PANAMA: KUNA TRIBE AND ECOTOURISM

I. General Description

1. The Issue

Tourism is increasing in importance as more developing countries look toward this industry as an alternative to achieve sustainable economic growth. In particular, eco-tourism is a trend that is being embraced by some indigenous groups in Latin America in order to gain the necessary income to meet basic social needs and at the same time to reinforce their cultural identity. However, this type of economy has challenged the traditions and lifestyle of indigenous groups because by participating in a market economy they are exposed to globalization and the risk of loosing their culture and natural resources. Nevertheless, the Kuna’s in Panama is one group that has been relatively successful in maintaining a balance between western influences and their traditional culture by limiting and regulating tourism within their own autonomous territory.

2. Description

Kuna History and Culture

The Kuna are an indigenous group with a population estimated at 53,000 located mainly in Panama. The majority of Kuna Indians live in the San Blas Archipelago (Kuna Yala) located along Panama’s northeast coast. Other groups of Kuna live in scattered settlements in Darien province of Panama and in Colombia. The Kuna settled this area because they found refuge here from the subjugation of Spanish colonization. The relationship between the Kuna and the Spaniards catalyzed the beginning of the journey of struggle to maintain their traditional lifestyle and resist assimilation. Their success at maintaining isolated by moving from the mainland to the periphery has resulted in a strong cohesiveness in this group that continues to this day.

After the independence of Panama from Spain and subsequently Colombia the Kuna continued to fight for their own autonomy. Ultimately, the 1925 rebellion against government policies banning traditional dress and religious customs resulted in the successful establishment of a semi-autonomous territory (Comarca) granted to the Kuna. This special status granted control to over 365 small coral islands of the Archipelago (San Blas) and 2,357 km2 of coastal region in Darien. Under the Comarca status they have the right to internal administration of laws and social policies under the jurisdiction of the federal Panamanian government. The geographical location of the Comarca de San Blas has allowed the Kuna to remain for the most part outside of the influence of western culture. The autonomy they have achieved according to Rogelio Alba, one of the Kuna members of Congress, is “an example that many brother Indians from other countries like Nicaragua, Guatemala, and Colombia have come to see [5].”

The Kuna social structure is rather well established and organized. For the most part Kuna villages are similar although they may vary in size and degree of modernization. Kuna political life is dominated by a congress conducted by a chief and the interpreter. It is important to note that “chiefs derived their authority from their knowledge of the sacred chants, and the interpreters derived theirs from their ability to interpret the chants for the people [4].“ Elected officials preside over meetings that deal both with religious and secular affairs. During the meetings “men, children, and women in bright, intricately embroidered clothing file into a dirt-floored congress house, were the town elders sit astride hammocks [and] decide many of their own affairs according to customs practiced before Columbus [5].” There are two main types of meetings. The first is the chanting meetings open to all members of the community. These chants are meant to be a source of cultural reinforcement because they emphasize cultural figures, teach values, and the Kuna moral code. On the other hand, the talking meetings are formal gatherings of the eldest men to discuss laws and settle disputes. Agreement is reached with a consensus rather than majority vote. In addition, General Kuna Congress is held several times a year and each village sends their representatives.

The Kuna traditional economy includes hunting, fishing and farming, with tourism increasingly becoming a source of income. Although, hunting is decreasing in importance farming continues to be a form of income. Coconut farming is the main cash crop and other crops are also grown but mostly for their own consumption. Women are an important source of income because they make a traditional sewn craft called mola that they sell to tourists. Customarily “Kuna women spend hours sewing panels for their blouses and when they tire of a particular blouse, they dissemble it and sell the molas to collectors [7].” This art form reflects Kuna culture through traditional themes. Overall, Kuna society has preserved their traditions through their cohesiveness and through their value for their own culture. However, this task is more complex as tourism is displacing traditional forms of income.

