carried on chiefly through the mail. The first thing Huasicancha had to do was to establish that it could claim recognition as a native community. Later their claims to lands as being inalienably those of the community would be verified through ocular inspections of de facto possession. So Ramos initiated proceedings in Lima on 8 April 1936. The statements that were drawn up were composed by him and two colleagues with similar backgrounds. The request, apart from laying claim to the majority of Tucle's land, all the land of Hacienda Rio de la Virgen, part of Hacienda Antapongo, and some of the land presently used by Chongos Alto, also stated that:

1. the present tenant, Manuel Pielago, goes so far as to claim that the owner, Maria Luisa Chavez, possesses the entire strip between the pampa and the river;

2. he has been "disrupting our tranquility" [a direct quote from earlier documents], abusing his influence in Huancayo and even sending some of us to jail without the least motive;

3. we cannot survive economically without this land;

4. recognition will give us more power to repossess our rightful land.

It is important to note that the request makes little reference to the titles that Huasicancha possessed, relying rather on the claim of "economic necessity."

It is important to note that the request makes little reference to the titles that Huasicancha possessed, relying rather on the claim of "economic necessity." Secondly, there is no attempt to disguise the motive behind the request for recognition—to repossess the land.

Huasicancha was then told to present any documents that the community might possess, and Ramos requested that the Huancayo Property Registration office send the notarized documents registered in 1919. The letter he later wrote to the Sección complaining of the bureaucratic inefficiency in the registry is revealing. Ramos's suspicion of the motives of the petty bureaucrats is nothing new, but his confrontational attitude toward them and his propensity to write critically of political authorities generally (not just as they affect Huasicancha) is a measure of the radicalization of Huasicanchinos that had occurred through the heightened discourse of the early 1930s:

The notables and members of the Community of Huasicancha inform me that it is two weeks since the primera autoridad of Huancayo received the request for the respective statement concerning the titles of the Community. But despite telegrams sent by you, said authority remains determined to withhold the statement, thus hindering our recognition in this way . . .

It appears that political authorities in the provinces systematically dedicate themselves to withholding reports for month after month without justifiable cause and against the completion of the legal proceedings which are required in these cases which, in fact, should be speeded up because, as indigenas we require protection and the permanent solution of our claims. (O.A.J.)^[11]

Huasicancha received recognition on 27 October and the center of interest moved back to the village.

There Jacinto had to busy himself and other villagers preparing the scene for the ocular inspection of de facto possession. An initial claim was made in Huancayo that reflected Huasicancha's own belief that they had acted as the focal point of the montonera campaign of the 1880s, for the Huasicanchino claim was for the return of virtually all the land that had been occupied by the montoneras prior to the reestablishment of hacendado control in the mid-1890s (see chap. 3). Claims were laid to pastures in all the local haciendas: Tucle, Rio de la Virgen, Antapongo, Laive, and Ingahuasi, as well as to lands claimed by some other local villages. A correspondent from Laive wrote that the campaign, "has been thought up, they tell me, by one Sabini or Sabino Román who used to work on Ingahuasi and who has recently been made alcalde" (Hobsbawm 1974: 137ff).^[12] Though he referred to the claims as "baseless and absurd," it is interesting to note that in claiming such a sudden expansion in territory, Huasicanchinos were only following the example of Hacienda Tucle at the turn of the century.

Even so, apart from the opposition this generated from other communities (Chacapampa, with whom Huasicancha had fought earlier, wrote to the

Sección de Asuntos Indígenas suggesting that the municipal center should be moved from Huasicancha to their village, in view of Huasicancha's aggression), it is obvious that the Huasicanchinos could not occupy anything like this area. In order to establish de facto possession a different piece of real politique came into play. The area of land chosen lay between Haciendas Tucle and Rio de la Virgen. If it belonged to either of the two haciendas rather than to Huasicancha, it was obviously Rio de la Virgen's, but that hacienda was in a chaotic state owing to family squabbles, and so Pielago and Mackenzie were using the land themselves. This land, known as the falda of Pachacayo, was occupied after the harvest of 1937.

Precisely who occupied this land? Nominally those who occupied the land were "those who owed friendship to Sabino." Insofar as Sabino was alcalde of the village, this in effect meant all the villagers of Huasicancha. Nevertheless, a specific quality of village leadership inherited from the past that I emphasized in chapter 2 was that the line between community leadership and headship of a family branch was often unclear, and village leaders frequently used this lack of clarity to the advantage of their most immediate kin. There is evidence that Huasicanchinos were already worried about this aspect of Jacinto's leadership from the moment the land occupation took place (Letter Juez de Paz, Huasicancha to Hacienda Tucle 5 July 1937. A.R.A.). And as the events proceeded, discussions ensued in the village over the character of the elder members of a family on the one hand and the offices of community authorities on the other. "One day he [Jacinto] tells me he commands here; the next day he tells me, 'Uncle? Do not call me uncle. I am no uncle of yours" (minutes of community meeting, 1937, day and month not recorded, A.C.). Engagement in this discussion was made the more pressing because most of the land occupied was arable, and while all communal pasture was held communally, most arable land was held de facto by individual households.

In any event Mackenzie made a deal with the Huasicancha authorities for a very small portion of the land on condition that the villagers fence it. They agreed to the deal, but neither fenced it nor budged from the falda. The administration of the hacienda were considerably alarmed, therefore, when in August of that year they heard that the Sección de Asuntos Indígenas were sending officials to conduct an ocular inspection of the boundaries.^[13] Determined to have at least some documentary evidence to fall back on, Maria Luisa Chavez now registered Bernarda Pielago's "taking of possession" document with a notary.

During the ocular inspection Jacinto became increasingly unhappy with the behavior of the man sent from Lima, eventually concluding that he had been bribed by the hacienda. An argument ensued, and Jacinto was arrested. He was taken to Huancayo where he was accused of being a communist agitator disturbing the otherwise peaceful communities of the area. He was shipped thence to Lima, and two men from the nearby community of Moya were

found to give evidence against him. According to Jacinto's account of events, he was beaten with a rubber hose and kept in a darkened cell, and at one time was offered a bribe to sign a statement that he refers to as un canto (a song).^[14] He claims that he was planted with political leaflets and that the statement he made was altered. Finally he was moved to the prison island of El Fronton from which, he says, "He sido loco saliendo de la carcel" ("I was mad on leaving the prison"). Importantly, while obviously Jacinto's account has its own perspective, like Laimes before him, he never denies being a troublemaker, nor that he was a supporter of APRA during this time. At one point in the interview he said, "No estaba por la izquierda, sino por nuestros derechos" ("I was not for the Left, but for our rights"). Eventually, in 1940, the Sección did recognize Huasicancha's claim to a small piece of land on the falda. Meanwhile Hacienda Tucle settled a piece of land on the community that was claimed entirely by Jacinto and his immediate relatives. Once in possession of this land, moreover, Jacinto began to work for the hacienda.

There were then lessons to be learned from this settlement. Not only was undue support given to Jacinto's leadership, but the precise nature of the land being struggled over and Jacinto's role in that struggle, though debated, was never settled prior to the hacienda's concessions. And not only was the amount of land thus gained disappointing, but the settlement neither effectively challenged Maria Luisa Chavez's claim to the pastures used by the hacienda nor established the community nature of the land-claim (and hence the rights of all comuneros). And finally the identification of the hacendada and hacendado with the national government was made manifest when, in 1939, Manuel Pielago became a senator for Huancayo.