…claims democracy being undermined in Guyana
… Kozak avoids questions on Trump’s hopes to delay U.S. election

ON Thursday, United States (U.S.) Assistant Secretary for Western Hemisphere Affairs (ag), Ambassador Michael Kozak, announced that additional visa restrictions will be placed on “senior individuals” in Guyana whom the U.S. believes are working to “undermine democracy” in the country.
Kozak made the announcement at a briefing on the administration’s efforts to promote democracy in the Western Hemisphere. This follows the initial announcement of visa restrictions to some senior individuals in Guyana by U.S. Secretary of State, Michael Pompeo, on July 15, 2020.
However, to-date, the U.S. remains tight-lipped on who these individuals are and how many. U.S. Ambassador to Guyana, Sarah-Ann Lynch, has stated that “privacy laws” prevent the U.S. from naming these individuals.

In his remarks on Thursday, Kozak stated: “Today, we are acting to prevent additional senior individuals from that country from entering the United States. The Secretary’s been clear: The Granger administration and its allies continue to defy the will of the Guyanese people by refusing to accept the vote count. The count has been certified as valid by international observers, OAS and CARICOM, Guyana’s and the Caribbean’s highest courts. The United States joins the rest of the region refusing to go along with this farce. We will continue to act until the Granger administration accepts the will of Guyanese voters.”
In response to his remarks on Guyana, reporter from leading Spanish news agency, EFE, Beatriz Pascual, questioned Kozak: “Today, the President [Donald Trump] floated the idea of delaying the November election. What message do you think that sends to U.S. neighbours in Latin America like Guyana or Bolivia?”

In turn, Kozak avoided speaking on matters concerning democracy in his own country under the President he serves.

“Okay. Well, I’m not going to comment on our President’s comments about domestic matters. I would refer you to the White House on that,” he said, as the moderator quickly shifted attention to the next reporter.

Donald Trump has called for the U.S.’ November’s presidential election to be postponed, saying increased postal voting could lead to fraud and inaccurate results. He suggested a delay until people can “properly, securely and safely” vote. There is little evidence to support Trump’s claims but he has long railed against mail-in voting which he has said would be susceptible to fraud.

However, speaking on matters in Guyana Kozak mirrored previous remarks by Pompeo that there would be consequences for individuals who seek to “undermine democracy” locally.
Pompeo has said that the events following Guyana’s March 2, 2020 General and Regional elections indicate that there are “forces” that have repeatedly refused to accept the will of the people at the ballot box.
In response to Pompeo’s statement on July 15, the Executive arm of Government of Guyana said it was taken back by the decision taken by the U.S. State Department but nonetheless urged all locally and abroad to await the conclusion of the elections.

The Government said: “The matter affecting the outcome of Guyana’s elections is still before courts, which is entirely the responsibility of the judiciary. No declaration has been made. The Executive Branch has not participated in the undermining of the electoral process and urges all countries interested in Guyana’s development to await the logical conclusion of the process which is being managed by the Elections Commission, in accordance with the Constitution of Guyana.”