Land and Caciques! On the Mismanagement of the Commons and the Infringement on Freedom

Abstract

This paper provides a counterexample to the theory that the infringement of freedom is the solution to the tragedy of the commons dilemma. From the outside, it is possible to depict the exploitation of precious timber in an Oaxacan indigenous community’s forest as a case of abuse, where many individuals overuse a limited resource in pursuit of their own interests. If this is the case an authority would be required to restrict damage to the shared resource through coercion, according to Garrett Hardin (1968, 1998). However, the actual situation has little to do with the economic logic and game theories, which support the thesis of those articles. In reality, this over-exploitation of the valuable hardwood lumber is not caused by the resources’ common condition or communal land tenure. It is actually the result of an authority that coerces and infringes upon freedom through cultural rather than economic logic, defined by asymmetric reciprocity, patronage, brokerage, and the protection racket. Therefore, it is wrong to interpret this situation as the economic disaster of the commons, which is as tragic as it is inevitable.