Minister objects to brooch worn by Venezuela’s acting president

GEORGETOWN (CMC):

A senior Guyanese government minister has criticised Venezuela’s acting president, Delcy Rodríguez, for wearing a brooch depicting her country’s map to include Guyana’s Essequibo Region during meetings with two CARICOM leaders earlier this month.

Rodríguez held talks with Grenada’s Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell in St George’s on April 9 and met Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley on Monday. She said at the time that her visit was aimed at strengthening relations between Venezuela and the Caribbean region.

However, Guyana’s Minister of Education, Priya Devi Manickchand, questioned the conduct of regional leaders in a statement posted on her Facebook page.

“CARICOM leaders claiming to be our friends AND benefiting from that friendship even as they entertain their other friends who are completely disrespecting Guyana by openly claiming 2/3 of my country and sporting that on a visible piece of jewellery even as that matter is being adjudicated in the ICJ (International Court of Justice), has me questioning our friendships and the principles of these CARICOM leaders,” she wrote.

She further criticised CARICOM states for what she described as a violation of Guyana’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, adding: “Principle is principle. It shouldn’t be cowardly. And it shouldn’t be convenient.”

The International Court of Justice is set to begin oral hearings on May 4. Guyana’s Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Mohabir Anil Nandlall, has said that hearings are scheduled to run from May 4 to 8 and may extend into the following week.

Guyana brought the matter before the ICJ in 2018, seeking confirmation that the 1899 Arbitral Award, which established the boundary between the two countries, is legally valid. The award had been accepted for more than 60 years before Venezuela declared it null in 1962 and revived its claim to the territory.

The dispute is being addressed under the 1966 Geneva Agreement, which outlines mechanisms for a peaceful settlement. After bilateral efforts failed, the matter was referred to the ICJ by the United Nations Secretary-General.

The court has already ruled that it has jurisdiction to hear the case, clearing the way for proceedings on the merits, during which both sides will present full legal arguments.

While Guyana maintains that the judicial process is the only legitimate avenue for resolving the dispute, Venezuela has historically questioned the court’s authority, although it has participated in submitting written pleadings.

CARICOM, the 15-member regional integration grouping of which Guyana is a member, has consistently supported Guyana’s position that the Essequibo region forms part of its sovereign territory.

Meanwhile, Guyana’s Private Sector Commission (PSC) has expressed “its strongest condemnation and deep concern at the deliberate and provocative display of imagery by a senior Venezuelan official depicting Guyana’s Essequibo region as part of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.”

“This act is neither incidental nor benign; it is unacceptable within the framework of international law and responsible diplomacy, and is particularly troubling when it occurs within the territory of Barbados,” the commission said. It described the incident as a form of “symbolic aggression intended to influence perception, shape narratives, and test international resolve, risking the undermining of regional stability, the erosion of trust, and the weakening of the principles of peaceful dispute resolution.”

The PSC said it was calling on the Barbados government, “a valued CARICOM partner and long-standing friend of Guyana, to stand firmly in defence of Guyana’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”

“Further, we call on CARICOM and all regional and international partners to remain vigilant and unequivocal in their support for the rule of law. Silence or inaction in the face of such deliberate provocation risks emboldening further escalation,” it added.

The Guyana government has not yet issued an official statement on the incident, which some commentators have dubbed “brooch-gate”