Socio-territorial transformations in the amapaense Amazon: disputes and resistances in the Conceição do Macacoari quilombola territory

Abstract

The Conceição do Macacoari quilombo is an ancestral territory located in Amapá, on the margins of the AP-70 highway, and has recently gained official recognition as a quilombola territory by National Institute for Colonization and Agrarian Reform (INCRA). This work analyzes the recent transformations provoked by land conflicts resulting from the land properties expansion for agribusiness activities settled in still public areas. The construction of this research refers to the dialectical method based on the analysis through the class dispute about the appropriation and use of the lands. It used primary data through qualitative interviews and secondary data with conflicts registered by the Pastoral Land Commission (CPT). The results point to the emergence of the community, and its problems, including disputes resulting from economic practices in the countryside, real estate speculation agents, and changes in land legislation. It defends the importance of safeguarding the rights of quilombola peoples concerning their ways of life practices threatened by land grabbing or contamination of the environment by capitalist agriculture.