Department of Tacna


Tacna is a department of Peru. It is the southernmost department of the country, bordering Chile and Bolivia. It is administered by a regional government. Its capital city is Tacna.

Etymology

The term Tacna is derived from two Quechua words: Taka, meaning 'to hit', and na, which means 'place'. Thus, the full name means "I hit this place" or "I rule this place".

History

There is evidence of the presence of a very early culture that goes back almost 10 000 years. The archaeological investigations in the region have proven that a civilization dwelt in this zone in the Stone Age. The Toquepala Caves and Abrigo de Caru belong to this age. There are other sites such as Girata Complex, Mullini, and Queñavichinca, where investigations have not been concluded.

Spanish period

The first groups of Spanish conquerors arrived in the region in 1535. These groups were formed by members of the Almagro expedition, organised to conquer Chile. During this time, the city of Tacna was called Villa San Pedro de Tacna. In 1615 and 1784 Tacna experienced violent earthquakes, and many towns were reduced to ruins. However, they were rebuilt in the same locations as before.

Republican period

Tacna has a seat of honour in the emancipation process. In 1811, Francisco Antonio de Zela made the first declarations in favour of a libertarian administration from Tacna. Once the Peruvian independence struggle was well under way, the heroism of this city was honoured by the revolutionary government's proclamation to promote it to the rank of villa in 1823. On 26 May 1828, President José de La Mar promulgated a law passed by Congress by which the city of Tacna was given the title of Ciudad Heroica.
On June 25, 1875, the department of Tacna was created by law. It included the provinces of Tacna, Arica and Tarata. This was the last administrative change prior to the War of the Pacific, which began in 1879.
ProvinceSeatDistricts
TacnaTacnaTacna, Pachía, Calana, Sama, Locumba, Ilabaya
TarataTarataTarata, Estique, Tarucachi, Ticaco, Candarave
AricaAricaArica, Codpa, Livilcar, Lluta, Socoroma

The first Peruvian territory to be occupied by the Chilean Army during the war was the port of Pisagua, whose occupation took place on November 2 of that year. The Chilean campaign was successful, and led to the military occupation of the provinces of Iquique and Tarapacá following the Peruvian retreat despite a military success at the battle of Tarapacá.
The first Peruvian troops that left Tarapacá arrived to the city of Arica on December 17. The following year, the Chilean Navy carried out an amphibious landing at the port city of Ilo on February 26, and the bombardment of Arica began the following day. The army continued to the south until it reached the city of Tacna on May 26, after which a battle was fought at Intiorko Hill, located on the outskirts of the city. The Chilean Army subsequently occupied the city and Bolivia withdrew from the conflict. On June 7, the Chilean advance reached and conquered Arica.
Following another campaign that reached the capital, the government of Miguel Iglesias signed the Treaty of Ancón on October 20, 1883. Under the terms of the agreement, Peru ceded its department of Tarapacá, while the provinces of Tacna and Arica would be subject to Chilean control, after which a plebiscite would be held. This never came to pass.
Prior to the war, the department had a total area of around.

Chilean period

From 1880 to 1929, the provinces of Arica and Tacna were central to the 46-year dispute between both Peru and Chile. Tacna was divided into an area administered by Chile, and another one administered by Peru. Both territories were divided by the quebrada Honda, a ravine of the Sama River.
On April 1, 1884, Miguel Iglesias created the department of Moquegua, incorporating the districts of Locumba and Ilabaya. On October 31 of the same year, the Chilean government established its own province of Tacna, subjecting the territory to a process of forced acculturation. Meanwhile, three years after Moquegua's creation, Andrés Avelino Cáceres declared its law null and void, with the districts returning to their original jurisdiction.
The Supreme Resolution of April 18, 1887, designated the towns of Ilabaya and Candarave as provincial seats of the sub-prefects of Tacna and Tarata. On January 10, 1890, a Supreme Resultion designated the town of Locumba as the capital of the province and department of Free Tacna, a name that would apply to the non-occupied area for the remainder of the dispute. At the time, the town had a population of 300 inhabitants. The same document established the parliamentary representation of one senator and two deputies representing Tacna and Tarata.
In 1921, the department's de jure area was distributed as follows:
  • Arica:, with a population of 15,104 inhabitants.
  • Tacna:, with a population of 20,887 inhabitants.
  • Tarata:, with a population of 14,458 inhabitants.
In 1929, the dispute came to an end with the signing of the Treaty of Lima. Peru agreed to keep the province of Tacna, while that of Arica would be incorporated into Chile. Peru also received a $6 million indemnity and other concessions. During this period, notable people who resided in the area were later politician Salvador Allende and his family, and Peruvian historian Jorge Basadre.

