Communal Minute Books: Writing, Ethnography, and History of the War in Peru in the 1980s.

This article examines how Peruvian highland communities in Ayacucho constructed local histories of the Shining Path war (1980–1992) through their communal minute books (libros de actas), focusing on the critical period known in Quechua as tikrakuy, when communities shifted allegiance from supporting the insurgency to opposing it. Through case studies, particularly of the multi-community settlement Manantial, the article explores how these minute books not only recorded legal and administrative matters but also actively shaped wartime social order, collective identity, and narratives by including acts of violence, trials of former militants, and communal decisions, while selectively omitting events such as massacres. The study highlights the role of intimate and collective violence in forging community cohesion and political repositioning during the war, emphasizing that these written records reflect curated truths shaped by cultural, political, and social dynamics rather than comprehensive historical accounts. It argues for reading these minute books alongside other sources to understand the complexities of civilian participation, memory, and identity formation amid conflict.