Dear Editor,
In the February 7 edition of the Kaieteur News there is a report of an interview I gave to that paper entitled ‘Guyana’s foreign policy is in a mess.’ I need to assure Minister of Foreign Affairs Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett that I am not bitter nor am I seeking office. I am merely a citizen who is concerned that our foreign policy or the lack of it has resulted in the expulsion of a rig and more recently the ejection of a vessel surveying for oil in our waters. As for the personal attacks I will allow those to fall by their own weight.
The core point I made was that the PPP lacked a coherent foreign policy. The consequence of this situation is that the nation’s foreign policy is being conducted on an ad hoc basis. My good friend the Minister of Foreign Affairs was quick to reply in a letter captioned ‘Norton’s statements on foreign policy irresponsible’ SN, February 10).
The Minister’s response proves my point. The Foreign Minister’s reply merely lists a number of so called “achievements” without enlightening the Guyanese public as to what the nation’s foreign policy is. I thought Ms Rodrigues-Birkett would have set out in clear terms the framework within which Guyana’s foreign policy is being conducted in the medium to long term. Her failure to do that suggests that I am correct. Any nation, or for that matter any foreign minister should be able to do so if it is serious about the pursuit of the national policy objectives of a small state such as Guyana, given the many challenges this nation faces. From the time of our independence Guyana has been burdened by major challenges to its sovereignty, among other contentious issues, and there is therefore need to map out policy directives and pursue these with energy and imagination. There is little room for error. The expulsion of the CGX rig from our waters is a case in point.
I have already said that the lady did not deal with the question of a coherent foreign policy. As she has elected to go down the road of purporting to have had achievements I have no choice but to answer her on her own terms on a few of those contentions.
As it relates to what she calls, “The successful settlement of the maritime boundary dispute with Suriname.” There are a few points to be made. The Foreign Minister tries to deal with the outcome of the issue without referring to the background. Guyana had to resort to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) because of the worst foreign policy blunder in post independent Guyana ‒ the expulsion of the CGX rig from Guyana’s territorial waters.
It was this same lack of a coherent foreign policy that emboldened Suriname to expel the CGX rig. Let it be recalled that in the pre-1992 era Suriname never enjoyed either military or diplomatic ascendency over Guyana. Note that having blundered, the PPP had to turn to the expertise built up during the PNC government and other non-PPP skills to resolve the issue. It is commendable that the PPP utilised the skills available to it but it should not claim it as a PPP achievement or victory.
Let it also be noted that it was the PNC’s foresight that resulted in the more than two decades of diplomatic work on the UNCLOS that resulted in the development of the institutional capacity and expertise required to successfully deal with the issue.
I need to remind my good friend the Minister as I had to do a few years ago with Mr Jagdeo that the PNC could not have taken this matter to UNCLOS since the treaty came into force long after the PNC demitted office.
Regrettably, the Minister seems not to understand the point that is being made about the need to have a structured approach to exposing foreign service officers to conference diplomacy and the concomitant linkages and networks that flow from such participation, and irrelevantly contends that the ministry posted foreign service officers overseas . Let me put the point bluntly. The ministry needs to expose foreign service officers to conference diplomacy so that they can develop the expertise and experience required to operate in a modern foreign service. They cannot get those skills in Takuba Lodge, the Guyana missions overseas or in a classroom. Those skills are acquired from participating in diplomatic conferences.
As it relates to Caricom and Unusur, again the Minister misses the point. I am of the view that Guyana could be in both institutions. However, in light of our scarce resources and our extant geopolitical situation there is need for prioritisation and a clear and coherent policy on regional integration. Moreso, if history is any guide, the first line of diplomatic defence as it relates to our territorial integrity must be Caricom. If perchance there is a change, the Minister should outline the present foreign policy position.
I hope the Minister is now clear on the issue of policy and I await her articulation of Guyana’s present foreign policy. I reiterate my position, Guyana foreign policy is in a mess.
Yours faithfully,
Aubrey C Norton