Role of Tourism in Kuna Society

Tourism is an attractive source of income because it brings revenue to build and improve education and health in the community. This source of income is particularly important to indigenous groups throughout Latin America because they generally represent the poorest members of society. A world bank study shows that 95% of people living in indigenous areas live below the poverty line and 86% live in extreme poverty [16]. Socioeconomic factors such as malnutrition, low literacy rate and high infant mortality are due to unequal distribution of wealth especially among these sectors of society. Generally, it has been the case that indigenous groups are marginalized by the country's development plans. This pattern of discrimination is inherited from Latin America's colonial heritage. To address some of these issues indigenous groups are forced to come up with their own sources of income to ameliorate the socioeconomic problems. Therefore, Kunas want to create a tourism industry that will serve the needs of the community. In this mission they have to pay close attention to regulate and administer properly this industry because it poses a direct threat to their values, culture, and environment.

The Kuna in Panama currently face these tradeoffs in building a tourism industry in their territory. Since they have autonomy of their own territory they have an advantageous position to direct tourism development and therefore minimize the impact on their culture and environment. This position is an example to other indigenous groups because their political power does not allow them to be exploited by outsiders trying to cash in on their culture. The Kuna are well aware of the dangers of uncontrolled tourism as they witness this phenomenon themselves when foreign hotels were allowed to own operations within the Kuna jurisdiction in the past. However, these operations were expelled from the Comarca because of their exploitative behavior and the lack of respect for Kuna culture. Hotels owned by non Kuna panamanians from the capital ran operations within the Kuna jurisdiction and excluded the Kuna from the profits. This type of attitute created a resentment towards Panamanians from the city. As a result, today tourism is directly controlled under the supervision of the General Kuna Congress. Ironically, because the Kuna have taken charge of their own tourism activities they are seen by many Panamanians as money hungry.

Developing a tourism industry requires specialized knowledge, skills and financing. This task becomes more complex when creating a tourism industry in indigenous areas. The Kuna are aware of this challenge and have formed strategic alliances with the Panamanian Tourism Institute, various NGOs and multilateral organizations. The Kuna have opted for this approach because they can benefit from the financial and knowledge base these institutions can offer. Furthermore, the Kuna realize that in order to be competitive they must improve the quality and service of their tourism industry. Some of the principal accomplishments thus far include as pointed out by an interview with Enrique Inatoy, director of Fundacion para la Promocion del Conocimiento Indigena:

• Creation of a promotion and marketing system
• Manual on solid waste management
• Training 30 men and women to be ecotourism promoters
• Management for ecotourism resources in Kuna Yala
• Strategic plan for ecotourism development in the Kuna Yala Comarca

These steps are important to secure that there is appropriate management of resources. Also, in the vision of the Kuna these plans are in accordance to the Kuna way of doing tourism by minimizing the risk of cultural erosion.

A trip to Kuna Yala is possible via a 20 minute plane ride from the capital city. Alternatively the islands can be reached by car and then a boat ride to one of the islands. Tourists come to visit Kuna Yala from Panama and abroad. The islands are attractive to tourists because of the natual sourroundings including prestine crystal water beaches and the native coral reefs. In addition, the Kuna culture is exotic and unique. Even to many Panamanians Kuna culture and traditions are not widely known because the Kuna have always kept themselves isolated in order to protect their culture.

Overall, tourism is an attractive alternative source of income because for the most part it can bring more revenue than selling traditional commodities. Therefore, for the Kuna developing tourism is crucial in improving their living conditions. Tourists can come to the islands via airplane or by boat. The General Kuna Congress Tourism Commission "estimates that 100-200 tourists arrive every month at the 12 official hotels in the Comarca [17]." Furthermore, these estimates do not take into account cruise boat visitors that visit the island daily for a few hours at a time. Nevertheless, the inflow of visitors and its negative effects can still be controlled to the extent that the number of hotels is still regulated and cruise boats bring temporary visitors.

3. Related Cases

Keywords: "ecotourism and tourism"

Results:

Case Amazon – Ecotourism in the Amazon

Case Coasta-rica-tourism – The pros and cons of ecotourism in Costa Rica

Case Costtour – Costa Rica ecotourism

Case Uganda – Uganda tourism and environment

Case Everest – Tourism in Nepal

Case Bahia - Urban Tourism's Impact on Salvador Brazil

Case Balitour - Tourism in Bali

Case Paektu - Mt. Paektu and tourism

Case Omantour - Trade and tourism in Oman

Langkawi - Tourism in Langkawi island

Cubatour - Cuba: the Thailand of the Caribean

4. Author and Date:

Author:

Melissa Arauz

Date:

