Arbitrators of the Paris Arbitration Tribunal, in a photo taken at the Boluverd Said Germain, Paris, France. Photo: Collection of the La Guayana Esequiba Foundation/Wikipedia.
The government of Venezuela condemned as “cynical and fallacious” the statement issued by the Cooperative Republic of Guyana on the occasion of the 125th anniversary of the “null and void Paris Arbitration Award of October 3, 1899 which attempted to deprive Venezuela of its Essequibo territory.”
In an statement released on Saturday, October 4, the Venezuelan government criticized Guyana for continuing to lie to the world, “intending to not recognize Venezuela’s incontrovertible historical titles over the Essequibo territory.”
The text added that the process that gave rise to the Paris Arbitration Award of 1899 was “clearly fraudulent,” as from the beginning it was negotiated between the United Kingdom and the United States to deceive Venezuela and to illegitimately appropriate a part of Venezuelan territory.
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“Venezuela proceeded to formally ratify the demarcated boundary in its domestic law and thereafter published official maps, which depicted the boundary following the line described in the 1899 Award,” the Guyanese statement claimed. “However, in 1962, as the independence of British Guiana dawned, Venezuela put obstacles to its full freedom from Great Britain in the UN Special Committee on Decolonization. Venezuela recognized that it would become neighbor to a nascent State and by virtue of its expansionist ambition, abandoned the rule of law and good faith, and laid claims to Guyana’s Essequibo territory.” Thus, the Guyanese statement made no mention of Venezuela’s claims initiated since 1949 to invalidate the Paris Award after the Mallet-Prevost memorandum scandal.
The Mallet-Prevost memorandum, published in the American Journal of International Law in July 1949, accused the Russian president of the Paris Arbitration Tribunal, Fyodor Fyodorovich de Martens (Frederic de Martens), of making a deal with Britain which robbed Venezuela of the Essequibo territory in the final Paris Arbitral Award.
Martens’s concept of international law entailed, according to Lauri Mälksoo, a “discriminatory non-recognition of uncivilized peoples as subjects of international law.” In a lengthy paper, Malksoo elaborated on the “darker legacy” of Martens and the extent to which he, besides being a celebrated philanthrophist, was also a committed colonialist international lawyer.
The Venezuelan statement stated that the Paris Award constitutes “one of the most scandalous abuses against a Latin American Republic in two centuries and a clear expression of territorial plunder committed by the British Empire, from which the Cooperative Republic of Guyana intends to extract territorial benefits and present itself as a victim at the same time.”
It added that the Paris Award was superseded by the Geneva Agreement of 1966, which was signed by the United Kingdom and the authorities of the newly-born Cooperative Republic of Guyana, once the British granted it independence. It further added that “this Agreement is in force and is the regulatory framework that must be complied with in good faith by the parties, in accordance with international law.”
The statement concluded by demanding that the Cooperative Republic of Guyana “cease its threats, together with its imperialist partners, against the people of Venezuela,” and urged it to comply with the 1966 Geneva Agreement.
Many experts consider Guyana’s denunciation of Venezuelan “expansionist ambitions” ridiculous, as in reality Venezuela has been subjected to territorial plunder for centuries, first by colonial powers and later by neighbors like Colombia and Brazil.
Below is the full unofficial translation of the statement:
The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela categorically condemns the cynical and fallacious statement issued by the Cooperative Republic of Guyana on the occasion of the 125th anniversary of the null and void Paris Arbitration Award of October 3, 1899, through which it was attempted to deprive Venezuela of its Essequibo territory.
With its statement, Guyana continues to lie to the world, desperately intending to not recognize Venezuela’s incontrovertible historical titles over the Essequibo territory. On the other hand, the Cooperative Republic of Guyana is simply an heir to a historical colonial plunder carried out by the United Kingdom of Great Britain to satisfy its imperial policy and to seize the immense natural wealth of Venezuela.
The entire process leading to the 1899 Arbitral Award was clearly fraudulent. The Washington Treaty of 1897, which served as its basis, was negotiated between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and the United States of America by deceiving Venezuela, resulting in an unequal and unfair treaty, the original source of the invalid and criminal award of 1899.
Given this background, it is unquestionable that the Paris Arbitration Award of 1899 is null and void. Its legal source, the composition of the tribunal, its lack of motivation and the excess of power that characterized it make this award one of the most scandalous abuses against a Latin American Republic in two centuries and a clear expression of territorial plunder committed by the British Empire, from which the Cooperative Republic of Guyana intends to extract territorial benefits and present itself as a victim at the same time.
The 1899 Arbitration Award was largely superseded by the Geneva Agreement, signed on February 17, 1966, between Venezuela, the United Kingdom, and British Guiana, now the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, with the aim of ending the territorial dispute through a practical, acceptable and satisfactory arrangement for all parties. This Agreement is in force and is the regulatory framework that must be complied with in good faith by the parties, in accordance with international law.
The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ratifies that the International Court of Justice does not have jurisdiction to hear Guyana’s unilateral claim on the “validity” of the 1899 Award. Faithful to its historical position, overwhelmingly ratified by the Venezuelan people in the consultative referendum held on December 3, 2023, Venezuela has never granted, nor will it grant its consent to submit the territorial controversy over the Essequibo region to the jurisdiction of the Court.
The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela demands that the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, together with its imperialist partners, cease its threats against the Venezuelan people and strictly comply with the Geneva Agreement, which is the only valid path to a peaceful and satisfactory solution for both parties regarding the territory of Essequibo.
The sun of Venezuela rises in the Essequibo.
Caracas, October 4, 2024
(RedRadioVE) by Ana Perdigón, with Orinoco Tribune content
Translation: Orinoco Tribune
OT/JRE/SC
