A CRISIS ON OUR BORDER

Jul 18, 2017 Editorial

Venezuela is in the grips of the deepest crisis of its recent history. The streets of Caracas are awash almost daily in violence. Neighboring governments have issued stern condemnations of President Maduro’s actions. How did a country once seen as a model for left-wing movements crumble under its own weight. The answer lies in President Nicolas Maduro’s lust for power.
His push to rewrite the constitution amid an escalating political crisis has led to a stern warning from the Trump administration to impose sanctions on Venezuelan officials. The warning by the US Congress is meant to force the Trump administration to act more forcefully to rein in Maduro.
Massive confrontations between protesters, the police and Maduro’s security forces, and his government’s ban on one opposition leader from politics for 15 years and the jailing of others, suggest a hardening of positions between the government and opposition amidst the continued economic and political deterioration.
The Maduro government stands accused by the opposition of economic ineptness and political heavy-handedness and for the shortages of foodstuffs and basic amenities, hyperinflation, dwindling foreign reserves and rampant criminality.
The crisis in Venezuela shows no sign of abatement. It could have unforeseen effects on its closest neighbour, Guyana. As Guyana grapples with its own problems of the economy, it must keep a sharp eye on Venezuela which seems to be the proverbial train wreck in slow motion.
Our government should not take anything for granted because any government that is under stress at home tends to lash out at its neighbors, especially if those neighbors are weaker militarily. Guyana fits neatly into this scenario.
It must draft a contingency plan to deal with any possible worst-case scenarios that could emerge from the border dispute and from a flood of Venezuelan refugees, and any spillover of criminality from that country’s economic and political meltdown.
While the government should welcome those Venezuelan citizens encroaching on our territory for legitimate business such as shopping for foodstuffs, it must have a heightened vigilance to those with criminal intent. However, given the dire situation in Venezuela, we should offer assistance to refugees rather than deport them. It is unkind, heartless, cruel and inhumane to do so.
Guyana is particularly vulnerable in several areas from the collapse of Venezuela. They include the trafficking of illegal guns, drugs and people. Such activities are underscored by a new desperation now in Venezuela that requires the authorities to exercise even greater vigilance as we face our own political and economic challenges.
That said, the government should not expect Venezuela which has imploded, to engage in any serious discussion or honour any agreement on the border dispute. The Maduro regime which is engaged in a daily struggle for power and survival does not have the ability or administrative capacity to engage in any basic discussions and deliver on its promise.
Its seizure of the General Motors plant is an act of desperation that could dampen foreign enthusiasm to invest in new or existing projects, such as the oil and gas companies to develop the Dragon and Loran Manatee oil Fields in Venezuela.
While a peaceful Venezuela is certainly in Guyana’s best interest, our influence towards such a resolution is limited to joining international forums to advocate for good sense to prevail.
Meanwhile, with global uncertainty now on our doorstep, the government must heed the adage, “When your neighbor’s house is on fire, carry water to your own.” We have a crisis on our border.

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