The Ilha de Guajará-Mirim (
Brazil
Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
) or Isla Suárez (
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 ...
) is one of the world's many
disputed territories
A territorial dispute or boundary dispute is a disagreement over the possession or control of territories (land, water or airspace) between two or more political entities.
Context and definitions
Territorial disputes are often related to the ...
. The island lies in the
Rio Mamoré in Amazon, which defines part of the boundary between the Bolivian department of
Beni and the Brazilian state of
Rondônia
Rondônia () is one of the 26 states of Brazil, located in the northern subdivision of the country (central-western part). It is bordered by Acre (state), Acre in the west,
Amazonas, Brazil, Amazonas in the north, Mato Grosso in the east, and Bo ...
in the Amazon. The island's sovereignty is the object of passive contention between the governments of Brazil and Bolivia, which administer it ''
de jure
In law and government, ''de jure'' (; ; ) describes practices that are officially recognized by laws or other formal norms, regardless of whether the practice exists in reality. The phrase is often used in contrast with '' de facto'' ('from fa ...
''.
History
The area was demarcated by the
Treaty of Ayacucho, on March 27, 1867, which, in its article 2, declares:
(...)
he border between Brazil and Boliviawill go down
hrough the Verde Riverto its confluence with the Guaporé and through this and the Mamoré until Beni, where the Madeira River begins.(...)
The border in this area was demarcated in 1877, and the Bolivian company Irmãos Suarez was established there in 1896. The
Treaty of Petrópolis
The Treaty of Petrópolis, signed on November 17, 1903, in the Brazilian city of Petrópolis, ended the Acre War between Bolivia and Brazil over the then-Bolivian territory of Acre (today the Acre state), a desirable territory in Bolivia-Brazi ...
, on November 17, 1903, confirmed the same limit established in 1867. On April 1, 1930, the Brazilian
legation
A legation was a diplomatic representative office of lower rank than an embassy. Where an embassy was headed by an ambassador, a legation was headed by a minister. Ambassadors outranked ministers and had precedence at official events. Legation ...
in La Paz complained about what it considered to be an inadequate occupation of the island. In 1937, the government of Bolivia issued a report showing the island's greater proximity to the Bolivian side, which was rejected by Brazil. In 1955, Brazil intended to establish a police post on the island, but did not carry out the project. On March 29, 1958, an agreement was signed between the two countries called the Roboré Agreement, in which, in addition to resolving other disputed issues, it was agreed, in the future, to resolve the dispute over the sovereignty of Suárez Island. This convention was ratified by the
Brazilian Congress
The National Congress () is the legislative body of Brazil's federal government. Unlike the state legislative assemblies and municipal chambers, the Congress is bicameral, composed of the Federal Senate (the upper house) and the Chamber of D ...
on November 30, 1968. In its article 4, it establishes that:
The Government of Brazil agreed with the Government of Bolivia to re-examine the issue of the legal status of the island of Guajará Mirim (Isla Suárez).
In 2009, the island continues without a definitive solution regarding its territorial possession, and it remains supposedly under Bolivian administration, despite the fact that the island is a place of economic activity for the Brazilian inhabitants of Guajará-Mirim, who hold most of the island's territory. More than 80 islands in the Guaporé and Mamoré rivers have yet to be assigned to one country or another.
References
Territorial disputes of Brazil
Territorial disputes of Bolivia
Bolivia–Brazil border
Disputed islands of South America
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