April 5, 2004

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II. Legal Clusters

Liberalization of Tourism and Kuna Legal Framework

Tourism falls under the terms of the World Trade Organization's General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS). The agreement provides the framework for the liberalization process of services including tourism trade. Under this agreement the following provisions are explored:

Part I: Scope and Definition

Part II: General Obligations and Disciplines

Part III: Specific Commitments

Part IV: Progressive Liberalization

Part V: Institutional Provisions

The Kuna have a number of protective measures governing the tourism industry that are contrary to Article XVI of the GATS on market access. The Kuna laws prohibit both investment access by non Kuna members and also limit the size of the industry. These laws violate the measures of Article XVI considering:

• limitations on the number of service suppliers whether in the form of numerical quotas, monopolies, exclusive service suppliers or the requirements of an economic needs test

Article IV specifically addresses developing countries by addressing the following issues:

• the strengthening of their domestic services capacity and its efficiency and competitiveness, inter alia through access to technology on a commercial basis;
• the improvement of their access to distribution channels and information networks; and
• the liberalization of market access in sectors and modes of supply of export interest to them.

The GATS articles pertaining to liberalization undermine the Kuna need to protect their culture and environment despite the effects on market competition.

Furthermore, these restrictions to the market are also mirrored by the tourism openness indicators published in the 2002 World Bank Development Indicators which show the extent to which Panama is open to international tourism. From 2000 to 2003 tourism openness declined by 50% from 10.69 to 5.37. These figures show that protectionism in the tourism industry overall has increased.

The goal of eco-tourism in Kuna Yala is to build tourism with a Kuna vision and at the same time create a source of income to benefit the community. For this reason the Kuna General Congress is an active participant in drafting laws that correspond to the tourism industry. The first article of the tourism statute captures this vision by declaring that: The only tourist activities and infrastructures possible in Kuna Yala will be, strictly and solely, those that respect, conserve, and value and defend the natural resources, environment and bio-diversity of the Comarca, as well as the socio-cultural, political and religious Kuna norms and customs [3]. Furthermore, the tourism articles go as far as to provide that any activity not approved by congress would be subject to appropriation. The tourism statute is important because it sets a clear plan for the objectives of tourism in Kuna Yala and diminishes the dangers of cultural erosion.

Fundamental law also establishes that Kuna members are the only ones allowed to engage in tourism activities and those wishing to engage in such must first receive written permission of the congress (Articles 2, 6, 50-52) [17]. Therefore, reinforcing the authority vested in congress to monitor tourism. These laws set a clear message that tourism in Kuna Yala will only occur on the terms that most benefit the Kuna community. Another important point to highlight is that the Kuna General Congress has even implemented regulatory and enforcement mechanisms within the context of the laws.

5. Discourse and Status: Disagreement allegation between WTO rules and Kuna Tourism Laws

6. Forum and Scope: Panama and Multilateral

7. Decision Breadth: 1

8. Legal Standing: Law

III. Geographic Cluster

9. Geographic Locations

a. Geographic Domain: North America

b. Geographic Site: Southern North America

c. Geographic Impact: Panama, Kuna Yala

10. Sub-National Factors: Yes

11. Type of Habitat: Tropical

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IV. Trade Clusters

Trade Data

Trade in travel is one of the fastest growing commercial service sectors. According to World Trade Orgainzation statistics world exports of commercial travel have increased in by 4% in 2002 from 461.3 billion to 480.9 billion and make up 30.6% of world exports of commercial services. Furthermore, the data shows that in Latin America travel services account for 54.6% of total trade of commercial services in 2002.

World exports of travel services and share in total
commercial services, 1995-02
(Billion dollars and percentage)

*Source WTO 2002 statistics Chart IV.15

Although Panama has not been one of the most popular tourist destinations in Latin America it has been increasing in popularity over the years. According to the Panamanian Tourism Institute tourism revenues have increased 26.1% from 538.1 to 678.8 million dollars. Furthermore, U.S., Colombia, and Costa Rica are the

leading source of visitors to Panama. All of the top three countries have increased in tourist visitors to Panama except Costa Rica. Overall, the total amount of visitors via airports, ports, and roads was 800,161 [9]. Among the top tourism destinations in the country are Panama City, Kuna Yala, and Bocas del Toro. Also Ecotourism is one of the fastest growing sectors in Panama's tourism industry. In this category Panama's main competitor is Costa Rica which has created a worldwide reputation for ecotourism.

