Abstract
In 2012, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled on the Nicaragua vs. Colombia maritime dispute, affecting small-scale fisheries territories of Old Providence and Santa Catalina islands (Colombia). The decision intensified previous injustices, where basic human rights have been ignored, such as conflict with industrial fleets, illegal fishing, and military presence. These injustices have been exercised by different actors with economic and/or political power at the local, regional, national, and international level, and belong to different governance orders. The present chapter analyses this scenario in light of social and Blue Justice approaches, showing the profound consequences they have had on fishers’ and local peoples’ lives.
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Notes
- 1.
The two islands are separated by a small channel and communicated by a pedestrian bridge; they belong to the same municipality and they are considered here as the same community. To save space I will refer to them as Old Providence.
- 2.
Locally known as Quenna.
- 3.
Although there is no juridical way to reverse the ruling, the Colombian government has argued its incapability to apply it and asked for a revision. The official Colombian map has not been changed up to now (see Fig. X.1). This has resulted in Nicaragua filing two additional demands on the ICJ.
- 4.
van der Ploeg (2008: 7) refers to repeasantization as the process through which people around the world, who have abandoned peasant economies, have returned to them as a way to “fight for autonomy and survival in a context of deprivation and dependency”
- 5.
After the Constitution, Colombia recognized rights to land, language, local-led development, and prior consultation, to indigenous and African-descent communities, including the Raizal people. These have been very difficult to apply in practice, particularly in the context of the Archipelago, but they do influence some of the local attitudes and perceptions.
- 6.
San Andres’s overpopulation, resulting from Colombian assimilation policies, has created numerous conflicts, related to resource and space scarcity, as well as cultural and linguistic discrimination. Although after the 1991 Constitution, Raizal people regained many political spaces, today they constitute a minority in San Andres (around 33% of the population), which makes the recognition of territorial and cultural rights even more difficult to apply (Valencia 2016). Although Old Providence has experienced a somehow different scenario, many of San Andres island’s conflicts reflect on a smaller scale. Here, it is worth mention that Old Providence only has very basic health facilities; there are only primary and secondary schools, with low-quality education standards; and public services, such as piped water or sewage, are precarious. All this implies access limitations to good quality services, as well as a higher cost of living, making people even more vulnerable. All of which worsen in the current pos-disaster scenario which I mention at the end of this chapter.
- 7.
English was once prohibited in schools and public institutions. The Colombian state prosecuted Baptists and Adventists. There were specific policies to promote conversion to Catholicism. Many natives’ land was stolen or expropriated by National Government and privates; locals were excluded from tourism and other commercial activities that started on the islands after 1953; and massive migrations of mainland Colombians were promoted to assimilate Raizal to “Colombian” culture (Guevara 2007; Valencia 2016).
- 8.
There is no legal recognition of autonomy but Raizal people in Old Providence constitute a majority (approx. 89% of the population). They control the government and other local institutions and have a voice in local decisions, which San Andreans don’t. Although the schools continue to be in Spanish, English Creole is dominant in almost every domestic and public space.
- 9.
In 2019, agriculture and fishing represented 1.2% of San Andres’ and Old Providence’s GDP. This data aggregates the two islands and does not show the economic importance of the activity for Old Providence, as well as its cultural and social importance. It is also worth noting that in 2019, the Department’s main exports were, however, fishing products (Ministerio de Comercio 2021).
- 10.
As the conflict between Nicaragua and Colombia has escalated, relations have turned more difficult. There have been restrictions on mobility. Also, Colombia has intended to promote resentment among the Raizal people against Nicaraguans. Up to now, Colombia refuses to facilitate political dialogues and exchanges with Nicaragua, even though the Raizals have claimed for it.
- 11.
There are some small-scale fisheries exclusive zones in the MPA delimitation but they have not been enforced. There are no official small-scale fisheries exclusive zones like the one that exists in other country areas (ZEPA’s – Exclusive Artisanal Fishing Zones).
- 12.
Many, although not all, come from a small African descendant community located in mainland Colombia named Rincón del Mar, which is why they receive this name.
- 13.
Since 1993, Colombia and Jamaica have shared a Common Regime Area in the north of the Archipelago. However, in the absence of effective control, Jamaican fishers frequently venture into Colombia’s exclusive areas (Castro 2009).
- 14.
The document has “a prospective and strategical purpose, aiming to make the oceans visible in the national public agenda, as a sustainable development factor in the 11 years to come” (CONPES 2020: 3)
- 15.
Old Providence island remained locked between March 22nd and the first week of November as a way to prevent Covid-19 to enter the island. Only cargo boats were allowed and tourism completely closed.
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Márquez-Pérez, A.I. (2022). Legalized Injustices: Old Providence Island (Colombia) Small-Scale Fisheries in the Context of Geopolitical Disputes and State Power. In: Jentoft, S., Chuenpagdee, R., Bugeja Said, A., Isaacs, M. (eds) Blue Justice. MARE Publication Series, vol 26. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-89624-9_12
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