Govt. and Opposition rebuke Venezuela as Maduro signs law to annex Essequibo

Apr 05, 2024 Court Stories, Features / Columnists, News

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Kaieteur News – Guyana on Wednesday rejected Venezuela’s latest action to annex the Essequibo. Venezuela on Wednesday promulgation a law for the defence of Guayana Esequiba.

In a statement the Government of Guyana said it has taken note of the action taken on Wednesday by the President of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela to promulgate “the Organic Law for the Defense of Guayana Esequiba.” “This attempt by Venezuela to annex more than two- thirds of Guyana’s sovereign territory and make it part of Venezuela is an egregious violation of the most fundamental principles of international law enshrined in the United Nations Charter, the Charter of the Organisation of American States and customary international law.

It also contradicts the letter and spirit of the Joint Declaration of Argyle for Dialogue and Peace between Guyana and Venezuela agreed to on December 14, 2023 in St Vincent and the Grenadines,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. According to the government this unlawful act calls into question Venezuela’s obligation to abide by the principles of that Declaration. “In this light, the Government of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana wishes to put on notice the Government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, the Governments of the Caribbean Community and the Latin American and Caribbean Community of Nations, as well as the Secretary General of the United Nations and the Secretary General of the Organisation of American States, that it will not countenance the annexation, seizure or occupation of any part of its sovereign territory. Guyana has always stood by the principles of the United Nations Charter, the rule of law and the peaceful settlement of disputes.”

The government said it is as a result of the 1966 Geneva Agreement, to which Venezuela and Guyana are parties, that the International Court of Justice has ruled that it has jurisdiction to make a decision on the case brought before it by Guyana regarding the validity of the 1899 Arbitral Award which definitively settled the land boundary between the two countries. The Court’s decision will be final and binding on both parties. “If Venezuela wants to contest title to the territory in question, the proper forum is the International Court of Justice, which will decide the issue objectively and according to the law. Furthermore, the offensive and undignified statements made by President Maduro about the President of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana have not gone unnoticed. It is unfortunate that the commitment made at Argyle to “the pursuance of good neighborliness, peaceful coexistence, and the unity of Latin America and the Caribbean” is now again seriously threatened by President Maduro’s words and action today.”

Meanwhile, the Parliamentary Opposition said it views with deep concern, and alarm, the action taken by Venezuela to promulgate “the organic law for the defense of Guayana Essequiba” in total violation of international law. “The Parliamentary Opposition is constrained to note that this illegal act has come at a time when the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela continues to take belligerent action against the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, including, the fraudulent referendum of December 3, 2023; the build-up of troops along the border and other provocative acts. These measures will neither contribute to the peaceful relations between the two countries nor the overall peace of the region. A zone of peace can hardly survive in these circumstances. The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela will therefore be responsible for the further decline in the relations between the two states and any breach in the peaceful development of the region.”

“Accordingly, the Parliamentary Opposition not only rejects this organic law but condemns it as a flagrant violation of International Law, the Geneva Agreement and the letter and spirit of the recent joint Declaration of Argyle for dialogue and peace agreed to on December 14, 2023. Also, the “Organic Law” is in clear violation of the recent decision of the ICJ which enjoined that “Pending a final decision in the case, the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela shall refrain from taking any action which would modify the situation which currently prevails in the territory of dispute…”. The Parliamentary Opposition further notes that the government and people of Guyana have not engaged in any aggressive action against the government and people of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, but rather has sought to solve the territorial controversy through peaceful and legal means, including the resort to the International Court of Justice which is now considering a final decision in this matter.  The Parliamentary Opposition finally urges the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela to act responsibly and not further inflame the geo-political fault lines of the region, and thereby threaten its further peaceful development.”

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• annex, Essequibo, Organic Law, promulgation, Venezuela

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