The term Pisatario is used in Venezuela to refer to the farmer who rents the surface he works , according to what is detailed by the Royal Spanish Academy ( RAE ) in its dictionary. This means that the Pisatario disburses money as a lease for the land that is dedicated to cultivating.
It is important to keep in mind, however, that the use of pisatario may vary. The formal definition is linked to the peasant who, through the payment of a fee , cultivates land that is not his property. Therefore, in this framework, the Pisatario is in charge of renting the land and working it.
However, as the years went by, the notion of Pisatario acquired another meaning. A Pisatario is someone who lives in an informal settlement in an urban or peri-urban area , occupying land without paying and without legal permission. These tenants or occupants, therefore, make use of the surface and do not pay any fee or rent to the owner.
You have to understand the concept, therefore, in its context. A Pisatario can be a farmer who pays to use a field or an individual who illegally occupies public or private land to settle.
In the latter case, the formalization and legalization of the occupation is often sought . The inhabitant can remain in the occupied area for many years, developing his home and establishing links with the place and the environment. Thus, it is common for the State to try to help, through various mechanisms, so that the subject can have ownership of the land.
Precisely because of this circumstance, in Venezuela there is the so-called Special Law for the Comprehensive Regularization of Land Tenure in Popular Urban Settlements. This is made up of six titles in which all the necessary aspects for the aforementioned regularization in favor of coexistence and justice are included: basic urban planning, regularization of land tenure, organization, social comptrollership...
These general issues include more specific ones about the property holder such as the survey of plots, the granting of the title of permanence or adjudication, the right of preference in the event of sale or even the recognition of the acquisition of the right of ownership by usucapion , among others. things.
Likewise, it establishes the objectives, missions and functions of an important organization in this field, such as the National Technical Office for the Regularization of Urban Land Tenure. And it plays a key role, above all, when it comes to resolving conflicts over the ownership and use of certain lands.
Precisely an interesting book about these types of tumbarios mentioned is the one titled "The Book of Caricuao", which is written by Federico Villalba. This addresses the presence of those in different corners of the world throughout the 20th century.
In the same way, we cannot ignore that this type of squatters who illegally occupy private or public land in other countries are known as occupiers or directly squatters.