.Trade policy

Tourism is directly regulated by the Kuna General Congress. The Kuna have imposed various protective restrictions on the tourism industry in the Comarca. Therefore, tourism is limited in Kuna Yala due to these restrictions. The Kuna are generally concerned about building a tourism industry that does not have a high negative impact on both culture and environment.

13. Direct v. Indirect Impacts: Direct

14. Relation of Trade Measure to Environmental Impact

a. Directly Related to Product: Yes. Tourism

b. Indirectly Related to Product: No

c. Not Related to Product: No

d. Related to Process: Yes. Culture

15. Trade Product Identification: Tourism

16. Economic Data trade statistics

17. Impact of Trade Restriction: Low. Restrictions by the Kuna General Congress does not necessarily inhibit the rise of the eco-tourism industry particularly in this area

18. Industry Sector: Service

19. Exporters and Importers: Many and Panama. The leading exporters of travel Services in 2001 were U.S., Spain, France, Italy and U.K. In 2001 the leading importers of travel services were U.S., Germany, U.K., Japan and France. These figures show that the U.S. is both the leading exporter and importer of travel services.

In addition, U.K. and France also in the top 5 for both leading exporters and importers of travel services overall in 2001.

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Ecotourism influences both the cultural environment and the natural environment. The advantage of having tourism infrastructure controlled and owned by Kuna makes it easier to control the extent tourists influence Kuna culture since they are subject to Kuna regulations. However, some critics argue that by allowing Kuna to own this type of operations a hierarchy based on income is created in a society that is supposed to be egalitarian in nature. Falla points out that “when the Kuna themselves are exclusively in charge of tourist facilities, they therefore are more closely involved with tourist and other outsiders, more easily compromising and degrading Kuna culture [1].” Therefore, it is evident that balancing western values and cultural integrity is more challenging when there is a tourism industry in the region.

The ideal Kuna vision of tourism is to manage their own natural diversity within their own territory without losing the essence of culture. The director of Fundacion para la Promocion del Conocimiento Indigena, Enrique Inatoy, points out that tourism in itself is nothing new to indigenous cultures. He tells his grandfather’s experience in engaging in knowledge tourism. Inatoy tells: “my grandfather is a medicine man…and when he wanted to deepen his knowledge and learn about other medicinal plants, he would go to a neighboring community where there was another specialist. He would go with my grandmother, taking some plantains and smoked fish to pay for their stay [21].” What is important he emphasizes is that “indigenous tourism must come from our own conception and not as a cultural or ethnic tourism package [21].” Recognizing this point the Kuna have made an effort to better educate their community on how to manage this type of tourism. This task is possible by training individuals in each community as guides in order to present visitors with a Kuna perspective on culture, religion, and history. Overall, despite these negative externalities the ultimate goal of protecting Kuna culture and traditions is better served when Kuna control and regulate the tourism industry.

Environment and Ecotourism

The environment is another area of concern for the Kuna. Some of the problems contributing to environmental degradation as a result of tourism are sanitary facilities management and potential threat of tourists going for hikes or scuba diving and damaging native plants and species. To deal with these environmental threats community based initiates by the Kuna are designed to promote management strategies for tourism. The Kuna have identified the need to educate themselves about resource management and the importance of educating others as well about the value of the environment. In addition, Kuna NGOs have been advocating the establishment of "global standards for ecologically sustainable development [19]." For example, “in one of the regions near the source of the river Chucunaque, that runs across the whole of the Darien Province, the communities are being trained to administrate and self-mange their resources for self-sustainable development [8].” This Kuna approach is a good idea because since they are indigenous to this area it only makes sense that they know the most about this area and therefore better prepared to manage their resources.

One of the most relevant lessons from the Kuna experience is their ability to control territory and natural resources inside their semi-autonomous area. The General Environmental Law passed by the Panamanian Assembly supports this belief because it "offers indigenous peoples explicit protections, guaranteeing their rights to control and develop land and resources [19]." The leaders have also realized that in order for ecotourism to work effectively compared to past experiences they must control their own tourism industry. As a result Kuna statute also states that "all tourist activities must defend the natural resources, environment and biodiversity of the Comarca [17]."

