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Guyana-Venezuela territory dispute; the war of public opinion

Dec 30, 2016 Letters

Dear Editor,
The President’s recent message to the army “you are there to back us up aren’t you?” is indeed reminiscent of the popular Tradewinds song “Not a Blade O’ Grass”. President Granger’s subtly reminded the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) that the protection of Guyana’s territorial integrity is central to the army’s defence mandate. He was reacting to outgoing UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon’s decision to continue the Good Offices Process for one more year with strengthened mediation on the Guyana-Venezuela territorial controversy.
The case would be referred to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) if no progress is made. Foreign Minister Greenidge’s message a few days earlier called on all Guyanese to support the process. When compared to the territorial threat of the late 1960’s and early 1970’s, one may argue that the times and local contexts have changed with our fellow Guyanese being more pre-occupied with matters of the budget, social problems, and other modes of survival. The fact remains that Guyana had in the past succeeded in mobilizing local public and international opinion in its favor through the creation of the Guyana National Service (G.N.S) and People’s Militia, while other organizations such as the Guyana Committee of Solidarity and Peace (GCSP) lobbied the support of CARICOM and Commonwealth countries.
Based on the recent UN decision, I wonder what the average Guyanese know about this territorial dispute. The Venezuelans, on the other hand, are on top of their game after actively teaching the subject matter in every educational institution and mapping Essequibo as their “ Zone in Reclamation” when they made their claim prior to our independence in 1966. Why did the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR), which Guyana recently join in 2016, choose to include this ‘Zone in Reclamation” on its official map? Venezuela’s strategy was always a proactive one. President Hugo Chavez sought to influence our CARICOM neighbours through the PetroCaribe trade and cash arrangements. So far, we have failed to teach or prepare our children about this significant problem that has so many implications for their lives.
If Guyana cannot make every citizen a soldier, it should aspire to make every citizen an ambassador to this cause through our existing educational institutions and curricula where this subject matter is glaringly absent. A good starting point would be the production of curriculum materials based on a core set of writings by eminent Guyanese in the field.
Such core resources should include the Guyana Chronicle’s editorial of December 16, 2016 titled “Border Controversy”, the more elaborate Ministry of Foreign Affairs booklet (on line) titled “The New Conquistadors: The Venezuela Challenge to Guyana’s Sovereignty” and the Ministry’s recommended readings listed on its web-site, Dr. Odeen Ishmael’s voluminous writings in “The Trail of Diplomacy”, Sir Shridath Ramphal’s fiftieth anniversary book “Guyana in the World…”, and Pres. Granger’s booklet “The Security of Small States…”. The US State department declassified documents would also help Guyanese to understand that this problem is rooted in the Cold War politics of blocking Communism in Cuba and empowering surrogate Venezuela to take territory if a Communist government gained independence in Guyana. The Geneva Convention of 1966 was nothing more than an insurance policy against Communism which our leaders were inveigled to sign.
Venezuela’s education of its people to believe that Essequibo indeed belongs to them has paid off. Their present government and opposition have a unanimous position on claiming the rights over the Essequibo. It is included in a five point pact brokered by the Vatican and published by UNASUR. On Guyana’s part, since Britain has access to all of the documents involving this controversy, it would seem necessary to establish a joint forum to bolster its case until it is finally resolved by the International Court of Justice. Meanwhile, as Guyana’s population is outnumbered by Venezuela by a ratio of 1:40, the education option is logical. I would therefore concur with Thomas Jefferson that, “A nation’s best defense is an educated citizenry”.
Max Wallerson

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