Anil Nandlall, attorney General and minister of legal affairs of Guyana, has called upon the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) to condemn Venezuela’s actions and demand that it respects the legal process of the International Court of Justice (ICJ). He made this call while addressing the IPU General Assembly in Luanda, Angola, on October 26. “Time is of the essence,” the Attorney General told the group.
Nandlall highlighted a pressing issue involving Guyana’s sovereignty. He stated that Venezuela is planning to hold a referendum on December 3, 2023, that seeks to annex more than two-thirds of Guyana’s sovereign territory. “This reckless and unlawful move is intended to further Venezuela’s baseless claim to Guyana’s territory – a dispute long settled by arbitration in 1899,” he explained. Despite this issue being pending at the International Court of Justice, upon the direction of the UN Secretary-General, Venezuela persists with other actions, and has said before that it does not recognize the Court’s jurisdiction.
The IPU is one of the oldest and largest associations of Parliaments globally, comprising 180 member Parliaments. The Bahamas recently joined as the 180th member during the current 147th Assembly meeting in Luanda. The Assembly is taking place under the theme “Parliamentary Action for Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions,” which aligns with Sustainable Development Goal 16 of the United Nations.
Connecting Venezuela’s actions to the conference’s theme, the Attorney General explained that actions like these “not only undermine public institutions but engender conflicts and violate the very thematic fundamentals of this conference.” He then explicitly called upon the IPU to act. “In the circumstances, I call upon the IPU to condemn the actions of the Republic of Venezuela and demand that Venezuela respect the legal process of the International Court of Justice. Time is of the essence!”
OAS throws support behind CARICOM statement dismissing Venezuela’s Essequibo referendum | OilNOW
A release from Nandlall’s office indicated that delegates from various countries have expressed their support for and solidarity with Guyana concerning its border controversy with Venezuela, and that efforts are being made to formalize these expressions of support.