Negative Cultural Impact from Tourism

Change or loss of indigenous identity and values is the most dramatic problem of the tourism industry in indigenous areas. Some of these factors influencing cultural loss are commodification, standardization, monitarization and westernization. All these factors contribute to the decay of culture because they take away from the genuineness of the culture itself. These factors also are a symbol of how western influences can have a high impact even on relatively isolated cultures such as the Kuna.

Commodification is one of the most prevalent negative cultural impacts from tourism. The United Nations Protection and Consumption Brach describes this threat when “tourism can turn local cultures into commodities when religious rituals, traditional ethnic rites and festivals are reduced and sanitized to conform to tourists expectations [10].” This phenomenon is clearly evident in Kuna Yala with regards to the sale of molas. The mola is a traditional art form that reflects Kuna culture. In the Comarca “tourism has transformed it into a commercial trade, the art is losing its spiritual value and quality. Designs of the molas are changing according to the interest of the tourist and at the same time, women are losing their knowledge of the old designs and their meanings [11].” This change in culture is noticeable because Kuna women are making such things as molas with designs of the American flag, mola cell phone holders, and mola soda can holders to name a few. The creation of these items is an obvious reflection of western cultural demands catalyzed by the tourism boom. In addition, Claudia Quinteros makes the point that “there is so much competition that women sell their molas to tourist for just $3, which is placing no value on the effort and time invested in their creation [11].” These valid examples highlight some of the negative consequences from the tourism industry in indigenous regions by illustrating how commodification can alter Kuna traditions and introduce market values to the society.

Another source of cultural erosion is the loss of the traditional lifestyle in exchange for the quick cash from tourism. This situation especially affects the younger generation as they have no desire to participate in the traditional economy because they can get as much or more money from tourism. Therefore, there is a distortion of values and loss of ritual and traditions based on these activities. For example “a member of the CGK Tourism Commission said when the tourists did not come, and we did not have the sorts of agricultural products that we needed, it became obvious that there was too much of a shift from agriculture to tourism [17].” This example illustrates how there is dependent relationship emerging with the tourism sector. Furthermore, the shift from valuing traditional egalitarian lifestyle to valuing money is also apparent. Perhaps, the ultimate manifestation of a monitarized system is the acceptance of western culture. Especially on the more populated islands it is not "uncommon to see youth wearing sneakers, baseball caps, shorts and t-shirts [22]." This type of attitude undermines cultural values and results in a loss of indigenous identity.

In addition, there is a loss of authenticity in ethno-tourism. Therefore, tourists come with predetermined expectations that are not easily altered. This behavior causes a loss of respect for traditional culture due to certain predetermined notions that tourists may have. A member of the Junta Directiva complained: “it used to be that when visitors came to the community, they would come to the cacique and explain what they were doing and generally pay their respects. Now they don’t do that, and the local cacique feels less like a cacique, because people just come in and do what they please [17].” This lack of respect for local customs is expected as tourists come only to get a quick glance at the local life without a genuine interest in the culture. Furthermore, some standardization also occurs. Tourists may be exempt from traditions with the justification that they desire familiar things. For example “there is a rule on one island prohibiting the lighting of lamps when local leaders are having a meeting…but you cannot tell the tourist that they have to eat in the dark [17].” Tourists don’t want to eat in the dark because they are not used to that and may find themselves feeling uncomfortable in an unfamiliar environment. Ultimately, all these factors are changing indigenous values and identity. Although, the Kuna have a regulatory tourism body they cannot completely control the cultural impacts from tourism. However, they have been successful in minimizing the impacts in an organized effort.

18. World Travel and Tourism Coucil. http://www.wttc.org/

19. Wickstrom Stefanie. "The Politics of Development in Indigenous Panama." Latin American Perspectives, Issue 131, Vol 30 No. 4, July 2003 43-68.

20. Promotion of Ecological and Cultural Tourism in the Kuna Yala Comanca. http://www.eco-index.org/search/results.cfm?ProjectID=176

21. Eco-Index: Interview with Enrique Inatoy, director, Fundacion para la Promocion del Conocimiento Indigena, Panama. www.eco-index.org/new/stories/2001/july.cfm?

22. Kuna Yala. http://www.worldheadquarters.com/panama/destinations/san_blas/index.html

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