Guyana’s Parliament to denounce Venezuela’s ‘provocative, unlawful’ referendum       

ahead at 10:00 hrs on Monday, November 06 where the government and opposition will unite to denounce Venezuela’s “provocative and unlawful” referendum.

The referendum is to be held a month from today in Venezuela where the government will seek the support of citizens in continuance of its claim of Guyana’s Essequibo region.

Guyana views the move as an affront to the ongoing juridical process currently before the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

And so, a Motion will be moved by Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Hugh Todd during the sitting on Monday.

The Motion will open a debate, with contributions from both sides of the House.

And then, a vote.

All 65 members of the National Assembly are expected to vote in support of the Motion which seeks to:

• Affirm the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the State of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana
• Reaffirms its recognition and acceptance of the 1899 Arbitral Award as a “full, perfect and final” settlement of the boundary between Guyana and Venezuela and Article IV (2) of the 1966 Geneva Agreement as giving the mandate to the United Nations Secretary-General to select the means of resolving the controversy
• Denounces as provocative, unlawful, void, and of no international legal effect, the purported referendum in Venezuela that is scheduled for December 3, 2023
• Supports the Government in its pursuit to ensure a peaceful and lawful resolution of the controversy before the International Court of Justice and rejects the proposal to return to any form of dialogue with Venezuela on the controversy outside of the process before the Court
• Supports Government’s formal approach for the urgent protection of the International Court of Justice, with the filing with the Court a Request for Provisional Measures for an Order preventing Venezuela from taking any action to seize, acquire or encroach upon, or assert or exercise sovereignty over, the Essequibo Region or any other part of Guyana’s national territory, pending the Court’s final determination of the validity of the Arbitral Award
• Calls for the deepening of engagements among all national stakeholders on issues relating to the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, particularly within the context of the meetings of the bipartisan Ministerial Advisory Committee on the Guyana/Venezuela Controversy.
• Encourages the citizens of Guyana to remain fully engaged on developments surrounding the controversy
• Expresses its appreciation to the partners and friends of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana for their support and expressions of affirmation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Guyana.

The Nicolas Maduro government intends to ask its citizens for the creation of a new state, which makes up the territory of Guyana that it claims.

The Guyana government has condemned what it sees as Venezuela’s expansionist ambitions and said the border controversy should be resolved in court as the case is before the International Court of Justice as dictated by the United Nations Secretary General as the means to settle the controversy.

Guyana has since approached the International Court of Justice (ICJ), seeking an injunction to prevent Venezuela from taking action through its provocative referendum over Guyana’s territory – Essequibo.

The borders of Guyana and Venezuela were determined by an arbitral tribunal on October 3rd, 1989, and Venezuela inherited 13,000 square kilometers of Guyana’s territory (then under British rule).