The territorial, insular and

maritime dispute with Belize

Solution in the International Court
of Justice
The Legitimate Rights of
Spain in the New World
The Legitimate Rights of
Spain in the New World
1492 → DISCOVERY OF AMERICA

1493 →Pope Alexander VI legitimized Spain to discover and

conquer the new territories in the name of God, in his capacity as
successor of Peter and Vicar of Christ, donates to the Spanish
Crown, the divine power to appropriate the lands discovered and
to be discovered and its inhabitants as well.

1494 → TORDESILLAS TREATY:

Spain and Portugal divided the world between of them as
follows: All lands located three hundred leagues west of the Cape
Verde archipelago would be conquered by Castile, while
territories west of that line could be colonized by Portugal.
Treaty of Tordesillas
1494
 Administrative Organization
and Representation of the King
• Audiencia de los Confines 1542
o The first jurisdiction of the Audiencia de los Cofines was as follow:
for the North, Yucatán, Cozumel, Chiapas, Tabasco, Guatemala
and Honduras; and for the South: Castilla del Oro, Nicaragua and
Cartago, being in the center the Province of Honduras and in it
the capital of the Audiencia, in the city of Gracias a Dios.
• Audiencia de Guatemala 1568
o It was restored with the new name of Real Audiencia de
Guatemala, which was instituted in 1570 in the City of Santiago
de Guatemala
DE GUATEMALA
 Province of Verapaz
Tezulutlan the Land of War
• Capitulations of Tezulutlan.
• Fray Bartolomé de las Casas on May 2, 1537 obtained from the
governor Don Alfonso de Maldonado a written commitment
ratified on July 6, 1539 by the Viceroy of Mexico Don Antonio
de Mendoza, that the natives of Tezulutlán, when they were
conquered, would not be given in encomienda but would be
vassals of the Crown.

• Aj Pop O’Batz = Don Juan de Matalbatz, Cacique Mayor de

San Juan Chamelco
• Invited to Spain by the Emperor Charles V.
• Appointed Governor for life of the Province of Verapaz, by
Royal Decree on August 3, 1555.
REPUBLIC OF GUATEMALA IN 1859
Piracy
 Piracy
• With the arrival of an unlimited new market (the West Indies),
the Catholic Monarchs promoted commercialism in Spain,
bringing as a consequence the strengthening and expansion
of commercial navigation routes between Spain and its
colonies in the New World.

• This attracted the attention and greed of sailors, English

merchants and slavers as well, who found a source of
enrichment through piracy, which were also supported
strongly by the Queen of England, Elizabeth I, creating a new
lineage: the Corsairs.
The pirate Peter Wallace establishes his base of operations in Cayo Cacina in 1638

Jamaica was occupied by the English, as a base of operations for piracy 1655

Pirates and Corsairs, the thieves of the sea

 Spain exercises sovereignty
• 1717 The English are evicted from the soil of New Spain by the
Spaniards under the command of Felipe Alonso de Andrade.

• 1724 The English pirates were defeated in the Rio Viejo, Wallis or
Belize river and its surroundings by Don Antonio Cretayre y
Torres.

• 1754 Sergeant Major Melchor de Mencos defeated the English

in Izabal, dislodging them from the Castillo de San Felipe.

• In the Atlantic seaboard he captured four brigs and continued

north, dislodging the English pirates from Fallabon

• Again defeat the English and take San Felipe de Bacalar

 Geopolitical facts in Central America in
the 18th Century
• Piracy.
• In 1717 the English pirates had seized large part of
Campeche.
• The slow decline of Spanish hegemony.
• England and Holland emerge as real commercial
powers.
• 1763 End of the 7 Years War.
• 1775 Starts War of Independence of the 13 colonies
of North America against the Kingdom of Great
Britain. 1776 declare independence.
 Spanish concessions of
1763, 1783 y 1786
• 1763 The Treaty of Paris ends the War of the 7 Years,
Spain grants the authorization so that the English
can cut Palo de Campeche.
• 1783 Spain grants the First Concession with indelible
limits between the Rio Hondo and the Rio Viejo,
Wallis or Belize.
• 1786 Spain awarded a second grant, to prevent
further abuses and disrespect to the established
limits, extending the operating area from the Belize
River to Sibun or Javon River, limits that should not
be overstepped for any reason .
 4,387 4,802
1,883 Km2
Km2
Km2

12,100
Km2

1783: First Conssesion

1786: Second Conssesion

“Bandera Española”

From río Sibún to Sarstún

More than 110

islands, islets and
keys

Exclusive Economic Zone

*La imagen del mapa es únicamente para fines ilustrativos.

Geopolitical facts in Central America in the
19th Century
• Movements of Independence in the
colonies of Spain.
• The rapid territorial expansion of the United
States.
• The interest of the two great powers for an
interoceanic channel.
• The Monroe Doctrine.
• The Clayton-Buldwer Treaty of1850.
Convention of 1859 (Aycinena-Wike)
Convention of 1863
Protest of Guatemala of 1884
1946. Declaration of expiry.
Independence of Belize
• 1980 Bases of Understanding
• 1981 United Kingdom grants unilateral
independence to Belize
• 1991 Recognition by Guatemala of the
Belizean State (self-determination and
government).
• 1994 Reserve of Guatemala at the UN.
 Saerching for the
Solution
• 1999 Political-diplomatic efforts of Guatemala to
resolve the dispute
• 2000 Conciliation process under the auspices of
the OAS
• 2002-2005 Agreement on a Negotiation Framework
and Confidence Building Measures
• 2008 Special Agreement
• 2018 Referendum in Guatemala
 WHAT WE WIN?
• Legal certainty
o It represents an opportunity for the International Court of Justice to establish from
where and how far they reach one's rights begin and from where the other State.
• Economic benefits:
o More productive investment and more jobs.
o Conducting joint development projects.
o Improving bilateral connectivity.

• Social benefits:
o Avoid deaths and social conflicts in the Adjacency Zone.
o Integration of indigenous peoples.
o More investment in security, health, nutrition and education.

• Political benefits:
o Improved handling of safety issues.
o Protection of human rights.

• It puts an end to a historical dispute and confirms that Guatemala is a country

with democratic vocation and promoter of peace; while establishing better
relations between both countries.
What steps are needed to reach the International
Court?

• In compliance with the Special Agreement and its Protocol, Belize

approved submit the case before the International Court of Justice (CIJ).

• Notify the Secretariat of the International Court of Justice, as established

by the Rules of the ICJ

• From the notification, Guatemala has up to 12 months to file the

complaint before the ICJ.
¡Thank you very much!