Latest update May 5th, 2024 12:52 AM
Sep 14, 2013 News
Former Police Commissioner and Shadow Home Affairs Minister, Winston Felix, said that the recent “armed visit” by the Venezuela Army was a breach of sovereignty towards Guyana. On August 31, last, a group, called “My Map of Venezuela also Includes Our Essequibo”, reportedly came to “carry out a civil exercise of sovereignty.”
The group was accompanied by armed members of the Venezuela Army, according to El Universal, a newspaper in that neighbouring Spanish-speaking country.
According to Felix, usually if foreigners enter Guyana at any land border they have to report to the police. However with the military it’s not unusual for them to have cross border relations but they are not allowed to cross with firearms.
“You would leave your firearm at one end and report to your counterparts at the other side of the border,” Felix explained.
The former commissioner said that he has seen this in operation since he worked at certain border locations. Felix said that it was a malicious incursion on behalf of the Venezuelan army. It seemed to put Guyana in a situation that it was their sovereign territory and we must reject that.
We said one time that “not a blade of grass and we should not resile from that,” Felix stated.
The army has mounted a probe to determine whether its soldiers, guarding a border base at Eteringbang, erred in allowing a group of Venezuelans to enter Guyana in somewhat strange circumstances on August 31. The visit is now being seen as an act of provocation by certain fringe groups in Venezuela to embarrass President Nicolas Maduro who came to visit Guyana on state business the same day.
Venezuela is claiming a large swath of Essequibo. The issue has been rearing its head from time to time but took backseat under the administration of Venezuela’s former President Hugo Chavez.
Chavez, who died earlier this year, had agreed to have the matter settled by a UN Good Officer process. Jamaican-born Norman Girvan, an expert of international relations, was appointed back in 2010 to see the process through.
During his visit on August 31, both Maduro and President Donald Ramotar expressed commitments to the Good Officer process. However, back in Venezuela, the issue has been rumbling in the media with former army officials and members of the Opposition calling for it to become one of priority for the Maduro administration.
Foreign Affairs Minister, Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett, said that from initial information, there was indeed a group who claimed they were doing research. “The preliminary information available to me indicates that a group of Venezuelans came to Guyana via Eteringbang. They indicated that they were students and sought permission from the relevant Guyanese authorities to enter Guyana. That permission was given.
“They further indicated that they were doing a research in relation to the border.” The Minister also said that she was advised that there were “security officers” with the group.
“I do not have any report of any “military exercise” and will not speculate. I await a full report on the matter.”
Venezuela had claimed more than half of the territory of Guyana at the time of the Latin American wars of independence, a dispute that was settled by arbitration in 1899 after the Venezuela Crisis of 1895.
In 1962, Venezuela declared that it would no longer abide by the arbitration decision, which ceded mineral-rich territory in the Orinoco basin to Guyana. The disputed area is called Guayana Essequiba by Venezuela. A border commission was set up in 1966 with representatives from Guyana, Venezuela and Great Britain, but failed to reach agreement.
Venezuela vetoed Guyana’s bid to become a member of the Organization of American States (OAS) in 1967. In 1969 Venezuela backed an abortive uprising in the disputed area.
Under intense diplomatic pressure, Venezuela agreed in 1970 via the Protocol of Port of Spain, to a 12-year moratorium on the dispute. Venezuela refused to renew the protocol. However, with changes to the governments of both countries relations improved, to the extent that in 1990 Venezuela sponsored Guyana’s bid for OAS membership in 1990.
GRA catch EXXON trying to hunch GUYANA over 11 BUS dollars in one shot!!!!
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