Colombia withdraws from Bogota Pact over ICJ ruling

Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos Wednesday announced his country's withdrawal from the 1948 Bogota Pact, which recognizes the authority of The Hague-based International Court of Justice (ICJ) in regional disputes.



"I have decided that the highest interests of the nation demand that the territorial and maritime boundaries be defined through treaties, as has been the legal tradition in Colombia, and not by rulings handed down by the International Court of Justice," Santos said.



The decision follows a recent ruling by the World Court that Colombia claims grants some 75,000 square kilometers of its Caribbean waters to Nicaragua.



The President announced the decision at a National Coffee Congress being held in the capital Bogota.



The ICJ ruling recognizes Colombia's sovereignty over a series of islands in the Caribbean's San Andres archipelago, but also grants Nicaragua jurisdiction over some waters surrounding the islands.



Santos explained the ruling not only adversely affects Colombia 's border treaties with Honduras and Panama, but also affects the livelihood of fishermen living on San Andres and Providencia islands by reducing the waters where they can fish.



"Through this announcement, Colombia does not aim to distance itself from the peaceful resolution of conflicts. On the contrary, Colombia reiterates its commitment to always take recourse to peaceful procedures," said Santos.



Santos highlighted the fact that various countries, among them the United States, do not recognize the jurisdiction of the ICJ, while still "respecting international law."



On Tuesday, Colombia denounced the Bogota Pact at the Organization of American States (OAS), because the ICJ defines borders "based on indeterminate criteria of equity that are applied in an uncertain way to the detriment of the rights of states and peoples," said Santos.



What happened Nov. 19, the day the ICJ ruling was announced, " must never" happen again, said Santos, claiming the court " divested" Colombia of maritime territory and handed it to Nicaragua.



Nicaragua, meanwhile, argued Wednesday that the ruling remains valid despite Colombia's withdrawal from the pact.



The Central American nation's representative to The Hague Carlos Arguello also recommended Colombia stay in the pact.



"I don't think it is convenient to the interests of Colombia to withdraw from the Bogota Pact, because it is an accord for the peaceful resolution of conflict," Arguello said, according to the website of the daily La Prensa.



"This is over," said Arguello about the territorial dispute between the two.





