WHOSE THE BLAME?

Evening Post, Volume CXVI, Issue 75, 26 September 1932, Page 7

WHOSE THE BLAME?

A TANGLED SKEIN ■

QUARREL OVER CHAGO

,\ The acute phase of the Gran. Chaco dispute, may be said to date from the beginning of the War of the Pacific, when Bolivia entered ,the picture. 'Negotiations took place .'between the two disputants Bolivia and Paraguay in 1879,'1887,,and; 1894. In .each case, treaties were,.drawn up dividing, the Chaco in a way that seemed to offer satisfaction,to both parties.; ' Nothing came of; them. For one reason or another either one side or the other refused to ratify. Each" then to back .up" its claims.by armed force, and as a\ result a line of forts appeared across ;the Chaco. la 1907, after -years of incipient warfare, both, sides. agreed to submit the issue^to the President of Argentina, but as Argentina found, her position somewhat difficult ,in view, of her earlier claims, the President refused to act.... Pending his decision,.however, the two countries agreed not to advance beyond a. certain line. . \,-":'.'■■'"

; . It was 1913 before the;ne>^ step,was made.! ,In that year -Paraguay and Bolivia, made the (momentous.'decision to settle the dispute either-by direct negotiation or arbitration, in the meantime agreeing not^-to advance. beyond the line denned in "the 1907 agreement. This agreement seems not to, have been respected by either party, and. a.long line of "incidents" followed. The prospect of .peace was not enhanced when Paraguay granted a charter to-a colony of. Canadian Mennonites giving them the right to. develop" land in that' part of the Cha'co ; held by. Paraguay. Bolivia objected that this, altered the status quo and refused to recognise the Mennbnite charter in the event that tho Chaco should be awarded to ier.; COMMEECIAL PEICTION. ,Commercial rivalry,' added, to political rivalry in the Chaco, made an outburst of some sort inevitable sooner or later, and in; 1927thestorm clouds lowered. >Eumours.:6f fighting ;grew- more and more persistent and finally in 1928 the. lightning began.'. to1' play.. TFortu"nately, two peace agencies were in session- at the .time-^the- Pan-American Conciliation and Arbitration Conference at Washington and the League of Nations Council at Lugano in Switzerland. By what was almost a miracle declarations of war were avoided, the League Council ultimately : leaving the settlement of the dispute to the Pan-Ameri-can conference.! " : - ... Tho matter has been in the hands of the.. Commission of, Neutrals set up by the Pan-American body since 1928. The_ Commission of.:. Neutrals first established a line beyond which both parties again; promised- not to advance. In the three years which have 'followed this agreement both parties, according to numerous reports, ' have steadily strengthened their/position's; on more than one occasion each, side has deelai-ed its determination to hold its line of defence in case, of; attack, and with both armies in the field minor engago'ments have'been frequent. -■■-~ It has 'usually been ! impossible to ;fe the responsibility for the incidents that have occurred. Even the Commission of Neutrals has been unable to get reliable facts in the stornv of' recriminations that, has hovered around-- the council table. The one hope has been that the ;Commission : would 'come to some definite.decision respecting, the frontier—a decision' that both 'countries would accept—but the task has been too difficult. ' COUNCIL TABLE DESERTED, How stormy the sessions of the Commission had been may be seen from the numerous threats -of both parties to leave -the Washington ': conferences. Finally/Paraguay did desert the council table, .and only i after -much. ' persuasion consented to return. Then out went Bolivia, Each has .been accused of playing an opportunist game. Under conditions of mntuai distrust and open enmity, headway has been next to impossible. ;<...'. Matters again came to a - head in Jui:c, when Bolivia was reported to have captured a fort held by the Paraguayans. The facts have not yet been determined;-Each side has its own version of the affair, and the Commission of Neutrals, despite its efforts,/has not been able to fix the responsibility. But it did appeal to both, sides to respect the status qno fixed in the 1929 agreement. Further incidents and demands from the citizens of Paraguay and Bolivia for a. formal declaration of war have brought matters to the worst crisis since 1928. How serious the,situation is. may be>gleaned ,from the stand taken by all the nations of the PanAmerican Union, the efforts ,: of the League of Nations to preserve the peace, the diplomatic conversations opened by : Argentina with Chile and Peru, and the labours of the Washington Commission in the same direction. There the matter rests, with the possibility of ■ settlement by arbitration.