The Hague: The International Court of Justice (ICJ) has ruled in favor of Equatorial Guinea in a territorial dispute over the islands of Mbanie, Conga, and Cocoteros, which are situated off the coast of Gabon. This decision resolves a decades-long contention between the two West African nations.

According to Deutsche Welle, the ICJ’s decision on Monday determined that the islands, which are located in potentially oil and gas-rich waters, legally belong to Equatorial Guinea. These islands had been under Gabon’s control since 1972, when Gabonese forces expelled Equatorial Guinean soldiers from Mbanie.

The dispute centered on the validity of the Bata Convention, which Gabon claimed as a basis for its sovereignty over the islands. However, Equatorial Guinea challenged the legitimacy of the document, arguing that Gabon could not produce an original copy of the treaty. Domingo Mba Esono, Equatorial Guinea’s vice-minister of mines and hydrocarbons, stated that the convention was unauthenticated and dismissed it as
an unverified photocopy.

Philippe Sands, representing Equatorial Guinea, criticized the reliance on what he described as “scraps of paper.” He argued before the court that a photocopy of a document, the original of which is missing, should not hold legal weight.

The ICJ ruled that the Bata Convention did not constitute a binding treaty. Instead, the court referred to a treaty signed in Paris in 1900, which divided French and Spanish colonial assets and allocated the islands to Spain. Consequently, the sovereignty of the islands transferred to Equatorial Guinea following its independence from Spain in 1968.

Gabonese representative Mborantsuo acknowledged the difficulties in locating the original document, citing poorly managed archives due to various factors, including climate and technological limitations.

Following the ruling, Gabonese troops are expected to vacate their base on Mbanie, highlighting the peaceful and diplomatic nature of the dispute resolution between the two countries.