Guyana formally protests CARICOM leaders’ tolerance of Venezuelan President’s Essequibo brooch

Last Updated on Tuesday, 28 April 2026, 13:58 by Denis Chabrol

President Irfaan Ali on Tuesday formally protested Venezuela’s President, Delcy Rodriguez’s wearing of a brooch of her country that purports to include Guyana’s Essequibo Region while on official engagements in Grenada, and Barbados this month.

In a strongly worded letter to the Chairman of the 15-nation Caribbean Community (CARICOM),  St Kitts and Nevis’ Prime Minister Dr Terrance Drew, the Guyanese leader. Dr Ali said the regional grouping’s solidarity with Guyana against Venezuela’s claim to the 160,000 square kilometre region must be backed by action rather than lip service.

“The use of CARICOM engagements to project or promote a territorial claim against a Member State risks being interpreted as acquiescence or tolerance. No action, whether deliberate or inadvertent, should create the impression that the Community’s platforms may be used to advance claims now before the International Court of Justice. CARICOM’s principled support for Guyana must be reflected not only in declarations, but also in the context and conduct of official engagements,” he said.  He said Guyana reminds all CARICOM Heads of Government of their repeated and unequivocal support for Guyana’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and for the resolution of the controversy through the judicial process before the Court.

The Private Sector Commission (PSC) and at least one of its affiliates issued strongly worded statements overnight, hours after Barbados’ Prime Minister Mia Mottley was seen in official government pictures with the Venezuelan leader wearing the offensive brooch.  Ms Rodriguez wore an almost identical brooch during her official visit to Grenada earlier this month.

While the Guyana government said it respects the sovereign right of CARICOM Member States to conduct bilateral relations with all partners, including Venezuela, Dr Ali said it was “deeply regrettable” that such engagements have been accompanied by the prominent display of symbols asserting Venezuela’s claim to Guyana’s territory.

The President argued that was not a matter of symbolism alone, but a calculated and provocative assertion of a claim that Guyana has consistently and lawfully rejected, and which is before the International Court of Justice for final adjudication. That court would next week hold hearings on the merits of the case on the validity of the 1899 Arbitral Tribunal Award that Guyana maintains is a full, perfect and final settlement of the land boundary with Venezuela.

“I am writing to you, the current Chairman of CARICOM, conveying Guyana’s concern and urging continued vigilance in safeguarding the Community’s principled position,” the Guyanese leader told the CARICOM Chairman.

Dr Ali says Venezuela cannot, while the case is before the Court, seek to normalise by symbols, maps, legislation, appointments or official display what it has failed to establish in law. “Such conduct does not strengthen Venezuela’s case; it undermines confidence in its stated commitment to peaceful settlement, international law, and good neighbourly relations,” he added.

He also told the CARICOM Chairman that Guyana remains fully committed to the peaceful resolution of this matter in accordance with international law. “We continue to repose our confidence in the Court and to respect its processes and eventual judgment. At the same time, Guyana expects all States, including Venezuela, to act consistently with the principles of the United Nations Charter, refrain from provocation, and respect the ongoing judicial process,” he said.

The President says Venezuela’s revival of the claim decades later, and its more recent measures purporting to annex the Essequibo and appoint officials for that territory, form part of a pattern of conduct inconsistent with international law and the process to which the matter has been submitted.

He adds that these actions persist notwithstanding the Order of the Court of 1 December 2023, which required Venezuela not to take any action that would modify the situation that currently prevails in the territory in dispute, whereby Guyana administers and exercises control over that area, and required both Parties to refrain from any action that might aggravate or extend the dispute or make it more difficult to resolve.

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