Latest update April 18th, 2025 8:12 AM
Red Thread urges Guyanese to join protest today for better oil deal
Kaieteur News – Non-profit organization, Red Thread will today be taking to the streets to protest in front of the Office of the President (OP) on Vlissengen Road, Georgetown to demand a better deal from oil major, ExxonMobil.
In a brief interview with this newspaper on Tuesday, one of the group members, Joy Marcus said the protest will also be demanding that full liability coverage be put in place to safeguard the ongoing oil and gas activities offshore.
Presently, ExxonMobil through its operator, Esso Exploration and Production Guyana Limited (EEPGL) is producing over 400,000 barrels of oil in the Stabroek Block without full liability coverage, even though this is a requirement in its Permits received to extract the resource.
“We are protesting for ExxonMobil to have full liability coverage so that in the event of any oil spill and so on that we know that will be taken care of and not be left on Guyanese and there are other issues which we have been discussing which includes a better oil deal,” Marcus explained.
She added, “If you are going to do drilling which we are not really interested in having it done, then do it in a safe and proper way and so that is a main priority.”
The Red Thread representative said all Guyanese should support the protest as the calls being made seek to institute measures that would affect the entire country.
The protest will commence at 12 pm.
Red Thread members at a recent picket exercise demanding full liability coverage
On March 8, International Women’s Day, the women of the organization took to the streets with their placards to demand full liability coverage in front of the President’s Office.
Just over a dozen women were at the event with placards that read: “Show us the signed insurance documents” and “Who will pay the clean-up cost in case of a disaster? “Guyanese tax payers?”
One of the leaders of the women’s organisation, Wintress White told this newspaper that the members are “mad” and “furious” that Exxon has been proudly reporting the billions it has been earning thanks to Guyana’s resources, while the nation is yet to make sure a parent company guarantee is secured to cover costs if there were to be a large oil spill.
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