The Working People’s Alliance (WPA) on Friday called for the establishment of a Venezuela Border Task Force in light of what it says will likely be permanent aggression from Caracas over its claim to Essequibo.
In a statement, the WPA said it joins in the total rejection of Venezuela’s repeated aggression towards Guyana.
“This is a very serious situation which requires an equally serious response from Guyana, the rest of the region, hemisphere, and global community. While the Venezuela leadership is telling the world that it has no intention of invading Guyana, its rhetoric and internal actions leave no doubt that its intention is to hurt our country. That Venezuela challenges the very legitimacy of the current case before the ICJ exposes a dangerous mindset, which can only lead to permanent aggression on the part of Caracas”, the party said.
The WPA, which was part of the governing APNU+AFC coalition between 2015 and 2020, deemed the Venezuela aggression an existential threat to Guyana’s inalienable rights as a sovereign country.
“This expression of greed by our neighbour has no place in international relations. While we agree that the domestic political situation in Venezuela may be a motivating factor for its recent aggression, we believe that Gyana’s rise as a Petro-State is ultimately the root cause”, the party said.
It commends the government for putting the matter on the front-burner of its foreign policy agenda, but said that the situation demands a much more pro-active national approach that transcends narrow partisan considerations.
“There is more than a hint of sloth, complacency, and partisan grandstanding, which is in stark contrast to Venezuela’s singlemindedness—a recipe which is counterproductive to the collective national interest and security. WPA does not promote an end to domestic political contestation, but we appeal for an enlargement of the political space for joint action in pursuit of an overarching national response to Venezuela”, the statement said.
The WPA urged an overtly national response by the government and other stakeholders to what it said is now clearly a permanent problem.
“We, therefore, call on the government to treat the matter with the requisite seriousness that it deserves by setting up a Venezuela Border Task Force with the expressed task of fashioning and implementing a carefully thought-out overall approach to this problem. Such a task force should include members of the National Assembly from both sides of the political divide, representatives of the Executive Branch and professionals and experts with the necessary skill set in the relevant areas”, the party said.
Adverting to the planned December 3rd referendum in Venezuela on Essequibo, the WPA said that it feels very strongly that the government, with the support of the National Assembly, should consider calling a counter-referendum here with the clear intention of affirming Guyana’s territorial integrity and the country’s commitment to a just, legal, and peaceful resolution to the issue.
The WPA said that it firmly believes that short of an invasion, Venezuela is interested in undermining the major source of the country’s national revenue.
“In that regard, WPA calls on the government to avoid reckless decision-making in the Oil and Gas sector that could be used as excuses by Venezuela to undermine its growth and stability”, the statement added.
The WPA also urged the government and people of Guyana not to simplistically harbour the view that our allies and friends would automatically stand with us.
“All countries act first in pursuit of their national interests. Guyana must therefore be intentional and purposeful in winning over traditional friends and allies to our cause. This requires permanent shuttle diplomacy to CARICOM, Commonwealth. and OAS member States along with other non-traditional allies”, the WPA contended.