West Indies Cricket Fans Forum
We must be able through the strength of our friends to demonstrate that military aggression will be repelled
Guyana is a small peaceful country. Our borders were clearly demarcated and internationally accepted in law through the 1899 Arbitral Award. Decades later Venezuela claimed, and still claims that this Award is null and void. It continues to occupy the half of Ankoko Island which belongs to Guyana and is able to do so because we are militarily inferior.
Venezuela in more recent times has made incursions into our maritime and territorial space, even seizing a ship performing work in our maritime space; has had its maps configured to include Guyana’s territory even giving Spanish names to streets in Essequibo; has issued decrees which threaten our territorial integrity. How much more must Guyana risk Venezuela doing to Guyana and its people?
Maduro may not be as hawkish on Guyana as those that are likely to follow him. But must Guyana wait to endure the military power that could be eventually unleashed on it as Venezuela seeks to control our oil and gas resources the value of which it is already placing as part of its economic recovery programme? Guyana, as a small and militarily weak nation must look to its friends with military might to create an environment of peace through strength. Brazil, Britain and America are those friends we must count on.
If we desire to avoid the continuing insult of Venezuela’s actions in the past; to avoid Venezuela’s threat to our future prosperity; to ensure peace; then the mechanisms which would demonstrate that Guyana is not weak should not be withheld. We must be able through the strength of our friends to demonstrate that military aggression against us will be repelled. Diplomacy and the Law through the ICJ must remain our main weapons.
Yours faithfully,
Wesley Kirton
About the author
Guyana Diaspora Forum
We have a large database of Guyanese worldwide. Most of our readers are in the USA, Canada, and the UK. Our Blog and Newsletter would not only carry articles and videos on Guyana, but also other articles on a wide range of subjects that may be of interest to our readers in over 200 countries, many of them non-Guyanese We hope that you like our selections.
It is estimated that over one million Guyanese, when counting their dependents, live outside of Guyana. This exceeds the population of Guyana, which is now about 750,000. Many left early in the 50’s and 60’s while others went with the next wave in the 70’s and 80’s. The latest wave left over the last 20 years. This outflow of Guyanese, therefore, covers some three generations. This outflow still continues today, where over 80 % of U.G. graduates now leave after graduating. We hope this changes, and soon.
Guyanese, like most others, try to keep their culture and pass it on to their children and grandchildren. The problem has been that many Guyanese have not looked back, or if they did it was only fleetingly. This means that the younger generations and those who left at an early age know very little about Guyana since many have not visited the country. Also, if they do get information about Guyana, it is usually negative and thus the cycle of non-interest is cultivated.
This Guyana Diaspora Online Forum , along with its monthly newsletter, aims at bringing Guyanese together to support positive news, increase travel and tourism in Guyana and, in general, foster the birth of a new Guyana, which has already begun notwithstanding the negative news that grabs the headlines. As the editor and manager of the publication, I am committed to delivering Blog entries and Newsletters that are politically balanced, and focused on the positive ideas we wish to share and foster among Guyanese.
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