‘Guyana will not be bullied, threatened or intimidated’ – Parliament debates motion on sovereignty

Ahead of Venezuela’s attempts to conduct condemned elections for the Governor of Guyana’s Essequibo region, a Parliamentary motion was proposed on Friday to reaffirm the country’s sovereignty over its internationally recognised territory.

Foreign Affairs Minister Hugh Todd, who moved the motion, emphatically told the House that this motion is a necessary reaffirmation of Guyana’s sovereignty. His was a sober presentation chronicling decades of Venezuela’s transgressions; those transgressions were juxtaposed with Guyana’s commitment to diplomatic engagements and international law during the same period.

Todd emphasised that Guyana is clear that the Essequibo is its own and is working alongside international partners to guarantee peace and stability in the region.

“It is important for Venezuela to understand that Guyana will not be bullied, threatened, or intimidated to surrender any portion of our patrimony,” Todd stated.

So what is happening?

Venezuela announced that it intends to hold elections in the Essequibo, a region that Guyana has administered for over 100 years, a territory that has been claimed by Venezuela.

Guyana maintains that Essequibo is an integral part of its sovereign territory, a position upheld by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in its December 2023 ruling. So the Venezuelan election plan, scheduled for May 25, 2025, is a violation of the ICJ’s orders and international law.

World Court tells Venezuela to refrain from conducting elections in Essequibo region 

What’s more is that the ICJ, on May 1, reaffirmed provisional measures granted in December 2023 and told Venezuela that it shall refrain from conducting, or preparing to conduct, elections in the Essequibo region.
The reaffirmation of the provisional measures is part of the substantive case before the ICJ regarding the long-standing Arbitral Award of October 03, 1899.

There have been no reports of a Venezuelan presence in Guyana, preparing to conduct the condemned elections on Sunday. However, Guyana’s Chief of Defence Staff, Brigadier Omar Khan, said any Venezuelan in Guyana who votes in that election will be “deported immediately.” There will also be consequences for any Guyanese who participates in these elections.

Venezuelans living in Guyana will be deported if they vote in May 25 elections – Brigadier Khan 

Opposition Leader Aubrey Norton, at Friday’s sitting of the National Assembly, said that both sides of the house are united in condemning Venezuela’s aggressions.

“Venezuela is an adversary that we must confront together.

“… We believe that the so-called elections in the Essequibo should be condemned,” Norton said.

However, Norton said the opposition should have had a greater role in crafting the motion.

The motion presented to the House asks the lawmakers to recall the motion passed on November 6, 2023, which reaffirmed the recognition of the 1899 Arbitral Award and the 1966 Geneva Agreement.

It also asks that the House:

• Unequivocally reaffirms the sovereignty, territorial integrity, independence and indissolubility of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana
• Strongly condemns the actions of the Government of Venezuela in defiance of the May 1, 2025 Order of the ICJ and views such actions as a violation of international law and a threat to regional peace and stability
• Expresses its full support for the Government of Guyana in its efforts to protect and defend Guyana’s territorial integrity through peaceful and lawful means, including continued recourse to the International Court of Justice
• Calls upon the international community to support Guyana in upholding the rule of law and the binding decisions of the International Court of Justice
• Directs that copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Secretaries-General of the United Nations, the Commonwealth, the Organisation of American States, the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States, the Heads of State and Government of the Caribbean Community as well as other relevant international bodies