The Guyana Press Association (GPA) on Monday night criticised the organisers of the Guyana Energy Conference in what it says are attempts “to constrain the media’s free access to delegates and other participants of the event scheduled for February 14 to 17, 2023.”
A statement from the GPA noted that “For many of the delegates coming from free, open and democratic societies where press freedom and media access are norms, this quite possibly is a novel experience for them as conference organisers are holding themselves out as the “conduit” for arranging interviews.”
At a press conference on Monday held at the Marriott Hotel in Georgetown, the Communications Director of the conference, Alex Graham, informed the press that they will not be allowed in the main conference hall for the opening of the event; instead, they will be placed in a room where audio and visuals will be relayed.
In this regard, the GPA said it is alarmed at the “restriction of the media to physical access to the opening of the event Energy Conference and from all cosmetic explanations given so far, we can only conclude that there is a sinister motive.”
Graham, however, did commit to facilitating any interviews that the media may be interested in.
According to the GPA, “the media, rather than the organisers of the Guyana Energy Conference, are the true and authentic conduits between decision-makers and the working class.
“The GPA, therefore, urges the organisers of the Guyana Energy Conference to conduct themselves in accordance with globally acceptable rules of engagement with the media rather than seeking to impose, enforce or introduce barriers,” the statement concluded.
