Venezuela creeping forward, Guyana standing still

Mar 06, 2021 Editorial

---

Kaieteur News – The Venezuelans are serious, and every Guyanese, from leaders to citizens, need to get this now irreversible fact of life into our thick skulls. Unless we get just as serious, cat could eat our dinner, while leaving us lamenting the folly of our ways and our lost hopes. Every indication from determined Venezuelan leadership has signalled a gradual and very visible escalation of tensions, intimidations, and unrelenting aggressions.
The Venezuelans have been moving at a creeping pace, but with congealed visions in their heads. Essequibo is their land, and it is there for the taking; of that miscalculation, all Guyanese must rise up and show them the error of their ways. They do not believe that Guyanese would dare to stand against their intrusions, and whatever additional military excursions they have on the drawing board. Two Latin American countries went to war, while using a disputed soccer match as their cover story. The Venezuelans have the best cover story to sell the international community and its people, be they military or from the rank-and-file populace: Essequibo is theirs, and no court, no United Nations, and no comity of nations will deter them from that track that they hurtle down by laying down one gauntlet after another.
First, it was the seizure of our fishing boats under the flimsiest of pretexts that fooled no one as to the fraudulence of that barefaced claim. It is called a shot across the bow, and it was the opening salvo, through a gradual escalation of hostilities. Guyanese need to wake up, get some sense in their hard heads and stop fighting with each other, squabbling endlessly. Looking back to the past is necessary, but it does not rise to the state of being absolutely mandatory, while the encroachments on our dignity, sovereignty, and territory keep climbing.
The Venezuelans climbed high with their fighter jets at Eteringbang in a show of muscle. Look at what we got in the armoury, and look at what we can do with impunity in this second card put on the territorial table. This is how the caudillos and hidalgos marshal and rally the campesinos. There is nothing like a little foreign adventure to keep citizens’ minds off domestic hardships and woes. It was reported that the Venezuelan High Command rejected Guyana’s claim of “air operations” by them. They had proved to be devious with the facts and circumstances before in the still fresh matter of those fishing vessels. We at this paper believe that our Venezuelan neighbours are playing tricks with truth.
We call on all Guyanese not to be taken in and be complacent. We are not! For we can recognize from a mile off, the cupidity of covetousness and avarice of our neighbours over other people’s property, our property and birthright, which we will not yield.
We will not yield any space, and that is regardless of what was embodied in the third blatant escalation signalled by the Venezuelans. A powerful commission was given a mandate by political leaders: come up with conclusions and wording as to our real and inflexible position on Guyana and Essequiba, which has been proposed to be incorporated in their constitution. It is our belief that that was the only outcome that was expected, that could be delivered. Interestingly, there was the not-so-subtle signal (a fourth one) of the commission sharing its proposals and conclusions with Venezuelan military leaders. As we see it, this is the equivalent of: we have done our part, and as ordered. Now the rest is left in the hands of the military.
When taken together, there is this relentless creeping forward by Venezuela, as powered by its overwhelming greed, dismissal of reasoning, and openly uttered contempt for the reach and application of international law. Without a doubt, the position of Venezuelan leadership can be summed up in a few spare words: to hell with the ICJ. Take the UN and stuff it somewhere else. We don’t care about CARICOM. And let’s go from there.
When all of this is taken into consideration, Guyanese find themselves in an unenviable place. On the one hand, their natural resources wealth inspires grand designs by political and military schemers next door. On the other, they know next to nothing on what is truly happening with this oil wealth, as one political group after the other plays dodgy concealment games with disclosures.
What is now undeniable is that Venezuela is upping the ante and planning ways to send very public signals to us and the world about its ultimate objectives. It has gone to the lengths of deploying its naval force and now its air force, next it could be its land forces. It is Essequiba or nothing! When will we get some sense as to the dangers that we face internally with our leaders, and with outsiders who cast their eyes upon us?

---

---