The Santiago Times
"Bolivia to meet Chilean ambassadors over stolen cars"
written by: Juan Francisco Veloso Olguin
Published: 5 February 2012 Accessed: 17 March 2012
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Brief Summary of the Article:
Bolivia has agreed to meet with Chile regarding automobiles reported stolen in Chile which have been confiscated by the Bolivian government. Bolivia has delayed returning the automobiles to Chile, in part, because Bolivia claims Chile has never become a signatory to Mercosur Treaty, 1999. This treaty deals with the return of stolen land and sea vehicles to the home country. Chile maintains that while it did sign the 1999 treaty, a failure was made in submitting the treaty to its Congress for ratification. Another factor for the delay in returning the automobiles is that domestic law within Bolivia does not require an individual to show proof of ownership when attempting to register the automobile. The two countries will now meet to address concerns they each have regarding the process of returning the stolen automobiles.
Your Thoughts, Comments, and/or Reaction:
International law often comes into conflict with existing domestic laws and procedures. The failure of Chile to complete its internal ratification process of a treaty could lead other countires to believe that Chile is not too concerned about obtaining vehicles stolen from its citizens. Additionally, domestic law within Bolivia makes it rather easy for it citizens to be involved with the theft of vehicles, especially those from other countries, and then to turn around and register the vehicles as their own. Countries must evaluate their internal laws and procedures so as to make sure that they are each in the best situation possible to productively interact with other members of the international community.
Article's Relation to "Politics"
This article relates to politics in that there is a dispute between two countries regarding their respective obligations to each other under international law--if that international law even appropriately addresses the issue at hand (Chile's lack of ratifying the treaty). Additionally, the article relates to politics in that countries often have to evaluate internal laws to see if they might complicate their obligations to others within the international community (Bolivia's automobile registration policies).