Nosing a few feet above the surface of the turquoise waters of the Caribbean is a pencil-thin, sliver of sand and coral called Bird Island. In Spanish it is the Isla de Aves, a reflection of the fact that its only true inhabitants are indeed members of the avian species. Human habitation is virtually impossible, because large portions of the islet have a disconcerting habit of disappearing completely below sea level at certain times of the year. It is true that there is a handful of Venezuelan guards stationed there, but they are forced to live in fibre-glass units mounted on a large wooden platform set high above the waterline. Unprepossessing though the island might be, a mini-political storm was swirling around it last week. In our edition of Wednesday, July 4, we carried a Reuters report quoting President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela as reaffirming his country's sovereignty over the reef, and announcing his intention of reinforcing the military base there. This caused some of the eastern Caribbean states, who challenge Venezuelan claims to the island, to raise their concerns at the Caricom Heads of Government meeting. Venezuela, however, was not about to entertain the legitimacy of those concerns, and Mr William Lara, the President of Venezuela's National Assembly, went on record as saying that it was "inappropriate to use a forum like Caricom to make this kind of argument which lacks any basis." There was no dispute over this territory, he averred, and Venezuela would not discuss the matter of its sovereignty.
Stabroek News
July 8, 2001
So why should a tiny speck of sand in the middle of the sea, which holds more interest for ornithologists than it does for anyone else, be such a source of contention? There are two reasons. The first is that the marine resources of the area are thought to include both natural gas and hydrocarbon deposits, and the second is that if sovereignty were to go to Venezuela, it would distort the maritime boundaries of more than one eastern Caribbean state. Bird Island is situated 353 miles off the north coast of Venezuela, but is only 70 miles west of Dominica. In the words of Prime Minister Lester Bird of Antigua, if you took as the starting point Venezuela's argument that the isle was hers, and she were to "seek to have a 200 mile exclusive economic zone... then it brings Venezuela right along the east coast of Barbados, right up to Montserrat... "
While the specific claim to ownership from the Caricom side is coming from Dominica, therefore, much of the eastern Caribbean is also directly affected by the dispute, which is why the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) has adopted a common posture on the issue and has appointed Prime Minister Bird as its spokesman. Apart from the fact that the little reef is closer to Dominica than any other territory, that country's case is also grounded in the fact that a submarine sandbank, the Aves Ridge, is said to connect the two. Venezuela for its part has given a historical basis for its claim, which goes back to the nineteenth century.
Exactly why President Chavez should have revived his country's claim to Bird Island at this juncture is a matter of great interest to Guyana. Without going into the possibilities, and irrespective of what is contained in the communique issued by the Heads at the end of their conference, the Government should independently come out in unequivocal support of the OECS, and indicate a preparedness to cooperate with and assist that organization where the Bird Island issue is concerned. This is an opportunity to join cause with Caricom on a frontier question, with implications which require no elaboration.
Yesterday we published a Reuters report in which President Vincente Fox of Mexico urged that Caribbean countries resolve their maritime disputes with Venezuela, proposing that they participate in a Caribbean conference on maritime boundaries which could be held towards the end of this year. If he had in mind that Venezuela should take part in this conference, then that is somewhat premature. The Caricom states affected would have to hold their own discussions first, and would have to reach a common position on the details, as well as the generalities. That might not be as simple as it sounds, given the fact that Venezuela has already concluded maritime agreements with territories like Trinidad. However, a common position, as far as that is possible, should be pursued.
It might be noted that Guyana too has a direct and not a tangential interest in the maritime borders of one or two of the islands. However, where the frontier with Venezuela is concerned - both sea and land - there can be no bilateral approaches. We are bound by the terms of the Geneva Agreement, and are currently operating under the Good Officer Process.
Finally, when boundaries are under discussion, the awkwardness of having Suriname present at Caricom caucuses must now be making itself apparent; after all, our eastern and western neighbours are natural allies.