HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The Chilean–Peruvian territorial dispute was a
territorial dispute A territorial dispute or boundary dispute is a disagreement over the possession (law), possession or control of territories (land, maritime territory, water or airspace) between two or more political entities. Context and definitions Territorial ...
between Chile and
Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...
that started in the aftermath of the
War of the Pacific The War of the Pacific (), also known by War of the Pacific#Etymology, multiple other names, was a war between Chile and a Treaty of Defensive Alliance (Bolivia–Peru), Bolivian–Peruvian alliance from 1879 to 1884. Fought over Atacama Desert ...
and ended significantly in 1929 with the signing of the Treaty of Lima and in 2014 with a ruling by the
International Court of Justice The International Court of Justice (ICJ; , CIJ), or colloquially the World Court, is the only international court that Adjudication, adjudicates general disputes between nations, and gives advisory opinions on International law, internation ...
. The dispute applies since 2014 to a 37,610 km2 territory in the
Chile–Peru border 200px, Map of the maritime and terrestrial parts of the Chile–Peru border. The Chile–Peru border is an international border of South America. It separates Chile from Peru along a line that runs about 10 km north of the Arica–La Paz rail ...
, as a result of the settled maritime dispute between both states.


Background

Unlike other South American border conflicts, after the Chilean and
Peruvian Peruvians (''/peruanas'') are the citizens of Peru. What is now Peru has been inhabited for several millennia by cultures such as the Caral before the Spanish conquest in the 16th century. Peruvian population decreased from an estimated 5–9 ...
wars of independence, both countries did not share a border until 1883 due to
Bolivia Bolivia, officially the Plurinational State of Bolivia, is a landlocked country located in central South America. The country features diverse geography, including vast Amazonian plains, tropical lowlands, mountains, the Gran Chaco Province, w ...
's
Litoral Department The Department of the Litoral, also known as the Atacama Department and commonly known as the Bolivian coast, was the description of the extent of the Pacific coast of the Atacama Desert included in the territory of Bolivia from its inception in ...
. With the
War of the Pacific The War of the Pacific (), also known by War of the Pacific#Etymology, multiple other names, was a war between Chile and a Treaty of Defensive Alliance (Bolivia–Peru), Bolivian–Peruvian alliance from 1879 to 1884. Fought over Atacama Desert ...
beginning in 1879, the Chilean
land Land, also known as dry land, ground, or earth, is the solid terrestrial surface of Earth not submerged by the ocean or another body of water. It makes up 29.2% of Earth's surface and includes all continents and islands. Earth's land sur ...
and
naval A navy, naval force, military maritime fleet, war navy, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operatio ...
campaigns saw quick success, with the war ending with Peru signing the
Treaty of Ancón The Treaty of Ancón was a peace treaty signed by Chile and Peru on 20 October 1883, in Ancón, near Lima. It was intended to settle the two nations' remaining territorial differences at the conclusion of their involvement in the War of the Paci ...
in 1883, and Bolivia signing the
Treaty of Valparaiso The ''Treaty of Valparaiso'' was an agreement between Chile and Bolivia that ended the War of the Pacific. Signed on April 4, 1884, the third treaty of the war forced Bolivia to give Antofagasta Antofagasta () is a port city in northern Chil ...
the following year. As a result of the former treaty, Peru ceded its Tarapacá Department and established a new border with Chile, while the Chilean government administered the territories of
Tacna Tacna, officially known as San Pedro de Tacna, is a city in southern Peru and the regional capital of the Tacna Region. A very commercially active city, it is located only north of the border with Arica y Parinacota Region from Chile, inland f ...
and
Arica Arica ( ; ) is a commune and a port city with a population of 222,619 in the Arica Province of northern Chile's Arica y Parinacota Region. It is Chile's northernmost city, being located only south of the border with Peru. The city is the ca ...
under the newly established Tacna Province until a
plebiscite A referendum, plebiscite, or ballot measure is a direct vote by the electorate (rather than their representatives) on a proposal, law, or political issue. A referendum may be either binding (resulting in the adoption of a new policy) or adv ...
could be held in 1894. From 1890 to 1929, Locumba served as the provisional capital of the area of the Department of Tacna not under Chilean administration, which came to be known as Free Tacna ().


