Home Top Stories Venezuela border controversy: “We are taking nothing for granted” – Pres Ali...
– urges them not to panic, give in to Venezuelan propaganda
– as more visits to frontier communities planned
President Dr. Irfaan Ali has urged residents of Region One (Barima/Waini) not to succumb to the Venezuelan narrative and to efforts aimed at driving fear into them.
At the same time, he has made it clear that the Government is taking nothing for granted, and is working on strengthening Guyana’s defence capabilities.
On Thursday, the President, along with military and other officials, visited Mabaruma – a region which shares a border with Venezuela – and assured residents that Government is not taking Venezuela’s referendum and rhetoric against Guyana for granted.
“As it is now, the Guyana Defence Force has done its analysis, and what is required, based on the present level of analysis, they are putting in place. We don’t want any overreaction or overreach, but I want to assure you that behind the scenes, in addition to the physical men and women you’re seeing on the ground, there’s a lot more work that is going on,” he detailed.
“As the situation unfolds, they will determine what level of physical presence and assets they need. But we are sparing no effort. Everything that is needed, we are making available. But we don’t want to sound alarm bells. We’re not taking anything for granted. Because we are listening carefully to the rhetoric coming out of Venezuela… now we’re hearing military personnel, who should be more measured in what they say, are joining the rhetoric,” he said.
Assurance has been given that Guyana is working with its international partners, and is adding to its capacity. In fact, Ali referenced conversations he has had with regional and international partners, noting that Guyana’s partners are solidly behind Guyana.
But while he made clear that his government isn’t taking anything for granted, the President also expressed the view that, based on assessments made, the belief is that Venezuela will not act recklessly.
Further, the President stressed the importance of residents not succumbing to the Venezuelan narrative and giving in to fear.
“We want our population to be assured of what we are doing. To be assured that our partners are solidly behind us. There’s a series of activities you will see that will demonstrate how solid this relationship is. And I am engaging many leaders. Even yesterday, I spoke with many leaders in the region, many leaders internationally, on this matter,” the President said.
According to President Ali, these international partners have all once again strongly condemned “any action or any behaviour by Venezuela” that could be interpreted as recklessness. Further, President Ali recounted that in conversations with him, these international partners have been adamant that the International Court of Justice (ICJ) process should be respected.
“We have all of these international partners on our side. So, we can’t allow the Venezuelan narrative…because their narrative, what they want is to create fear in your minds and the communities. And we can’t allow them to win by responding to that fear. When we respond to those narratives, we feed into the propaganda,” President Ali said.
Building capacity
Meanwhile, concerns have been raised with the President about what the Government is doing to monitor Venezuelans in Guyana and ensure those already in the country do not become a security threat. The President assured that the Government continues to monitor and analyze the situation, while strengthening its internal system. At the same time, he noted that Guyanese must remember not to give in to xenophobia.
“At one time, Guyana was in an unfortunate position. Our people were going to the US, Canada and Venezuela…so we must not allow…the few misguided forces in Venezuela to change our attitude towards our fellow neighbours,” he said.
“Notwithstanding that, however, we are taking this concern seriously. Between our Joint Services and our Intelligence Services, we are constantly evaluating and paying attention to the narratives in the communities. To the type of message coming out,” President Ali said.
Meanwhile, it was announced during University of Guyana-sponsored talks on the border controversy that more Government Ministers would soon be making visits to communities sharing borders with Venezuela.
In fact, Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo has a meeting planned with residents of Anna Regina for Sunday, November 26. The meeting, which will be held at the Anna Regina car park from 16:00hrs, was organized by the Region Two Regional Democratic Council.
Guyana’s Spanish-speaking neighbour has laid claim to more than two-thirds of Guyana’s landmass, the Essequibo region, and to a portion of its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) in which nearly 11 billion barrels of oil have been discovered largely by United States oil giant ExxonMobil.
Over the past few weeks, Guyana has been informing regional and international partners of the referendum planned by Venezuela for December 3, which has been criticized by the United States, Caricom, and the Organization of American States (OAS), as well as several other nations in the Region, including Brazil, for seeking to, among other things, gain a national consensus to annex Essequibo.
In addition to its substantive case at the International Court of Justice, Guyana is currently seeking an injunction from the ICJ against Venezuela’s efforts to annex Essequibo via the December 3 referendum.
