The PNC/R says that the recent statement issued by CARICOM on the situation in Guyana and urging that the 2001 elections results be accepted was regrettable but noted it was premised on a briefing by President Bharrat Jagdeo.
The PNC REFORM (PNC/R) also called the statement issued by the United States, the United Kingdom and Canada "ill-advised, unbalanced and unhelpful."
The CARICOM Heads condemned the storming of the Office of the President on July 3 by protesters and said the results of the last elections should be accepted since they were free and fair. The heads reiterated their condemnation of any attempt to use extra-constitutional and illegal means to remove democratically elected governments.
Leader of the PNC/R, Desmond Hoyte, said at a press conference on Thursday that it was regrettable that the Heads should have allowed themselves to be gulled into believing that the incident had anything to do with elections or a plot to overthrow the government.
"It is clear the CARICOM Heads do not fully understand the political and social realities in Guyana and how deeply the ordinary people are affected by, and resent, the corruption, racism, discriminatory practices and the general oppressive behaviour of the incumbent regime, and why they feel compelled to resist," Hoyte stated. He said the Heads should be asking themselves why ordinary people would begin a 17-mile march to Georgetown (on July 3rd) at five o'clock in the morning.
On the statement by the United States Ambassador to Guyana, and High Commissioners to Guyana from Canada and United Kingdom, Hoyte said the PNC/R rejected out of hand what he said was the implied thesis that a government had the right to ride roughshod over the citizenry, and to be unjust and oppressive.
The statement by the diplomats had condemned the violence of July 3rd and had said that the will of the Guyanese people expressed through regular and fair elections must be the sole basis for the authority and legitimacy of the government.
It added that change in Guyana could only be achieved through constitutional means and that the use of violence as a means to an end is contrary to democratic principles. The statement had urged all Guyanese to work together to secure a society free of fear in which all individuals could move ahead and enjoy the prosperity they deserve.
Hoyte referred to the United States' declaration of independence part of which says: "That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive..., it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organising its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness."
However, Hoyte reiterated that it was not the PNC/R's intention to overthrow the government. He said the diplomats could not claim ignorance of the troubling causes of the unsettled nature of Guyana's political and social life.
"They cannot be unaware, for example, of the deeply held belief in many communities that the government is divisive and spiteful in its treatment of sections of the country in which it perceives to have limited political support," Hoyte said.
He said the diplomats could not be oblivious to the real threats to the livelihood and existence of the bauxite communities.
"What is most unfortunate about the statement is that the PPP regime's propagandists have been given an opportunity to claim that it is proven positive that the Western world is in full support of their policies and is prepared to intervene militantly in Guyana to prop it up," he said.