Venezuela border controversy: Guyana’s National Assembly to hold special sitting on Friday to consider motion

– as Foreign Minister informs diplomats of Venezuela’s aggression

The National Assembly will be holding an extraordinary sitting next week to facilitate the consideration of a special motion on the Guyana-Venezuela border controversy.
Tensions between the two neighbouring South American nations have escalated after Venezuela’s recent proposed referendum which seeks its population’s approval to seize Guyana’s Essequibo region.
In a notice to Members of Parliament on Friday, Clerk of the National Assembly, Sherlock Isaacs indicated that a special sitting would be held on Friday, November 3. The National Assembly has been on its annual recess since August 10, 2023.

“I wish to inform you that there will be an Extraordinary Sitting of the National Assembly at 10:00 a.m., on Friday, 3rd November 2023, in the Dome of the Arthur Chung Conference Centre, Liliendaal, East Coast Demerara, to consider a motion on the Guyana/Venezuela Border Issue,” the correspondent detailed.
In Venezuela, the National Electoral Council had issued five questions to be asked in a national referendum scheduled for December 3, 2023, including a question that seeks the approval of the Venezuelan people to create a new Venezuelan state out of Guyana’s Essequibo region – which the Guyana Government has already lambasted as “brazen” and “pernicious”.
“In particular, question three of the set of questions to be placed before the people of Venezuela speaks to the “historical position” of Venezuela “of not recognizing the jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice to resolve the territorial controversy over Guayana Esequiba,” a statement from the Guyana Government had said.

“Question five seeks the approval of the Venezuelan people for the creation of a new Venezuelan State consisting of Guyana’s Essequibo region, to include “the granting of citizenship and Venezuelan identity card in accordance with the Geneva Agreement and international law.” This is a deliberate misinterpretation of the Geneva Agreement and a clear violation of international law.”
Since then, several regional bodies including the Caribbean Community (Caricom) and the Organisation of American States (OAS) have condemned Venezuela’s actions, calling for the Spanish-speaking country to adhere to a peaceful settlement of the border controversy and desist from any aggressive actions.
Caricom has already stated that the conduct of a popular referendum on Venezuela’s claim of the Essequibo has no validity in international law and also reaffirmed its support for the border controversy between the two countries to be settled via the judicial process currently before the International Court of Justice (ICJ).
Back in 2018, United Nations Secretary General António Guterres had decided that the Guyana-Venezuela border controversy should be settled by the ICJ, after exercising the powers vested in him to decide how the controversy should be settled by the 1966 Geneva Agreement between Guyana, Venezuela, and the United Kingdom.
He resorted to judicial settlement after the good offices process between Guyana and Venezuela failed. Within the framework of the 1966 Geneva Agreement between the two countries, the Secretary General conducted good offices from 1990 to 2017 to find a solution to the border controversy.
Among other things, Guyana is asking the ICJ to adjudge and declare that the 1899 Award is valid and binding upon Guyana and Venezuela, that Venezuela is internationally responsible for violations of Guyana’s sovereignty and sovereign rights, and for all injuries suffered by Guyana as a consequence.

Meeting diplomats
Meanwhile, the Guyana Government has been engaging its bilateral partners in Georgetown to provide an update on the recent actions by Venezuela.
Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Minister, Hugh Todd met with the Chinese Ambassador to Guyana, Guo Haiyan, on Friday; Cuban Ambassador to Guyana, Jorge Francisco Soberón Luis, on Thursday, and Russian Ambassador to Guyana, Alexander Kurmaz, on Wednesday – at his office.
During these meetings, Minister Todd reiterated that the Government of Guyana is committed to a peaceful resolution of the case before the International Court of Justice and the Region being a zone of peace.
Following a meeting between the two sides on Tuesday, a Joint Statement was issued by President Dr Irfaan Ali and Opposition Leader Aubrey Norton in which they agreed that Guyana’s sovereignty is of paramount importance and is a matter on which the Guyanese people are all completely united.
To this end, the two Guyanese leaders condemned the flagrant violation of the rule of law by Venezuela and agreed that no effort should be spared to resist that country’s persistent endeavours to undermine Guyana’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
They further underscored the fact that no Government or the people of one country has the right in international law to seize, annex or conquer the territory of another country. International law emphatically prohibits this.
Both President Ali and the Opposition Leader agreed to keep in close consultation on this matter of national importance.