Tacna and Arica dispute

In the aftermath of the signing of the
Treaty of Ancón The Treaty of Ancón was a peace treaty signed by Chile and Peru on 20 October 1883, in Ancón, near Lima. It was intended to settle the two nations' remaining territorial differences at the conclusion of their involvement in the War of the Paci ...
, the Department of Tarapacá was unconditionally ceded to Chile, being replaced by Tarapacá Province, and the provinces of
Tacna Tacna, officially known as San Pedro de Tacna, is a city in southern Peru and the regional capital of the Tacna Region. A very commercially active city, it is located only north of the border with Arica y Parinacota Region from Chile, inland f ...
and
Arica Arica ( ; ) is a commune and a port city with a population of 222,619 in the Arica Province of northern Chile's Arica y Parinacota Region. It is Chile's northernmost city, being located only south of the border with Peru. The city is the ca ...
were placed under the administration of the new Tacna Province. As per the treaty, a
plebiscite A referendum, plebiscite, or ballot measure is a direct vote by the electorate (rather than their representatives) on a proposal, law, or political issue. A referendum may be either binding (resulting in the adoption of a new policy) or adv ...
was to be held in 1894, which would determine the fate of the province. The plebiscite, however, was never carried out. During this time, the term Captive provinces () was used to refer to Tacna and Arica. During the early years of the
post-war era A post-war or postwar period is the interval immediately following the end of a war. The term usually refers to a varying period of time after World War II, which ended in 1945. A post-war period can become an interwar period or interbellum, w ...
, the Chilean and Peruvian governments exercised extensive campaigns to solidify their control over the region. On one hand, Peru established a campaign of foreign support, which attracted the attention of the United States as a mediator in the conflict. On the other hand, Chile established a campaign of
acculturation Acculturation refers to the psychological, social, and cultural transformation that takes place through direct contact between two cultures, wherein one or both engage in adapting to dominant cultural influences without compromising their essent ...
known as '' Chilenization'', which saw the establishment of
Chilean culture The culture of Chile reflects the population and the geographic isolation of the country in relation to the rest of South America. Since colonial times, the Chilean culture has been a mix of Spain, Spanish colonial elements with elements of In ...
and a Chilean population in the region. One legacy of Chilean presence in Tacna was the Tacna Prefecture, the building where the
intendant An intendant (; ; ) was, and sometimes still is, a public official, especially in France, Spain, Portugal, and Latin America. The intendancy system was a centralizing administrative system developed in France. In the War of the Spanish Success ...
resided. Local Peruvian loyalists also established
resistance movement A resistance movement is an organized group of people that tries to resist or try to overthrow a government or an occupying power, causing disruption and unrest in civil order and stability. Such a movement may seek to achieve its goals through ei ...
s, which saw armed combat on at least one occasion. To counter this and to incite an exodus of Peruvians that remained in the area, groups known as Patriotic Leagues were established.


Tarata Department

In 1885, the Department of Tarata was established by Chile as a subdivision of Tacna Province. The creation of the Department caused controversy in Peru, due to both countries disagreeing on their border in the Sama River. While the Chilean government argued the town was to the east of the river, the border agreed upon by both countries, Peru disputed this claim on the grounds that the territory was not affected by the
Treaty of Ancón The Treaty of Ancón was a peace treaty signed by Chile and Peru on 20 October 1883, in Ancón, near Lima. It was intended to settle the two nations' remaining territorial differences at the conclusion of their involvement in the War of the Paci ...
and established a policy of non-recognition. Around this time, there were claims of military escalation, including claims of Peruvian troops mobilizing near the Chilean border, which were denied by the Peruvian government. The Department was abolished under
Arturo Alessandri Arturo Fortunato Alessandri Palma (; December 20, 1868 – August 24, 1950) was a Chilean political figure and reformer who served thrice as president of Chile, first from 1920 to 1924, then from March to October 1925, and finally from 1932 to ...
's administration by law No. 3,802 on September 22, 1921. On September 1, 1925, at exactly 10 am, Chile handed over the former Department to Peru in a ceremony that took place in the main square, with representatives from both countries present: with representing Chile,
Manuel de Freyre y Santander Manuel de Freyre y Santander (29 November 1872 – 1 April 1944) was a Peruvian diplomat. He was Ambassador of Peru to the United States from 1930 to 1944 and Minister Plenipotentiary to the United Kingdom, Argentina, Colombia, China and Japan. ...
representing Peru, and General Pershing representing the United States.


