…if stalemate continues with border controversy

PRESIDENT David Granger has noted that Guyana welcomes the decision by United Nations (UN) Secretary-General, Mr. Ban Ki-moon, to identify a definitive deadline to the Good Offices process for the resolution of the Guyana/Venezuela border controversy. Declaring that Guyana has worked hard to bring an end to the claim on its sovereign territory, the President said that the country is ready to prove its case in the International Court of Justice at the end of 2017, should the Good Offices process maintain the current stalemate.
The President, who was at the time addressing officers and ranks of the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) at Base Camp Ayanganna’s Annual Christmas Lunch, said that Guyana has already waited too long for a resolution to this matter, a release from the Ministry of the Presidency noted.
“Last Friday, for the first time in 51 years, the secretary-general has decided that that 51-year-old claim by Venezuela will go to the world court at the end of 2017 if the two countries, Guyana and Venezuela, do not agree to make some other arrangements. Well we have already decided that we have already waited 51 years too long. It is our territory and we will go to court to prove that it is our territory and you are there to back me up, aren’t you?” the President said to loud cheers and shouts of “yes” from members of the force.
THE United Nations (UN) secretary-general has decided that Guyana and Venezuela are to return to the Good Officecs Process for another year with the hope of the two countries coming closer to a resolution on the ongoing border controversy. Outgoing Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has indicated that based on the various assessments done over the years, a return to the Good Offices Process is the best option at this point. Guyana has since indicated its acceptance of the decision of the UN Secretary-General.
Meanwhile, according to the release, the President noted that the country has put in significant effort and work to place the border controversy at the top of the international agenda, lobbying the UN secretary-general and gaining support from the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), the Commonwealth nations and other nation-states. He added that it is satisfying that the work of the administration has not been in vain.
“We worked hard for it. We engaged the secretary-general since last year and it was always our intention that it is the secretary-general’s responsibility to make a decision about the way the controversy would be dealt with and he has made that decision and so in that regard, I am satisfied that the secretary-general has discharged his responsibility to the Geneva Agreement of 1966.
“So we are very grateful he has made that decision. We have waited 50 years and we understand that the secretary-general has been very deliberate and very cautious in approaching this matter. International issues cannot be resolved in a sudden or spontaneous fashion and we understand that under the circumstances, the secretary-general did what was his duty under the Geneva Agreement,” the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces said.
The President expressed gratitude to the servicemen for their commitment and dedication during the past year, noting that Guyana would not have been where it is had it not been for the force. He said that it is not just the Defence Board and the Government that are grateful for the GDF’s service but the nation as a whole.