Contemporary period

On 26 January 2007, Peru's government issued a protest against Chile’s demarcation of the coastal frontier that the two countries share. Peruvian President Alan García recalled his ambassador to Chile, Hugo Otero, to Lima to consult about the controversy over the maritime boundary the two countries share. According to the Peruvian Foreign Ministry, the Chilean legislatures endorsed a plan regarding the Arica and Parinacota region which did not comply with the established demarcation of the border. They alleged that the proposed Chilean law included an assertion of sovereignty over 19,000 square metres of land in Peru's Department of Tacna.
According to the Peruvian Foreign Ministry, Chile had defined a new region "without respecting the Concordia demarcation." The Peruvian government maintained that the dispute over the Chilean plan is part of an ongoing maritime dispute whereby Chile had tried to use the demarcation process to extend its maritime frontier. Over the past 50 years, Peru has maintained claims over roughly 40,000 square kilometers of ocean territory. The Chilean government asserted that the region in dispute is not a coastal site named Concordia, but instead refers to boundary stone No. 1, which is located to the northeast and 200 meters inland.
Given that the proposed Chilean law did not recognize the borderline established by both nations in the 1929 agreement, Peru lodged diplomatic protests with Chile. In the complex territorial dispute, Chile was asserting the border near the Pacific Ocean to fit in the geographical parallel, which Lima asserted would cut off at least 19,000 square metres of the Peruvian territory.
A possible border dispute was averted when the Chilean Constitutional Court ruled on the issue on 26 January 2007, striking down the legislation. Whilst agreeing with the court's ruling, the Chilean government reiterated its stance that the maritime borders between the two nations were not in question and had been formally approved by the international community.
On 28 January 2007, Peru's leading newspaper El Comercio reported that the President of the Cabinet of Ministers , Jorge del Castillo, expressed his grave concern over the pending maritime dispute with Chile.
On 27 January 2014, in the final ruling of the International Court of Justice located in The Hague, Peru gained some maritime territory. The maritime boundary extends only to off of the coast. From that point, the new border runs in a southwesterly direction to a point that is equidistant from the coast of the two countries. Under the ruling, Chile lost control over part of its formerly claimed maritime territory and gave additional maritime territory to Peru.
From the 27 January 2014 court press release:

Geography

The department of Tacna has borders with the Pacific Ocean on the west, the department of Moquegua on the north, the department of Puno on the northeast, the Bolivian La Paz Department on the east, and the Arica-Parinacota Region of Chile on the south. The border between the Tacna Region and Chile is known as La Línea de la Concordia.
The region is located below the Titicaca plateau and has a diverse geography, including volcanoes, deserts, and mountainous zones, from which arise rivers that cross over the punas and the plateaus, thus forming the hydrographical system of this zone. The region is small in size but has a significant mining and agriculture potential. It has various climates and diverse production.

Climate

This area has a high level of sunshine year round due to its stable descending air and high pressure. According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Tacna has a desert climate, abbreviated "Bwh" on climate maps.

Politics

Subdivisions

The department is divided into four provinces, themselves constituted by a total of 26 districts. These provinces are as follows:
  • Candarave
  • Jorge Basadre
  • Tacna
  • Tarata

    Economy

Tacna's primary income earner is copper mining. Agriculturally, Tacna produces 53.15% of the whole olive crop in Peru. It also produces maize, potatoes, wheat, cotton, oregano, alfalfa, and grapevine. It also has a sizable herd of dairy cattle and lamb.
In addition to mining and agriculture, fishing is also important, as Tacna's offshore region is abundant in fish resources.