HANGA ROA: Charred Moai stone statues on Easter Island, singed in a wildfire earlier this year, are signs of a growing tension between landowners and conservationists in this tiny, remote island in the middle of the Pacific.

The island, which has been a Chilean territory since the 1880s, is known by its indigenous inhabitants as Rapa Nui and is famed for its huge monolithic human figures carved centuries ago by their ancestors.

The 164-square-kilometre island — slightly smaller than Brooklyn — has seen tension grow in recent years between old families who want to raise cattle on their ancestral lands and authorities focused on conservation.

On one side is a group of local families under the banner of the self-described Rapa Nui parliament, an offshoot of an earlier council of elders, who argue for a return to an ancient clan system for dividing up the land.

On the other: conservationists and an elected council tasked with managing the national park that makes up almost half of the island and is dotted with Moai statues. They say some people use park lands for cattle farming, at times causing fires.

“We’ve seen an exponential increase in livestock and agriculture, particularly since the start of the pandemic,” said Merahi Atam, a local archaeologist.

In October, ranchers burning pasture sparked a wildfire that tore across the island’s Rano Raraku volcanic crater and damaged several Moai.

Published in Dawn, December 7th, 2022