'' Dispute over the Status and Use of the Waters of the Silala (Chile v. Bolivia)'' is a case at the
International Court of Justice
The International Court of Justice (ICJ; french: Cour internationale de justice, links=no; ), sometimes known as the World Court, is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN). It settles disputes between states in accordanc ...
. In the case,
Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...
petitioned the Court to declare the
an "international watercourse whose use by Chile and Bolivia is governed by customary international law." Chile presented the case in 2016 while the Bolivian case against Chile, ''
Obligation to Negotiate Access to the Pacific Ocean
''Obligation to Negotiate Access to the Pacific Ocean (Bolivia v. Chile)'' was a case at the International Court of Justice. In the case, Bolivia petitioned the Court for a writ of ''mandamus'' obligating Chile to negotiate with Bolivia to resto ...
'', was still ongoing.
According to ''
France 24
France 24 ( in French) is a French state-owned international news television network based in Paris. Its channels broadcast in French, English, Arabic, and Spanish and are aimed at the overseas market.
Based in the Paris suburb of Issy-les-M ...
'' the case came as a surprise.
[
Bolivia's position is that the waters of the Silala flow into Chile through artificial channels, while Chile claims that it is an international river.
Within the context of the Bolivian demand for sovereign access to the Pacific Ocean Bolivian President ]Evo Morales
Juan Evo Morales Ayma (; born 26 October 1959) is a Bolivian politician, trade union organizer, and former cocalero activist who served as the 65th president of Bolivia from 2006 to 2019. Widely regarded as the country's first president to co ...
has threatened to reduce the flow into Chile and charge Chile for the use of its water.[
On December 1, 2022, the ICJ delivered its judgment in the case. It found that the 'parties agree with respect to the legal status of the Silala River', and therefore the Court was not called upon to give a decision.][ICJ, 'Dispute over the Status and Use of the Waters of the Silala (Chile v. Bolivia)', Judgment of 1 December 2022 (merits).]
See also
*Bofedales
Bofedales (singular ''bofedal''), known in some parts of Peru as ''oconales'', are a type of wetland found in the Andes in Peru and Chile. They are a feature in the land use and ecology of high Andean ecosystems. They form in flat areas around pon ...
References
{{reflist
International Court of Justice cases
Bolivia–Chile relations
Water conflicts