International humanitarian law in the Pacific War under the gaze of Benjamín Vicuña Mackenna (1879-1883)

Abstract

This article analyzes the application of international humanitarian law in the War of the Pacific (1879-1883). It highlights how the republics of Chile, Peru and Bolivia tried to conform to the laws of modern war recognized by the European powers, to legitimize themselves as sovereign states of the international order. The research shows that the norms contained in different international declarations and conventions of that time were known and discussed in the Chilean public debate. The question of whether it was necessary to regulate the conduct of military troops implied a local redefinition of the logics of civilization and barbarism. As Benjamín Vicuña Mackenna’s vision attempts to show, adherence to humanitarian law, beyond its effectiveness and success in limiting the interests of the State, was understood as a strategy to legitimize war. It is concluded that international custom -the warlike practice of the European powers- and the ius ad bellum predominated in the face of the incipient liberal project of codification of 19th century international law.