Rumblings in the west
Editorial
While the nation's energies are absorbed with the Suriname crisis, the possible repercussions on our western border must not be overlooked. Venezuela goes to the polls next Sunday, following which, no doubt, Mr Chavez will receive the mandate from the people which he is anticipating. Thereafter, this country can expect that our neighbour to the west will devote more attention to the matter of the frontier with Guyana. The signs are already there that preparations are in train to exert pressure on this country in one form or another. The item of news which represents the greatest cause for disquiet is a report in the Venezuelan daily El Nacional of June 15. Both Foreign Minister Rangel and President Chavez are quoted as referring to a seismic study to search for hydrocarbons on the continental shelf to be undertaken by the state owned oil company, Petroleos de Venezuela with assistance from the Venezuelan navy. "We are confirming sovereignty," said President Chavez in a television interview, over a region which includes "a vast sea which was abandoned and an area in which is found the delta Orinoco and the territorial sea in the reclamation zone." He was reported as concurring with naval commander, Vice Admiral Jorge Sierralta Savarce, in the view that if Guyana was granting oil concessions in marine and submarine areas "which had not been demarcated", then Venezuela could do the same. "We want to consolidate our exclusive economic zone," he went on to say. "There are areas which have not been demarcated in the case of the maritime border with Guyana. For that reason the navy is present..." The Venezuelan daily also reported that a study was being developed to determine the size of the hydrocarbon reserves in the border area with Essequibo. At the same time, a floating base would be established on the eastern side of the Orinoco delta which would serve as a refuelling and logistical support station for two daily patrols. As if that were not enough, a report in El Nacional of July 19 made reference to the formation of a multidisciplinary group to amass information on Guyana and monitor the situation with that country. The group will include the Minister of Foreign Affairs and the Minister of Energy and Mines, the commanding officer of the navy and other military officers, the Venezuelan facilitator in the Good Officer process, various high-level officials and Venezuela's ambassador to Guyana, Mr Hector Azocar. At his press conference last Wednesday, President Bharrat Jagdeo said that he was planning to initiate a consultative process involving discussions with the political parties, civil society and the Guyanese people at large with reference to the problem with Suriname. Certainly, that is a proposal which cannot be faulted, but given the fact that for the first time in thirty years it looks as if we might have two borders 'active' at the same time, perhaps the President should consider going further. Rather than an informal approach, he could meet with the political parties to agree on a formal framework which would allow for the tapping of resources which might lie outside of the governing party, and which would permit greater official national involvement in the matter of maintaining our territorial integrity. We have reached a critical point in our relations with our neighbours, and it has occurred at the worst possible time. Whatever discordancies reveal themselves during the electoral rite of passage this year and next, the society must stand as one on the matter of the frontiers. When the Government makes a statement on the issue of the boundaries, therefore, it must do so in a context where everyone knows that it is speaking on behalf of the nation, including the political opposition. Solidarity on questions of territory is the first line of defence of any country. Given the nature of what has happened, the Government has to come to terms with the unpalatable realities, and make some difficult decisions. In addition, it should act with dispatch. Restructuring policy, rebuilding institutional capacity at all levels, recapitalizing the military and the myriad other things which will have to be done in order to keep this country in one piece, cannot be accomplished overnight. The sooner a start is made the better.
 Follow the goings-on in Guyana
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