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Comments on “Bronislaw Malinowski, l’antropologia pratica, la politica e il colonialismo” by Antonino Colajanni,with contributions by Marco Bassi, Valeria Ribeiro Corossacz, Antonio De Lauri, Frederico Delgado Rosa, Andrea E. Pia, Leonardo Piasere, Daniela Salvucci, Ivan Severi, Barbara Sorgoni, Jaro Stacul, Giuseppe Tateo, Elisabeth Tauber, Dorothy L. Zinn, Pier Paolo Viazzo, with a response from the author., Commenti a “Bronislaw Malinowski, l’antropologia pratica, la politica e il colonialismo” di Antonino Colajanni, con contributi di Marco Bassi, Valeria Ribeiro Corossacz, Antonio De Lauri, Frederico Delgado Rosa, Andrea E. Pia, Leonardo Piasere, Daniela Salvucci, Ivan Severi, Barbara Sorgoni, Jaro Stacul, Giuseppe Tateo, Elisabeth Tauber, Dorothy L. Zinn, Pier Paolo Viazzo e una risposta dell’autore.

Through review of selected anthropological ethical codes an attempt is made to outline the fundamental ethical principles of anthropological research and their applicability to current practices of applied anthropology. The Statement on Problems of Anthropological Research and Ethics was adopted by the American Anthropological Association in response to the need to take distance from military research after the Camelot scandal. Anthropology reacted stronger than other disciplines due to its methodology implying a relation of trust with the community. The Codice etico of AISEA defines the anthropologist’s obligations with different type of actors. In applied anthropology more attention should be paid to the relation with the financers of the research, due to possible conflict of interest between the latter and the concerned community. During consultancies anthropologists are today often forced into conditions that do not allow them to fulfil the obligations as stated in most deontological codes. Yet, giving up would cut the anthropologist out of the ongoing processes that have often a potential critical impact on the communities. The Codes of Ethics of ISE has allowed overcoming serious controversies by referring to procedural rights according to international law. It is suggested that reference to procedural and collective rights, appropriate international standards and best practices can provide an appropriate device to evaluate case by case the opportunity to engage, considering the overall field of relations rather that strictly focusing on the anthologist’s obligations which each actor independently.

L’approccio allo sviluppo che considera la crescita economica come unico obiettivo può produrre degli effetti deleteri sui gruppi marginalizzati. Lo sviluppismo adottato in Etiopia dal 1991 illustra questo punto con riferimento ai contadini, ai popoli pastorali e alle minoranze etniche. La riflessione internazionale sullo sviluppo e il progresso nel campo dei diritti umani hanno portato all’emergere di nuovi paradigmi. L’articolo mostra come le misure correttive siano state caratterizzate da una crescente attitudine ‘relativistica’, che consiste nel dare considerazione alla rilevanza di articolazioni particolari di cultura, norme formali o informali, e condizioni locali. L’attitudine relativistica è prima definita e poi considerata in relazione alla compatibilità con la Costituzione Etiopica, adottata nel 1995 ma mai messa realmente in pratica. La pressione del movimento Qeerroo sta inducendo la coalizione al potere ad aprire effettivamente alla democratizzazione del paese e alla decentralizzazione. C’è quindi una concreta possibilità di rivedere anche le politiche sviluppiste, in linea sia con la Costituzione sia con i diritti umani di seconda e terza generazione. Under the development approach that targets economic growth as its sole objective the marginalised groups may seriously be impacted. The developmental policy adopted since 1991 in Ethiopia illustrates it in relation to small-holding farmers, pastoralists and ethnic minorities. At the international level, alternative development paradigms have evolved along with progress in human rights. This article shows that the corrective measures have been informed by a growing ‘relativistic’ attitude, consisting in giving consideration to the relevance of specific articulations of culture, formal or informal norms and local conditions. The relativistic attitude is first defined and then considered in terms of compatibility with the Ethiopian multinational Constitution, adopted in 1995 but never really implemented. Under the pressure of the Qeerroo movement the ruling coalition in Ethiopia is today opening up to democracy and effective decentralisation. There is today a concrete possibility to revise the country’s developmental policy, in line with the Constitution and respecting second and third generation human rights.