Treaty of Lima

On June 3, 1929, the Treaty of Lima was signed by then Peruvian Representative
Pedro José Rada y Gamio Pedro José Rada y Gamio (15 August 1873 – 25 May 1938) was a Peruvian politician in the early 20th century. He served as the President of the Chamber of Deputies from 1921 to 1922. He was the mayor of Lima Lima ( ; ), founded in 1535 ...
and Chilean Representative Emiliano Figueroa Larraín, leading to the effective return of Tacna to Peru at midnight, on the 28th of August 1929, creating the
Department of Tacna Tacna (; Aymara and Quechua: ''Taqna'') is the southernmost department and region in Peru. The Chilean Army occupied the present-day Tacna Department during the War of the Pacific from 1885 until 1929 when it was reincorporated into Peru. Geo ...
, and Arica (both the former Peruvian Department as well as some territory of the Department of Tacna ceded by the treaty) was permanently given to Chile, being integrated into the Tarapacá Province, ending the existence of the Chilean Province of Tacna. Nevertheless, even with the border conflict officially over, controversy would continue among nationals of both Peru and Bolivia, who would continue her claims over her lost territories, seeking once again a connection to the ocean with the assistance of international mediators on the issue which is yet to be solved, and continues to this day. The handover had no official ceremony, with some Chilean officials temporarily staying behind to assist Peru regarding the new administration. Nonetheless, the return of the territory was met with celebrations in Peru, with President Augusto B. Leguía overseeing a military parade in
Lima Lima ( ; ), founded in 1535 as the Ciudad de los Reyes (, Spanish for "City of Biblical Magi, Kings"), is the capital and largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rive ...
, and church bells ringing in celebration. Some Chilean citizens, who had remained in the province after the handover asked to be repatriated.


Charaña Accords

In 1975, the Chilean government of
Augusto Pinochet Augusto José Ramón Pinochet Ugarte (25 November 1915 – 10 December 2006) was a Chilean military officer and politician who was the dictator of Military dictatorship of Chile, Chile from 1973 to 1990. From 1973 to 1981, he was the leader ...
made a proposal to Bolivia consisting in a swap of a narrow continuous corridor of Chilean land from the sea to the border between Chile and Bolivia, running parallel to the border between Chile and Peru, making the Lluta River Chile's northern border, in exchange for the same amount of Bolivian territory. The proposal, known as the Charaña Accords, involved former Peruvian land and according to the
Treaty of Ancón The Treaty of Ancón was a peace treaty signed by Chile and Peru on 20 October 1883, in Ancón, near Lima. It was intended to settle the two nations' remaining territorial differences at the conclusion of their involvement in the War of the Paci ...
, Chile could not give former Peruvian territories to other nations without Peru's agreement. Then dictator of Peru
Francisco Morales-Bermúdez Francisco is the Spanish and Portuguese form of the masculine given name ''Franciscus''. Meaning of the name Francisco In Spanish, people with the name Francisco are sometimes nicknamed " Paco". San Francisco de Asís was known as ''Pater Comm ...
was opposed to these changes but proposed to make
Arica Arica ( ; ) is a commune and a port city with a population of 222,619 in the Arica Province of northern Chile's Arica y Parinacota Region. It is Chile's northernmost city, being located only south of the border with Peru. The city is the ca ...
a territory governed by the three states. Chile responded that it could not accept this complicated shared sovereignty. Since Pinochet was likely aware that the Charaña proposals would fail in the end due to Peruvian opposition, legal and political analysts have suggested that he raised them just as a gesture towards Bolivia. Around the same time, from 1968 to 1980, President
Juan Velasco Alvarado Juan Francisco Velasco Alvarado (June 16, 1910 – December 24, 1977) was a Peruvian Army general, general who served as the President of Peru after a successful 1968 Peruvian coup d'état, coup d'état against Fernando Belaúnde's presidency ...
once again referred to Arica and Tarapacá with the term ''captive provinces''.


