Арика қаласы: тарих және дамуы

City in Arica y Parinacota, Chile

Arica is an important port for a large inland region of South America. The city serves a free port for Bolivia and manages a substantial part of that country's trade.

Spaniards settled the land under captain Lucas Martinez de Begazo in 1541, and in 1570, the area was grandly retitled as "La Muy Ilustre y Real Ciudad San Marcos de Arica" (the very illustrious and royal city of San Marcos of Arica). By 1545, Arica was the main export entrepot for Bolivian silver coming down from Potosí, which then possessed the world's largest silver mine. Arica thus held a crucial role as one of the leading ports of the Spanish Empire. These enviable riches made Arica the target for pirates, buccaneers, and privateers, among whom Francis Drake, Thomas Cavendish, Richard Hawkins, Joris van Spilbergen, John Watling, Baltazar de Cordes, Bartholomew Sharp, William Dampier, and John Clipperton all took part in looting the city.

Following the collapse of Spanish rule, in 1821, Arica was part of the recently independent Peruvian Republic. The Peruvian Constitution of 1823 regards it as a province of the Department of Arequipa. In 1855, Peru inaugurated the Arica Tacna railroad (53 km long), one of the first in Latin America. The rail line still functions today. The earthquake of August 13, 1868 struck near the city with an estimated magnitude of 8.0 to 9.0 Estimates on the death toll vary greatly, some estimates have the number at 25,000 to 70,000 people. Others estimate that the population of Arica was less than 3,000 people and the death toll was around 300. It triggered a tsunami, measurable across the Pacific in Hawaii, Japan and New Zealand. As Arica lies very close to the subduction zone known as the Peru–Chile Trench where the Nazca Plate dives beneath the South American Plate, the city is subject to megathrust earthquakes.

Chilean forces occupied the region following the War of the Pacific. The Treaty of Ancón in 1883 formally acceded the region to Chilean control. The 1929 Tacna Arica compromise in the Treaty of Lima subsequently restored Tacna to Peru but Arica remained part of Chile.

In 1958, the Chilean Government established the "Junta de Adelanto de Arica" (Board of Development for Arica), which promulgated many tax incentives for the establishment of industries, such as vehicle assembly plants, a tax free zone, and a casino, among others. Many car manufacturers opened plants in Arica, such as Citroën, Peugeot, Volvo, Ford and General Motors, which produced the Chevrolet LUV pickup until 2008. In 1975, together with Chile's new open economy policies, the "Junta de Adelanto de Arica" was abolished. The Arica and Parinacota Region was created on October 8, 2007, under Law 20.175, promulgated on March 23, 2007, by President Michelle Bachelet in the city of Arica.

In 1984 1985, the Swedish metal company Boliden Mineral AB paid a local mineral extracting company, Promel Ldta., 10 million SEK ($1.2 million, $3.15 million in 2021 dollars) to receive, treat and confine around 20,000 tonnes of smeltery sludge from Rönnskärsverken in Skellefteå, containing among other things high levels of lead, arsenic, cadmium, mercury and iron and smaller amounts of gold and silver. To earn additional income, Promel planned to extract various substances from the waste at its processing plant at Sitio F in the outskirts of Arica. The end products were mainly raw arsenic and iron silver gold oxides. The first shipment arrived in Arica in August 1984 and the processing of 500 kg test batches in October 1984 gave positive results with oversight from an official from the Chilean Health Authority in Santiago. After the sludge processing had begun at large scale and the third and last shipment of sludge arrived to Promel's plant in Arica in July 1985, contact between Boliden and Promel ceased. In the late 1980s, Promel ceased all activities at Sitio F for unknown reasons and abandoned the remaining 10,000 tons of the highly toxic smelting sludge out in the open exposed to the elements. The area surrounding the plant was later used by the local authorities to build state sponsored social housing aimed at low income families. No physical barrier between the former plant and the residential area existed at the time. Residents of the new neighborhood had no knowledge about the contents of the sludge at the site, which became used as a playground by children. In the 1990s, many residents around the former plant began to show symptoms of lead and arsenic poisoning. In 1998, the Chilean authorities ordered Promel to move the toxic waste. Promel moved the sludge to a walled area on the other side of a nearby hill and covered the material with a plastic mat. It was supposed to be a temporary storage site, yet the material remains there to this day. Cleanup of the remaining parts of Sitio F finished as late as 2010. Even after the removal of the sludge, the health effects on the local population continue to be devastating. Almost 8,000 residents were tested for toxic substances in 2010. Of the 6600 people that got results back from the Chilean Health Authority, 12.9% showed arsenic in their urine samples. Studies have found very high rates of arsenic related lung cancer, bladder cancer, kidney cancer and skin cancer in the local population. Other health effects include non cancerous heart and lung diseases and fertility problems such as low birth weights and spontaneous miscarriages. In 2013, 796 Arica residents, including human rights defenders, started legal action in Sweden against Boliden. The Court of Appeal for Northern Norrland held that the claims of the victims were time limited, and the Swedish Supreme Court declined to hear the case.

