–President Granger says CELAC on threshold of new era in global relations

PRESIDENT David Granger on Wednesday noted that the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) stands at the threshold of what promises to be a new era in global relations, the emerging era of the South.At the same time, the President called on the regional integration bloc to satisfy the needs of all its members, if it is to become an authentic vehicle for regional integration in the 21st century.
The Head of State made the pronouncement during his address to participants on Wednesday at the Fifth Summit of Heads of State and Government of the CELAC at Punta Cana in The Dominican Republic.
Noting that the body is a partnership, the President noted that CELAC is a partnership of small and large states of the Region and of importance, he said that it must operate as a “community of citizens”, one which “must protect and respect all of its citizens, whoever and wherever they are.”
According to the President, CELAC brings together many different and diverse strands and historically, he said that the indigenous peoples of the Americas were joined by Europeans, Africans and Asians.
“The New World is a polyglot sphere,” he said.
The President noted that the regional body is a means and opportunity to break with this past, one which must distance itself from the culture of the conquistadores.
He said it must reject the ways of the sword and “condemn gunboat diplomacy.”
According to President Granger, CELAC must represent the promise of the new world in a new age, noting that the body is not a mere collection of states, but also a community of citizens. “This is a community of citizens who have inalienable rights, including the right to statehood, the right to the protection of the law, the right to life and the right to liberty,” he said, noting that it is one in which there can be no such phenomenon as a ‘stateless’ person.
He called on CELAC to defend the rights of all of its citizens, adding that it must ensure the safety of the lives and the security of livelihoods of the citizens of this Region.
He told heads of states that CELAC is an expression of the aspirations of the citizens of 33 countries of the Caribbean and Latin America, describing the body as a vehicle for deepening regional integration, multilateral cooperation and bi-regional relations.
According to the President, CELAC is a forum for articulating common interests, shared principles and values and noted that it must go beyond the generation of declarations but rather, it must create mechanisms which will advance, in practical and tangible ways, the aims of the community it represents.
BUILD DOORS NOT WALLS
“CELAC must build doors not walls; gates not fences; bridges not blockades,” he said.
President Granger reminded the gathering and the CELAC members that Guyana, where the Caribbean community is headquartered, assumed the chairmanship of that regional body this year.
He said the small states of the Caribbean have been engaged, for 44 years, in an enterprise to deepen, widen and strengthen their integration movement.

According to the President, CARICOM looks to CELAC to complement this integrative process, especially in light of the varied economic, environmental and security threats which the Region faces.
“CARICOM needs CELAC to help protect our countries from aggression and our citizens from abuse,” he said.
The President said that the Political Declaration of Quito of January 2016 recognised the need to intensify efforts at building economic, social and environmental resilience.
He said that the attainment of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, including the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), is premised on the simultaneous response to the varying interrelated challenges each country faces.
Regarding climate change, the President said that the small states of CARICOM “are extremely vulnerable” to rising sea levels and extreme weather patterns caused by global warming. These pose a threat to coastal households and livelihoods.
He said tourism assets such as coral reefs, beaches and marine life, including vital fisheries stocks are threatened in that regard, adding that flood and droughts imperil coastal agriculture.
COLLECTIVE ACTION
“The Caribbean cannot overcome these challenges without cooperative action,” he added.
Closer to home, President Granger said Guyana is committed to a low-carbon, low-emission course of development. He said that the country is on an irreversible course towards the establishment of a ‘green state’ which sees emphasis being placed on several areas.
These include protection of the environment, including Guyana’s rich biodiversity, the provision of environmental, eco-educational and ecological services and well as the promulgation of practical measures to ensure climate adaptation.
He also listed the production of energy from renewable sources and the promotion of social cohesion and the building of an inclusive economy.
President Granger expressed Guyana’s deep gratitude to the Government and people of The Dominican Republic for their warm reception, gracious hospitality and efficient arrangements made for hosting the summit.
He also expressed appreciation to President Danilo Medina for his leadership of the CELAC over the past year and also extended best wishes to incoming Pro-Tempore Chairman, President Salvador Sánchez Cerén of El Salvador.