Maritime dispute

The maritime dispute between Chile and Peru concerned the sovereignty of an area in the Pacific Ocean approximately in size. Peru contended that its
maritime boundary A maritime boundary is a conceptual division of Earth's water surface areas using physiographical or geopolitical criteria. As such, it usually bounds areas of exclusive national rights over mineral and biological resources,VLIZ Maritime Boun ...
delimitation with Chile was not fixed, but Chile claimed that it holds no outstanding border issues with Peru. On January 16, 2008, Peru brought forth the case to the
International Court of Justice The International Court of Justice (ICJ; , CIJ), or colloquially the World Court, is the only international court that Adjudication, adjudicates general disputes between nations, and gives advisory opinions on International law, internation ...
at
The Hague The Hague ( ) is the capital city of the South Holland province of the Netherlands. With a population of over half a million, it is the third-largest city in the Netherlands. Situated on the west coast facing the North Sea, The Hague is the c ...
, the
Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...
, which accepted the case and formally filed it as the ''Case concerning maritime delimitation between the Republic of Peru and the Republic of Chile – Perú v. Chile''. The issue was first addressed in the 1980s by the then Foreign Minister of Peru, Allan Wagner, with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Chile at the time, Jaime del Valle. The following year, the Peruvian Ambassador had an interview with Foreign Minister Jaime del Valle on this matter, and handled a diplomatic note, dated May 23, 1986, known as the Bákula Memorandum (). The document proposed the negotiation of maritime boundaries, supporting the Peruvian position that Chile and Peru had never signed a treaty that would delimit the maritime boundary between the two countries. On January 27, 2014, the court ruled in favor of Peru. Under the ruling, Chile lost control over part of its formerly claimed maritime territory and ceded additional maritime territory to Peru. The ruling was met with criticism in Chile, with several figures criticizing the government's handling of the case.


''Punto Concordia'' dispute

A dispute regarding a
milestone A milestone is a numbered marker placed on a route such as a road, railway, railway line, canal or border, boundary. They can indicate the distance to towns, cities, and other places or landmarks like Mileage sign, mileage signs; or they c ...
known as Milestone 1 or Concordia Point () and the area it establishes, known as the land triangle (), was revived as a result of the ICJ ruling, due to the disagreement on where the new maritime border was to begin. The dispute consists of a bilateral disagreement on the exact location of the milestone, as both Chile () and Peru () have different locations for the exact placement. Both countries also claim to patrol the area, the former with the ''Quebrada de Escritos'' observation point and the latter with the ''Francisco Bolognesi'' outpost. The milestones were first established by a border commission in 1930, 180 meters away from the coast (). In the 1950s, maritime-related treaties and documents were signed by both countries:
Ecuador Ecuador, officially the Republic of Ecuador, is a country in northwestern South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. It also includes the Galápagos Province which contain ...
, Chile and Peru in 1952 and 1954, and Peru in 1955. Several inconsistencies regarding the exact placement of the border and is continuity with the maritime border led to a notification sent from Peru to United Nations
Secretary-General Secretary is a title often used in organizations to indicate a person having a certain amount of authority, Power (social and political), power, or importance in the organization. Secretaries announce important events and communicate to the org ...
Kofi Annan Kofi Atta Annan (8 April 193818 August 2018) was a Ghanaian diplomat who served as the seventh secretary-general of the United Nations from 1997 to 2006. Annan and the UN were the co-recipients of the 2001 Nobel Peace Prize. He was the founder a ...
in 2000. In 2001, several incidents occurred: a Chilean outpost was established in the disputed area, which led to controversy and protests by and was eventually removed by Chile "exclusively for the purpose of keeping the peace in the border area." On another occasion, a
lighthouse A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lens (optics), lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways. Ligh ...
in the area was destroyed by the 2001 southern Peru earthquake, with debris falling into the disputed area. After Peruvian authorities cleared the debris, the Chilean government alluded that Peru had entered Chilean territory without proper authorization. A law was passed in Peru in 2005 which led to more controversy, and the dispute reached the United Nations a second time in 2007. During this time, both countries established subdivisions that made reference to the disputed area. With the 2014 ruling, the ICJ clarified that it was not authorized to establish the exact location of ''Punto Concordia'', and noted that the border established by the court had a possibility to not match said location, but that such a situation was to be coordinated by both parties to the dispute. Both parties subsequently argued this section of the ruling in their favor, with the maritime part of dispute solved, but the terrestrial part continuing. Peru established the La Yarada-Los Palos District in 2015, with its borders once again alluding to the disputed area. Chile protested against the law, and declared it null and void in the context of the border between both states.


See also

* Bolivian–Peruvian territorial dispute * Bolivian–Chilean territorial dispute * Colombian–Peruvian territorial dispute *
Ecuadorian–Peruvian territorial dispute The Ecuadorian–Peruvian territorial dispute was a territorial dispute between Ecuador and Peru, which, until 1928, also included Colombia.Ecuador and Colombia signed the Muñoz Vernaza-Suárez Treaty in 1916, ending their dispute, while Peru an ...


References

{{Irredentism History of the foreign relations of Chile Territorial disputes of Chile Territorial disputes of Peru Chile–Peru border Chile–Peru relations Irredentism Territorial evolution of Peru