Guyana abstained on OAS resolution on Venezuela elections
-CARICOM split three ways
Guyana was one of nine countries which abstained when the Organization of American States ( OAS) passed a resolution condemning upcoming elections in Venezuela as unlikely to meet the “minimum conditions for…democratic electoral processes in keeping with international standards.”
According to the resolution a recognition of the elections to the National Assembly of Venezuela will depend on the existence of the necessary conditions of freedom, justice, impartiality, and transparency, with guarantees for the participation of all political actors and citizens.
Also required is a release of political prisoners, under reasonable deadlines for their organization, and independent and credible international electoral observation.
The resolution which was passed by a majority of 21, repeatedly referred to the Nicolas Maduro government as an “illegitimate regime” and sought to reiterate the organization’s acceptance of a Permanent Representative appointed by the current Venezuelan National Assembly led by Juan Guaidó
This recognition it maintained will remain until the holding of new free and fair presidential elections that lead to the appointment of a democratically elected government.
Specifically it condemned
“in the most implacable terms, the actions of the illegitimate regime of Nicolás Maduro that undermine the democratic system and the separation of powers through the control of the Supreme Court of Justice and by usurping the constitutional functions of the National Assembly to, inter alia, legislate on electoral matters and appoint the members of the National Electoral Council.”
Guyana has consistently declined to support any multilateral resolution or statement which seeks to legitimize Guaido’s claim to Presidency of the Bolivarian Republic.
Notably the General Assembly vote recorded on October 22 once again showed that the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) voting bloc is divided on the issue of Venezuela.
Four CARICOM statesThe Bahamas, Haiti, Jamaica and Saint Lucia voted for the resolution; three- Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica and St. Vincent and the Grenadines voted against while seven- Barbados, Belize, St. Kitts and Nevis, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Grenada and Guyana abstained.
The resolution was cosponsored by Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, United States, Guatemala, Haiti, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and “Venezuela”.