US Vice President Kamala Harris (center) poses for an official group photo with Caribbean heads of state attending the US-Caribbean Leaders Meeting, at the Atlantis Conference Center in Nassau, Bahamas, June 8, 2023. Photo: Kristaan Ingraham/AP.
Venezuela condemned the biased position of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) regarding the decision of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) not to suspend the upcoming Venezuelan consultative referendum on the Essequibo dispute. Venezuelan Foreign Affairs Minister Yván Gil posted a statement on social media on Saturday, December 2, in which Venezuela categorically rejected the statement issued by the General Secretariat of the Caribbean Community regarding the recent ICJ ruling on the Essequibo referendum.
CARICOM backed the unusual provisional measures requested before the ICJ by the government of Guyana against the democratic and sovereign consultative referendum that will take place in Venezuela on Sunday, December 3, 2023. The CARICOM statement in this regard was released on Friday, after the ICJ ruled against suspending the referendum or altering the referendum questions at Guyana’s request.
#Comunicado Venezuela rechaza categóricamente el comunicado emitido desde la Secretaría General de la Comunidad del Caribe (CARICOM), sobre el pronunciamiento de la Corte Internacional de Justicia en relación a las insólitas medidas provisionales solicitadas por el Gobierno de… pic.twitter.com/SK6KTo1bbL
— Yvan Gil (@yvangil) December 2, 2023
The Caribbean Community stated on Friday, December 1, that it hopes that Venezuela obeys the decision of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to refrain from taking “any action that modifies” the situation in the territory west of the Essequibo River. In a press release, CARICOM also urged Venezuela to faithfully comply with international law and the statutes of the United Nations, and not to carry out any violent action in the territorial dispute with Guyana.
CARICOM called on “all sides” to respect the Caribbean as a “zone of peace” and that nothing should alter the tranquility of the region, which is essential for its economy and social well-being to prosper.
International Court of Justice Rules Not to Suspend Venezuela’s Essequibo Referendum
The unofficial translation of the Venezuelan government’s response is provided below:
The government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela categorically rejects the statement issued by the General Secretariat of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) regarding the ruling of the International Court of Justice, concerning the unusual provisional measures requested by the government of Guyana against the democratic and sovereign consultative referendum that will take place in our country on December 3, 2023.
The General Secretariat of CARICOM lies blatantly and intentionally omits the fact that the International Court of Justice unanimously rejected Guyana’s reckless attempt to try to limit the political rights of Venezuelans and prevent the holding of the consultative referendum called by the National Assembly of Venezuela within the framework of International Law and the only valid instrument to address the controversy, which is the Geneva Agreement of 1966.
It is unusual that the secretariat juggles to avoid referring to the court’s exhaustive call to the government of Guyana to stop the deliberate actions to aggravate the situation of the controversy, among which we can mention the involvement of the United States Southern Command and the granting of concessions in an undelimited maritime area, which has generated a situation of threat to the peace and stability of the Caribbean region.
Venezuela reminds the Caribbean Community of the unfortunate fate of erratically directed organizations, such as the Organization of American States, which under the influence of Luis Almagro was converted into a dysfunctional, politicized structure, with destructive objectives and subservient to imperialist interests.
The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela calls on the CARICOM partner countries to resume synderesis and objectivity, moving away from preconceived judgments created by the oil transnational ExxonMobil and the United States Southern Command, to continue guaranteeing cooperation, integration and peace in our region.
The sun of Venezuela rises in the Essequibo!
(RedRadioVE) by Victoria Torres
Translation: Orinoco Tribune
OT/JRE/SC
