A small island of only 3,000 inhabitants became the epicenter of a complex territorial dispute between Peru and Colombia. Santa Rosa de Loreto, located in the triple border with Brazil, reveals a geopolitical paradox: although it is administratively Peruvian, its residents depend essentially on Brazilian and Colombian services and resources to survive.
The recent tensions, marked by unauthorized military overflowers and rampant diplomatic notes between Colombia and Peru, hides a greater strategic concern – Colombia could definitely lose its vital access to the Amazon River.
An environmental phenomenon, neglected by Colombia, is leading to the siltation of the port of Leticia, a city of 45,000 inhabitants. The warning of the situation has been given for years by scientists at the National University of Colombia. “They are natural phenomena and there is no evidence that are caused by human interference or climate change,” biologist Santiago Duque told the Spanish newspaper The country.
Reality in Santa Rosa: Eyes in Brazil, Heart in Peru
Santa Rosa de Loreto emerged naturally between the 1950s and 1970s, resulting from the Amazon River sedimentation. Since the 1960s, the island has been populated predominantly by Peruvians from nearby cities.
Peruvian patriotism x transionic dependence
The national identity is visible: the inhabitants sing the Peruvian anthem, consume Peruvian Pilsen -type beer and savor ceviche. Peru maintains administrative presence with tax offices, migration, national police and army barracks.
However, everyday reality contradicts this formal sovereignty. The only local medical center is just a basic post unable to deal with emergencies. For a caesarean section, it takes four hours of precarious navigation to Caballococha, Peru. In practice, residents cross Rio to seek free service in Tabatinga, Brazil, or in Leticia, Colombia. Education follows the same pattern: the island’s only college lacks adequate infrastructure, leading families to enroll their children in Colombian schools.
Iván Yovera, former mayor of the locality, exemplified the problems faced by the locality to the Peruvian network Panamericana TV: Your children study in the Colombian city, just as he did.
Health, education, sanitation and food expose dependence
The precariousness of basic services is evident in Santa Rosa de Loreto. There is no continuous drinking water or sewage system. The intermittent electricity arrived only five years ago. The local economy reflects this transionic dependence: the Brazilian real is the predominant currency, followed by the Peruvian sun and, marginally, by the Colombian weight. Essential products such as rice, sugar and oil arrive mainly from Brazil, with prices inflated by transportation costs.
The dispute for sovereignty and the threat to Colombian access to Amazonas
The current crisis has roots in the divergent interpretation of centenary treaties. The Solomón-Lozano Treaty of 1922 and the Rio de Janeiro Protocol 1934 established that the border would follow the deepest channel of Rio. The fundamental problem: When these agreements were signed, Santa Rosa simply did not exist.
In July 2024, the Peruvian Congress lit the fuse by unilaterally passing a law raising Santa Rosa to the District category within the Province of Mariscal Ramón Castilla. Lima argues that the island is Chinería extension, attributed to Peru in 1929. President Dina Boluarte categorically stated that “there is nothing pending” with Colombia over the territory.
Why does Colombia fear losing its strategic access to the river?
Bogota’s reaction was immediate. President Gustavo Petro classified the measure as “serious violation” of territorial sovereignty. But his concern transcends the cartographic dispute. Studies from the National University of Colombia reveal alarming data: the proportion of water flow on the Colombian side fell from 30% in 1993 to 19.5% today. Projections indicate that without intervention by 2030, Leticia – Colombia’s only significant port in Amazonas – may lose direct access to Rio for most of the year.
The flyfish of a Colombian military aircraft on Santa Rosa on August 7 during Peruvian civic activities climbed the tensions. Colombia claimed that it was part of Gustavo Petro’s presidential escort; Peru required formal guarantees of non -repetition. The Permanent Border Inspection Commission (Comperif), reactivated in September, represents the last diplomatic attempt before a possible international judicial escalation.
The diplomatic game: political interests and “smoke curtain”
Analysts suggest that both Petro and Boluarte, facing very low domestic approval rates, may be instrumentalizing the dispute. Petro faces accusations of diverting attention from internal problems and social protests. Boluarte, in turn, must show firmness after the troubled dismissal of Pedro Castillo in 2022.
The technical solution exists, but bumps into political obstacles. The dredging of Nazareth Strait, proposed since 2006, could restore the flow on the Colombian side. However, the project would require bilateral cooperation – unlikely in the current climate – as well as substantial resources and questions about its long -term effectiveness in a river as dynamic as Amazonas.
