A democracy group led by Social Media commentator and activist, Rickford Burke, is calling on the Afro-Guyanese population, and other groups to only join the army and accept deployment to the Guyana/Venezuela border if the Guyana Government takes steps to end its alleged racial and political discriminatory practices.
The call comes against the backdrop of the amassing of Venezuelan troops at the border amid an ongoing border dispute, and the huge influx of Venezuelans fleeing economic crisis in their country to oil-rich Guyana—The fastest growing economy in the world.
Burke’s group, the Caribbean Guyana Institute of Democracy has been the Guyanese opposition’s trump card in upping its advocacy in the United States.
The opposition is adamant that Afro-Guyanese, which makes up the bulk of its support base – has been facing racial and political discrimination by the ruling People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) – a party whose support base is largely Indo-Guyanese. The CGID group recently facilitated meetings between Guyanese Opposition politicians and Members of the United States Congress where those concerns were raised.
The group is now calling on the Afro-Guyanese community and “other groups” to advise their relatives not to join the army or deployment to the border until the government take steps to end its “discriminatory policies and create an atmosphere of national unity and domestic tranquility”.
CGID’s urgings also come days after the President, Dr Irfaan Ali and his ministerial team met with the Opposition Leader, Aubrey Norton and other opposition legislators to discuss developments at the border. Both leaders agreed at the border controversy would be free from politicization. In fact, the men assured their supporters that their positions are one and the same. The meeting stirred the hearts of many Guyanese when images of politicians on both sides meeting and achieving consensus on something.
However, the CGID believes that a “Total Defense of Guyana Strategy” can only be achieved if there is national unity in Guyana. It its view, that national unity is currently absent because the African Guyanese population is under “subjugation”,” the group said.
CGID said it has adopted the following position on the Guyana/Venezuela border controversy verbatim:
- We agree that any government of Guyana must do everything in its power to protect Guyana’s territorial integrity. Our territorial integrity is sacrosanct and non-negotiable.
- We believe that the nation must be united in this position as well as on a national defense strategy, and that every citizen must play a role in promoting and espousing this mission.
- CGID will however not support any initiative of the PPP government unless and until this racist regime immediately:
(I). Ceases its agenda of racial discrimination against African Guyanese, ceases the diminution of patriotism and nationalism as an opposition characteristic, and promotes the spirit of patriotism throughout the nation as a national imperative.
(II). Implements equitable governance; uses the oil revenues equitably to develop all regions, towns and communities and implement policies that can attain inclusive growth.
(III). Withdrawal of malicious, politically motivated criminal charges against African Guyanese Members of Parliament, GECOM officials, former Police officers, and other Black citizens.
(IV). Stop using the Guyana Police Force to target personal and political enemies of Bharrat Jagdeo and others in the PPP regime, and remove the unqualified, illegally appointed Police Commissioner Clifton Hicken.
(V). Ceases the seizure of African Guyanese lands, and satisfactorily and amicably permanently settles the land dispute with the residents of Mocha, Hill Foot, and other communities, and immediately restores the land that was unlawfully taken away from the African Guyanese American businessman at Liliendaal.
(VI). Makes the Parliament meaningful by establishing a bipartisan management committee and signing an agreement to bring up all outstanding opposition questions and resolutions for discussion immediately and to place such future questions on the order paper within 15 days of their submission. We note that the speaker blatantly rejected all efforts by the Opposition to have critical national issues discussed in parliament.
(VII). Immediately appoints the opposition nominees to State boards as required by law.
(VIII). Immediately confirms the Chancellor of the Judiciary and the Chief Justice to genuinely establish and preserve the independence of the Judiciary.
(IX). Immediately implements diversity in the appointment of departments and division heads in the Guyana Police Force.
(X). Immediately restore the subvention to IDPADA-G, and Critchlow Labour College, and ceases all efforts to destroy African Guyanese organizations, coops, and other entities.
(XI). Immediately commences the consultations with the Parliamentary Opposition as is mandated by the constitution.
(XII) Immediately commences the repatriation of Venezuelans back to Venezuela to protect Guyana’s national security. Announces a moratorium on accepting Venezuelan refugees and allows an audit of Birth Certificates issued to Venezuelan nationals.
- CGID calls on the opposition political parties and civil society to adopt this initiative for national unity to help bring about an inclusive democracy.
- CGID believes that if the PPP does not take steps to end its racism and racial discrimination against African Guyanese, African Guyanese members of the Guyana Defence Force should make way for those in the racist Ali-Jagdeo government, their children and other family members and their supporters to put on the GDF uniforms to fight Venezuela to defend Guyana, which they demonstrate through their ethnic supremacy agenda belongs to them alone.