OPINION: United we stand against Venezuelan bullyism

Last Updated on Wednesday, 8 November 2023, 14:33 by Denis Chabrol

By Dr. Randy Persaud, Professor Emeritus

The Special Session of the National Assembly of Guyana on November 6, 2023, will go down as a remarkable moment in our history. More than anything else, it demonstrates to Venezuela and the world, that despite our internal differences, when it comes to our national sovereignty and our core values, we will stand as one people, proud and indivisible.

Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Hugh Todd, delivered a masterpiece before the National Assembly in which he emphatically stated that we will not tolerate bullyism by Venezuela. Gail Texeira (Minister of Parliamentary Affairs & Governance) powerfully echoed his sentiments, as did Aubrey Norton (Leader of the Opposition) Khemraj Ramjattan (AFC), and among others, Amanza Walton-Desir (Shadow Foreign Minister). The motion that was adopted in the National Assembly unambiguously “Denounces as provocative, unlawful, void, and of no international legal effect, the purported referendum in Venezuela that is scheduled for December 3, 2023.”

Nicolás Maduro, who is now in charge of the failed Bolivarian Revolution, should know that unlike Venezuela where the rule of law is dead and buried, Guyana is a nation of laws, a nation where the Constitution is supreme. Unlike the National Assembly of Venezuela which has been reduced to a platform to exhort jingoism, brinksmanship, and foreign aggression against a peaceful neighbor, Guyana’s National Assembly met on November 6 to underscore the sanctity of international law, multilateral governance, and the most fundamental principle of the Westphalian system in place since 1648, namely, the mutual respect for territorial integrity and non-interference in the affairs of another state.

Maduro is hereby advised that the Special Session of the National Assembly on November 6, was attended by numerous members of the diplomatic corp. He should know that among the distinguished attendees were none other than Her Excellency Nicole D. Theriot, the United States Ambassador to Guyana, and Her Excellency Jane Miller, the High Commissioner of the United Kingdom to Guyana. These are experienced diplomats who will no doubt report to their capitals the exceptional solidarity displayed in the National Assembly, and the unremitting commitment of Guyana to the text and spirit of the UN Charter, as well as to the Charter of the OAS.

The Venezuela leaders including President Maduro, Vice President Delcy Rodríguez, and President of the National Assembly Jorge Rodríguez, should take note of Chapter I, Article I of the OAS which reads as follows: “ The American States establish by this Charter the international organization that they have developed to achieve an order of peace and justice, to promote their solidarity, to strengthen their collaboration, and to defend their sovereignty, their territorial integrity, and their independence….” Article II (of the same Chapter) specifies the following:

“The Organization of American States, in order to put into practice, the principles on which it is founded and to fulfill its regional obligations under the Charter of the United Nations, proclaims the following essential purposes:

1. a) To strengthen the peace and security of the continent;
2. b) To promote and consolidate representative democracy, with due respect for the principle of nonintervention;
   c) To prevent possible causes of difficulties and to ensure the pacific settlement of disputes that may arise among the Member States;
3. d) To provide for common action on the part of those States in the event of aggression;
4. e) To seek the solution of political, juridical, and economic problems that may arise among them;
5. f) To promote, by cooperative action, their economic, social, and cultural development;
6. g) To eradicate extreme poverty, which constitutes an obstacle to the full democratic development of the peoples of the hemisphere; and
7. h) To achieve an effective limitation of conventional weapons that will make it possible to devote the largest amount of resources to the economic and social development of the Member States (OAS Charter, emphasis added).

Instead of being attentive and compliant with the Charter of the UN and the OAS Charter, the Venezuelan presidency has become a conjurer of lies. Here is a tweet that proves the point beyond any doubt – “The government of Guyana has taken the path of an escalation of warmongering and provocation, it has been at it for a long time.”

How sad it is that the children of Venezuela are being breastfed daily lies that would make Simon Bolivar turn in his grave. How can a small country of less than one million people, and with only a small defense force, engage in “warmongering”? The truth is that Maduro has become a first-class imperialist. Having bankrupted his country through an outdated ideology and set of policies, he has only his military to lean on. The armed forces of Venezuela have been transformed from an ideology of national development under Hugo Chávez, to one of imperialism and territorial expansionism under Maduro.

Venezuela has become a predator state, and it better be careful because that thing called the Monroe Doctrine is still alive.

The National Assembly of Guyana has proclaimed with one voice, that this country stands on the side of international law, on the side of the UN and OAS Chaters, and on the right side of history. We call on the people of Venezuela to stop the Maduro regime from allowing Venezuela to move their country on a path of belligerence, and of no return. Tengan cuidado con el compañero Maduro; no es ningún tipo de socialista. Be careful with comrade Maduro; he is no socialist.

Dr. Persaud is Adviser at Office of the President, Guyana