Mining companies accused of colonial ‘divide and rule’ tactics in their pursuit of the precious metal that lies under the country’s salt flats

• Harriet Barber in the Salinas Grandes, Argentina. Photographs by John Owens

In the vast white desert of the Salinas Grandes, Antonio Calpanchay, 45, lifts his axe and slices the ground. He has worked this land since he was 12, chopping and collecting salt, replenishing it for the seasons ahead and teaching his children to do the same.

“All of our aboriginal community works here, even the elders,” he says, sheltering his weathered face from the sun. “We always have. It is our livelihood.”