Debates on the Legality and Legitimacy of Yage in Colombia
February 27, 2023 DOI: 10.4324/9780429001161-11 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper |
|---|---|
| Topics | Ayahuasca |
| Keywords | Principle of legality Legitimacy Indigenous Medicalization Normative State computer science Commodification The imaginary Latin americans Multiculturalism Political economy Law Politics |
| Citations | 3 |
| Key points | Argues that the legitimacy and legality of yagé use in Colombia are shaped by national multicultural policies and processes of patrimonialization and medicalization, which create challenges for its future use. |
Abstract
In Latin America, the consumption of yagé, or ayahuasca, has spread under different forms of use in each country. In Brazil, religious use is recognized, while in countries such as Peru, Ecuador, and Colombia, therapeutic use has allowed the recent expansion of ritual consumption. In fact, in the latter case, it has been the close relationship between yagé and Indianness in the national imaginary that has allowed new uses to prosper beyond traditional contexts. Despite the process of commodification and transnational expansion of this practice, the legality and legitimacy of the uses of yagé are still registered in national social and legal frameworks. This chapter explores the case of Colombia and seeks to account for the diversity of existing uses in the national territory; from the traditional uses of the Indigenous and mestizo peoples, to the new and diverse urban uses and the existing forms of social representation that legitimize them. This chapter seeks to better understand the normative and legal frameworks that regulate these uses in relation to the multiculturalism adopted by the Colombian State in the 1990s, and the policies of patrimonialization and medicalization of yagé that have been proposed in the country, in order to ponder the challenges facing the use of yagé in the future.