Lines in the Sand: Nationalism and Identity on the Peruvian-Chilean Frontier (review)

The Tacna-Arica dispute is Latin America's equivalent to the Alsace-Lorraine question: a bitter argument over land lost in war. Happily, the competing nations, Peru and Chile, managed to resolve their dispute peacefully. Because the issue of ownership of this territory lasted so long, 1883-1929, it has generated countless books, pamphlets, and, of course, speeches. Yet another volume would seem redundant but the author of this work has offered a new interpretation: he argues that both "invented" their nations by focusing on the boundary issue. While analyzing this process, Skuban focused on how space, class, gender, generation, and community influenced the notion of citizenship. At the same time, the author tried to show how Chile "reinvented" Tacna and Arica after years of belonging to Peru.

To achieve this goal the author refers to the works of Jürgen Habermas and others to build a theoretical framework for his book. While interesting, such efforts do not enhance this volume. On the contrary, it works to shoe-horn the material into a construct without enhancing its message. In part, this problem results from a lack of data. For example, Skuban mentions how both nations tried to integrate the coveted territories. Curiously, he does not refer to Chile's successful absorption of Tarapacá and Atacama. Admittedly, Chileans historically outnumbered the Bolivians in the Atacama, but the Peruvians constituted a substantial portion of Tarapacá's population. Did these elements seamlessly integrate into Chilean society? As the author hinted, it was the size of Chile's population in Arica that facilitated the annexation of that area, while Tacna posed more of a problem. If so, then all the talk about national identity formation tends to fade in comparison to the issue of population.

Another problem is that the author at times fails to provide concrete examples to support his argument. In stating, for example, "Patriotic literature reinforced loyalty and love for the absent fatherland, and it equally helped intensify the feeling of local identity experienced by people in Tacna and Arica" (p. 120), one is left wondering where the evidence is to buttress this assertion. What did the Peruvian and Chilean history books say to their juvenile readers? How many Peruvian priests were deported and who replaced them? Did the clergy really exercise that much influence in the disputed area? How did the Peruvian population respond when Santiago expelled its clergy and closed its schools; how were the dispossessed residents of Tacna compensated for these losses? While it is extremely difficult to estimate the size of the pro-Peruvian demonstrations, does he have any idea of how many participated? How big were the various anti-Chilean organizations? One might also wish to see how the Peruvian press coordinated its activities with those of the pro Lima elements in Tacna. Similarly, although Skuban purports to include the Indian reaction to Chilean occupation, he does not go beyond citing one example relating to a water dispute. Again, how representative is that single incident? The issue of Indian involvement is crucial. As Nelson Manrique indicated, the highland Indians loathed the Peruvian oligarchy and they used the resistance to Chile during the War of the Pacific in order to seize hacienda land. If so, how can Skuban claim that these same Indians suddenly felt such affection for the Peruvian government, particularly after their former masters—and that term is used deliberately—reasserted their control following the war?

The author's use of limited examples, without indicating how representative they were, raises more important questions than it answers. In a sense, we do not really understand the depth of the feeling. And as recent public opinion polls indicate, it is difficult to gauge a nation's temperament, even in an era of so-called scientific polling. Thus this book raises various questions but, unfortunately, does not answer them.