Fragmentações, Violações, and Resistência: Weaving struggle and dreams in the Carajás corridor of the Brazilian Amazon : A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy at Lincoln University

Abstract

The Estrada de Ferro Carajás is an 892 km railroad in Northern Brazil built to transports iron ore extracted by Vale S. A. from Serra dos Carajás in Pará state to ports in São Luís, Maranhão. Over the years, the connection between the railroad to other infrastructure and extractive projects has resulted on a logistics-export corridor – sometimes dubbed an “iron serpent” or “project of death” by local communities. Criss-crossing two Amazonian states, the Carajás corridor cuts through hundreds of territories of traditional peoples and communities, including Indigenous peoples, peasants, and quilombolas. Using document data and in-depth interviews interpreted through reflexive thematic analysis, this thesis aims to understand how the relationship between Vale, the state, and quilombolas contributes to the formation, expansion, and maintenance if the Carajás corridor. This thesis identifies contradictions at the heart of the iron serpent: instead of a connecting entity promoting progress, development, and cohesion, this research positions the railroad as a place of ‘Fragmentação’, ‘Violações’, and ‘Resistência’. Processes of Fragmentação (fragmentation) separate a contiguous quilombola territory in more easily manageable entities to favour the corridor. Violações (violations) encompass the cumulative harm caused by Vale and the Brazilian state in the enactment of resource regulations. Meanwhile, processes of Resistência (resistance) challenge the formation, expansion, and maintenance of the corridor, and are performed by quilombola communities and allies. This thesis brings important contributions to studies on development and resource extraction. Previous studies have tended to position mining companies as the most powerful actors in extractive areas, coercing the state to disregard regulations. My research points to a more nuanced scenario, in which the state itself enables, enacts, and relies on socioenvironmental harm - thus co-producing harm in the corridor alongside Vale. This thesis also introduces the concept of ‘silencing zones’ to reflect the physical, symbolic, and normative strategies enacted by Vale and the state to harm communities in the corridor. Finally, this study contributes to the growing literature on environmental justice by presenting community-led initiatives to resist extractive pursuits within and beyond the state, weaving new threads for state-making and territorial autonomy.