According to the 2017 census by the National Statistics Institute, Arica spans an area of and has 222,619 inhabitants (110,115 men and 112,504 women). The population grew by 20% (37,351 people) between the 2002 and 2017 censuses. Arica is home to 97.7% of the total population of the region.</small>

Arica is the economical powerhouse of its region. It is an enormous trade and shipping point and vital for the maritimal access of Bolivia.

The Morro de Arica is a tall, nearly vertical rock formation and hill located in the city, situated approximately 139 meters above sea level. It was the last bulwark of defense for the Peruvian troops who garrisoned the city. It was attacked and captured on 7 June 1880 by Chilean troops, as the final effort of their Campaña del Desierto (Desert Campaign) during the War of the Pacific. Near to the city center is the Azapa Valley, an oasis where vegetables and, famously, Azapa olives are grown. Economically, it is also an important port for Chilean ore. The semi tropical latitude, combined with the low humidity and the city's beaches, have made Arica a popular tourist destination. It is also a center of Chilean rail networks with Bolivia. For air travel, the region is serviced by Chacalluta International Airport. Arica has strong ties with the city of Tacna, Perú. Many people cross the border daily as they travel between the two cities, partially due to the many services (for example, dentists, doctors, etc.) that are cheaper in Perú. Arica is connected to both Tacna and to La Paz via separate railroad lines.

According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Arica has a hot desert climate, abbreviated "BWh" on climate maps. Unlike many other cities with arid climates, Arica seldom sees extreme temperatures throughout the course of the year and it is also relatively overcast. Arica is also known as the driest inhabited place on Earth, at least as measured by rainfall: average annual precipitation is 0.76 mm (0.03 inches), as measured at the airport meteorological station.

As a commune, Arica is a third level administrative division of Chile administered by a municipal council, headed by an alcalde who is directly elected every four years. The 2008–2012 alcalde is Waldo Sankán Martínez (Independent). with an approximate height of 4517 metres. It is located within the Lauca National Park. Pucará de Copaquilla: about 3,000 metres above sea level, dates from the 12th century, declared National Monument, located on a promontory that serves as the defence has a double stone wall, which protects a series of internal spaces. From this point it is possible to observe the pre and streams. Termas de Jurasi a few miles southeast of Putre, by Ruta 11 CH, turning off a dirt road. Underground waters are home to temperatures above which are reputed to have medicinal properties. Surf Arica is a world famous spot for surfing. The wave known as "El Gringo" hosts surfing and bodyboarding world championships every year. In 2007, Arica was the site for an ASP world tour contest. Others stops on this tour include Hawaii, Tahiti, Fiji and South Africa.

Passenger train services on the Arica–La Paz railway ceased in 1996, but as of 2017 there were proposals to restart services from Arica as a tourist attraction (and for freight). In 2011, Chile announced plans to privatise the Port of Arica. These were opposed by Bolivia, as Arica is its main sea port. Chacalluta International Airport is the main airport in Arica and is located 18.5 km north of the city. LATAM Chile, Amaszonas, JetSmart, and Sky Airline have scheduled commercial service to several Chilean airports.