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Carter Center blocked by Govt. for 3rd time
By Mikaila Prince
The incumbent Government of Guyana has, for the third time, denied the approval for the return of the Carter Center, which was accredited to observe the March 2 General and Regional Elections.
Co-head of the Carter Center, Jason Carter
In two letters dated on May 15th and addressed to Sarah-Ann Lynch, the US Ambassador to Guyana and to five Senators of the United States, Karen Cummings, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, who wrote on behalf President David Granger, explicitly stated that “…it may not be possible for the Carter Centre [sic] and the IRI Advisor to participate in the overseeing of the recount of the voted cast on the 2nd March General and Regional Elections which as you are aware had already commenced.”
The Foreign Affairs Minister went on to justify why the Center’s reentry was not approved, making note of the travel restrictions due to the COVID-19 virus. She also stated that there is the three-member high-level scrutinizing team which was nominated by the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) currently monitoring the elections, noting that, “The Caribbean Community sees itself as the most legitimate interlocutors in the Guyana situation.”
This is effectively the third time that the government has denied reentry to the Carter Center. An initial application to the COVID-19 Task Force in late April was not responded to, prompting a May 4 appeal to the President from US Ambassador Sarah-Ann Lynch, which was rejected in a May 6 letter sent by Cummings on Granger’s behalf.
The next day, a group of bipartisan US Congressional representatives had released a public statement lobbying for their return. In a joint statement shared via a twitter account, Reps. Albio Sires (D-NJ), Gregory W. Meeks (D-NY), Sanford Bishop (D-GA), Francis Rooney (R-FL), Jeff Duncan (R-SC), and Jennifer González-Colón (R-PR) said that while they appreciate the recount and the role of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) in the process, they still want the Carter Center and International Republican Institute (IRI) back in Guyana.
“We appreciate the vital role that the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) has played in advancing democratic principles in Guyana. At the same time, we urge the Government of Guyana to allow the observation team from the Carter Center and technical advisory team from the International Republican Institute to return to the country to join CARICOM in observing the recount process,” the group said in its appeal.
There were also previous appeals from agents of several foreign governments and international organizations including: Assistant Secretary for the US Department of State’s Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs, Michael Kozak; Organisation for American States (OAS) Secretary for Strengthening Democracy, Francisco Guerrero; United Nations Representative in Guyana, Mikiko Tanaka; European Union Ambassador, Fernando Ponz Canto; and Guyana’s Canadian High Commissioner Lilian Chatterjee.
The Private Sector Commission had also issued a call for the Carter Center Observer Mission to be present. In a release, the PSC noted that they are aware of the valuable contribution of the Carter Center to democracy and free and fair elections in Guyana for more than 20 years.
“The Carter Center is an accredited observer to the March 2020 election which remains incomplete until the declaration of the results,” the PSC said. Further, they pointed out that the foreign observers were invited by the President to participate in the 2020 elections “by virtue of Section 3. (1) of the Representation of the Peoples Act after consultation with the Chairman of the Elections Commission”.
Joseph Harmon, the Chief Executive Officer of the NCTF, on May 9 had told the press that the Carter Center was free to reapply to the government to fly to Guyana to observe the recount exercise. Notably, even as the COVID-19 airport lockdown has been cited as the reason for blocking the observers’ reentry, the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) has granted special authorised flights for six to eight flights of workers from the oil and gas industry over the past two weeks.
Subsequent to hearing, the latest developments, High Commissioner Chaterjee, tweeted late last night: “Guyana refused Carter Center with ties to Guyana since 1990s, to return although they will comply with same COVID-19 requirements as the CARICOM team. GECOM invited the Carter to return. Why doesn’t the government want them back?”
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