Las paradojas de la tributación. Ciudadanía y política estatal indígena en Bolivia, 1825-1900

Abstract

This article studies the access of the Bolivian indigenous people to citizenship through the analysis of the legal regulations regarding the indigenous property of the land and their role as taxpayers, as well as the political and economical arguments in the context of the debate on the agrarian reform. The work is based on three assumptions: firstly, although illiteracy was the main obstacle for the Indians' accession to citizenship, this hindrance was lessened by the fact of their being taxpayers and by their legal situation vis a vis land property; secondly, the endeavour of the state to eliminate indigenous communities was due to a homogenizing aim based on the idea that cultural diversity was an obstacle for the development of the Republic and on the wish to attain a «nation of citizens»; and thirdly, there was a gradual decrease in the society's will to assimilate Indians as Bolivian citizens.