Conceptions of the subject of the First Nations: tensions Between Territory, Capabilities and Politics

Abstract

This article aims to analyse the conception of the subject underlying the norms concerning, the First Nations, particularly the Convention 169 of the International Labour Organization (ILO), in order to then proceed to compare it with concepts such as capable subject and political subject, proposed by Paul Ricoeur and Carlos Macusaya, respectively. Thus, firstly, some articles of the Convention 169 are examined so as to see the implicit conception of the subject, starting from the rights granted to the “indigenous” peoples. The emphasis shifts to the concept of the capable subject developed by Paul Ricoeur, who propounds different capabilities that, at the same time, make up a notion of the “subject of rights”. Further ahead, the conceptual framework described by Carlos Macusaya is presented, focusing on the expectations that are pressed upon the indigenous subject in contracts with what he dubs a “political subject”. The comparative study shows that the Convention involves an unidimensional vision of the “indigenous” subject, almost exclusively linked to the territory, alongside a conception of First Nations that denies their status as peoples endowed with all the relevant rights.