HAVE a quiet moment of reflection and think of what becomes of the world if the international society accepts the Severo Mallet-Prevost (SMP) document. There can no longer be a stable world. The SMP document is a letter penned by a delegation member of Venezuela of that name that settled the boundaries between Guyana and Venezuela in 1899.

The correspondence was opened and made public after the gentleman had died. SMP alleged that the award of 1899 was tainted because there was collusion between the British and Russian jurists that decided the boundary. The SMP revelation was made public in 1949, 50 fifty years after the line between Venezuela and Guyana was settled.

Here are the arguments against the SMP letter. It contains no one thread of proof. A man wrote a letter about what he believed. It begins and ends there. History and law do not assign evidential status to such occurrences.

The man who held that belief was not an objective participant from a neutral corner representing the global community. He was a delegate from the same country that accepted the settlement. Again, law and history come in here. What weight should law and history put on the personal reflection of SMP? The answer is none for two reasons. One is there is no evidence to substantiate his belief. Secondly, being Venezuelan, SMP could have penned the letter about perceptions that actually had no basis in reality.

Think of how unstable the world will become if international jurists tasked with preserving international laws for the preservation of global peace accept the SMP document. The examples would run into the millions. Let’s look at some hypothetical cases. After 40 years, the letter of the captain of the losing side in World Cup football, written to one of his girlfriends, was made public.

The letter stated that one of the linesmen was heard saying that he hates Fiji so he will make sure his decisions go against Fiji. In the finals, Fiji lost to Barbados. Is the world supposed to take that correspondence as proof and so accept that Fiji once won the World Cup? Remember this was not the linesman or the referee that wrote that piece of paper but the losing captain.

Let’s go to Alaska. Russia sold Alaska to the US in the 18th century. What happens if a document is found in the Russian archives in which one of the Russian negotiators reveled that a colleague of his was bribed in arranging the sale? Is Russia now to reclaim Alaska because the rightful sum was not paid?

One final example. An Icelandic runner-up in a Miss Universe contest held 40 years ago wrote her memoir and it contains the allegation that the winner, Miss Malta, had a boyfriend that was a judge on the panel. This statement did not come from one of the organisers or from one of the judges but the loser herself. Can we now say that Malta once won the Miss Universe contest?

The answer is obvious. If international societies accept and act on the beliefs of people who had reasons to be resentful then the entire history of the world has to be re-written. My deeply held belief is that successive Venezuelan presidents knew that the UN, ICJ, OAS and powerful countries in the world would not accept Venezuela’s claim based on SMP’s so-called revelation and for that reason Venezuela has engaged in military action against Essequibo except Ankoko.

The ICJ would find the basis on Venezuela’s claim absurd and would not risk its credibility by changing the 1899 award. The consequences for global security will be horrendous and the world and the major countries on the globe will not accept Venezuela being awarded two-thirds of Guyana’s territory based on a letter written by a Venezuela delegate a hundred years ago.

Countries that are remotely removed from the Guyana-Venezuela controversy would not accept boundary changes based on such a flimsy paper as the SMP missive. It will lead to a crescendo of territorial claims and military incursions around the world.

It is for this penetrating reason Guyanese should and must know that Venezuela knows it cannot invade Guyana. Guyanese should and must know that Venezuela cannot invade Guyana and no invasion is coming. Guyanese should not let a tin-cup dictator like Maduro invade their minds.

I repeat what I wrote last week. The referendum is about the domestic survival of Maduro. He is going after the next general election. He cannot win. Maybe he will rig and if he rigs his life becomes more miserable. Guyanese should just go about their business and carry on their lives as usual.