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National awareness sessions on Guyana-Venezuela Controversy begin tomorrow
Kaieteur News – The Guyana Government will be hosting a series of events, commencing with national awareness sessions tomorrow on the border controversy with Venezuela. These events are in response to Venezuela’s December 3 Referendum which seeks the support of its people to engage in unilateral actions that would, among other things, annex the Essequibo region.
Minister within the Office of the Prime Minister with responsibility for Public Affairs, Kwame McCoy told Kaieteur News that various ministries, Regional Democratic Councils, Neighbourhood Democratic Councils, and private sector organizations are expected to assemble their staff and filter information provided to them by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the historical facts of the Guyana- Venezuela controversy.
“We provided them with guidelines that they should use and this includes initiating the sessions with the recitation of the National Pledge to foster a sense of unity and dedication as well as commencing with a universal prayer to set the tone of inclusivity and respect,” Minister McCoy said.
Minister within the Office of the Prime Minister with responsibility for Public Affairs, Kwame McCoy
He also noted that sessions are expected to encourage creative expressions such as music, poetry or spoken word performances to enrich the discussions.
Overall, the aim of these sessions is to inform and engage both public and private sector entities about the complexities surrounding the controversy. Through a blend of structured discussions led by subject experts and creative elements, the sessions aspire to deepen national understanding and evoke meaningful perspectives on this pertinent issue.
The next series of events get underway on December 1 which will see a day of prayer and a human circle of unity. This is expected to involve a human chain of persons within the Muslim community. December 2 will see a similar exercise by the Seventh Day Adventist and other Sabbath Observers.
On December 3, there will be a circle of unity which will see a human chain of hands nationwide. This will be at various locations within communities. On the same day, there will also be a multi-religious day of prayer and a night of patriotic reflection at the Guyana National Stadium. Citizens are encouraged to wear national colours to all events.
This newspaper previously reported that Guyana is currently seeking the International Court of Justice’s (ICJ) confirmation of the legal validity and binding effect of the 1899 Arbitral Award, which established the boundaries with Venezuela.
Further, the country is also awaiting the ruling of the ICJ on its request for provisional measures that would block questions in Venezuela’s referendum, scheduled for December 3, particularly questions three and five, which have been identified as the most detrimental. The first, third, and fifth questions in the planned referendum, seek to gain support for a series of actions, which include the definitive and final rejection of the 1899 arbitral award, the annexation of the Essequibo region, and its incorporation into Venezuela as a new Venezuelan state, and the granting of Venezuelan citizenship and national identity cards to the population.
During a recent engagement with residents, President Dr. Irfaan Ali said Guyana’s request for protective measures is not to infringe on the independence of Venezuela in its political endeavours, but to ensure Guyana is not a topic in these matters.
“We didn’t go to stop the referendum. Every country is entitled to do a referendum. What we went for, is to seek precautionary orders in relation to some of the questions. Questions that would necessitate action that would affect the peace and tranquility of Essequibo and our borders,” the president said.
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