Forgotten campaign of the Manuripi region
The forgotten campaign of the Manuripi was an armed confrontation between Bolivian and Peruvian troops and a group of indigenous people in 1910. The Bolivian press has treated this conflict as "forgotten" due to the little importance with which it is taken in the country's history, perhaps due to the absurdity of the confrontation.[1]
At that time, the borders between Peru and Bolivia were not well defined and the Argentine arbitration of July 9, 1909, caused tensions to rise. During this, Bolivian Captain Lino Echeverría and 16 men remained the small fortress of Avaroa, on the Manuripí River. This led to fighting, and on June 21, 1910, Echeverría repelled an attack by 25 Peruvians, with losses on both sides. This was followed by the Peruvian 5th Infantry Regiment, consisting of 180 men, 2 machine guns, and 20 canoes, landing at the confluence of the Manuripi and Mejahuirra rivers on July 22.[2] It is believed that the arrest of a smuggler by Bolivian troops further heightened tensions. Two months later, a force of 150 Peruvian and indigenous soldiers presented an ultimatum to the fort held by Echeverria. During the ensuing attack, Echeverria and three other Bolivian soldiers were killed while defending the fort, and several prisoners were taken.[3]
Legacy
In honor of Captain Echeverría, the "29th Infantry Regiment Cap. Lino Echeverría" was named in his honor in 1982.[4]
However, there is a controversy over the presence of Captain Echeverría in the region. Bolivia had ceded the territory that he had been holding and the broader Purus region (250,000 km²) to Peru, after the Polo-Bustamante Treaty signed in 1909.[5][6] It is possible that word had not reached Echeverría about these diplomatic events, which would explain his continued presence in the Manuripi.[7] On the other hand, in this same treaty, Peru recognizes that an area of the territories of Acre —adjacent to the Madre de Dios and Tambotapa rivers (91,726 km2 (35,416 sq mi))— are Bolivian.[8] However, in said treaty that was established on September 17, 1909, with a territorial victory for Lima, since most of the territory in dispute becomes part of Peru.[9].
References
- "Las FFAA protagonizarn 14 incursiones desde su creación" (in Spanish). Urgentebo. 9 August 2016. Retrieved 30 June 2020.
- Scheina, Robert L. (1987). Latin America : a naval history, 1810-1987. Annapolis, Md.: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-87021-295-8. OCLC 15696006.
- "THE ARMED SHOCK BETWEEN PERU AND BOLIVIA OF 1909". Bolivian History.
- "Síntesis Histórica de los Comandos y Unidades Militares de las Fuerzas Armadas de Bolivia" (PDF) (in Spanish). Ministerio de Defensa – Estado Plurinacional de Bolivia. Retrieved 30 June 2020.
- "Territorial losses of Bolivia". EducaBolivia Portal.
- "Conflictos Ribereños en Sudamérica en el Siglo XX" (in Spanish). Historia y Arqueología Marítima. Retrieved 30 June 2020.
- "Campana del manuripi".
- http://repositorio.up.edu.pe/bitstream/handle/11354/959/DD1403.pdf?sequence=1%7Ct%C3%ADtulo=Las
- "Bolivia has lost more than 1 million km2 and with whom it has lost the most is with Brazil and Argentina". Infogate, Chile.