Even in a moment of deep political crisis and despite the courageous opposition of indigenous communities to the rapid extraction of natural resources, the development of roads into the jungle is unstoppable. From a government perspective, these infrastructural developments bring a wide range of benefits to the communities. However, for some of the indigenous groups such as the Auchar people in the south east of the Ecuadorian Amazon, near the border with Peru, the supposed benefits are questionable, now more than ever.
A road from Puyo to the Amazon basin has been underway now for years cutting through the home of the Shuar and Achar communities in the rainforest. There is a tireless army of workers opening up and conquering the jungle, knocking down obstacles in their way, destroying virgin territory in the process. The road runs directly through the community of Copataza, parallel with the fast-flowing Pastaza river and crosses the Shuar territory. This community had agreed that the benefits from the road would compensate for the environmental and social losses and had also agreed to its continued construction.
But the consequences are plain to see. Along the road, there are new wooden buildings, surrounded by newly deforested areas. There is also a growing number of new evangelical churches made of brick and iron. Here and there, the influx of capital brought in by loggers is evident and along the road pylons of wood perfectly cut pile up on the roadside, ready for loading, transportation and trading. But this sudden capital can turn out to be an ephemeral mirage: once their land in the jungle has been cut down and sold, families are left impoverished and without land. Forced to sell themselves as cheap labour, they are barely surviving.
