GEORGETOWN - The Venezuela crisis must not escalate into violence, said Caricom secretary general Irwin LaRocque at a briefing on Tuesday in St Lucia, ahead of the 40th Regular Meeting of Heads of Government (July 3-5.) Venezuela will be on the agenda, he confirmed.
Asked if Caricom was split over Venezuela, LaRocque replied, “Absolutely not.” He said Caricom has a common view that supports non-interference, dialogue, non-politicisation of aid, peaceful resolution, and recognition of the rule of law and the Venezuelan Constitution.
“We can’t afford for this thing to escalate into any kind of violence confrontation in Venezuela. Venezuela is part of the Caribbean.
“The two closest neighbours to Venezuela, barring Colombia, are Guyana and TT. Already we are seeing the consequences for TT in terms of what’s happening in Venezuela, with the number of refugees who are entering and the negative impact some of that may have on the community.
“It’s not only as far as those two countries. They are moving up the islands.”
LaRocque said time had proven Caricom was right in its mediatory stance on Venezuela. “We were the voice in the wilderness. They said, ‘How could you be asking for dialogue when the situation is so bad?’
"But guess what? There is dialogue taking place. The small group of countries has reached out and done some things and now we hear another country (Norway) is allowing for dialogue to take place. So the community (Caricom) was spot-on in terms of the principles adhered to.”
He declined to say whether or not Caricom heads would discuss Venezuela with Norway. Asked if Caricom has a united stance on the Venezuelan migrant crisis, such as to ease the financial burden on individual countries, he said refugee issues are handled under international laws.
“Of course the cost of these things can be quite prohibitive, especially TT with the greatest number so far." He said other Caricom nations are not experiencing anything near to the influx to TT, although non-Caricom members Aruba and Curacao have felt some impact.
“From what I can read in the media and from some conversation, Trinidad is trying its best to handle (migration) and Guyana, having such a vast border with Venezuela.”
Earlier, LaRocque lamented that some Caricom nations have been blacklisted by international bodies for supposed non-compliance in financial regulation. Many had done what they were supposed to do, he said, but were still blacklisted.
“The goalposts keep shifting.”
LaRocque confirmed Haiti’s president will attend the Caricom leaders' conference, and the situation in Haiti will be discussed.
On the Guyanese Parliament impasse, he said the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) had met and is due to sit again on July 12.
“We have to wait to see what happens.
"I personally have been monitoring the situation very, very closely. I live in Guyana. I’ve met with the President. I’ve met with the Leader of the Opposition. So I’m receiving information, their views.
But, he said, "I’m not going to make any public pronouncement until we know what is the situation. The court has to pronounce. We’ll see what happens afterwards. If the pronouncement or subsequent judgements are not adhered to, then there is a problem. There is room for judicial review. We’ll see what happens after July 12.”
