On Sunday, Venezuela plans to hold an election for governor and legislators to represent Essequibo — a sparsely populated, oil-rich territory.
But there’s one problem. Essequibo is internationally recognised as part of neighbouring Guyana, not Venezuela.
In staging legislative and regional elections on Sunday, including in Essequibo, Venezuela’s autocratic President, Nicolás Maduro, analysts say, is seeking to legitimise his rule abroad and also within his deeply dissatisfied nation, where the military’s loyalty is reportedly fraying.
Claims to the Essequibo region are deeply ingrained among many Venezuelans who believe the land was historically theirs under Spanish colonial rule and do not consider a 19th-century agreement that ceded the area to Guyana as legitimate.
It is unclear exactly how Venezuela plans to administer elections in a territory governed by a different country, and Venezuela’s electoral authority has not provided clear information.
Guyana has said that any Guyanese person in the border area supporting the election would be arrested.
The modern-day dispute over the Essequibo dates back to 1899, when a Paris tribunal determined the internationally recognised border. But many Venezuelans say the decision was null and void, because it involved a secret deal that Venezuela did not participate in.
In 2020, the dispute between the two countries over Essequibo was taken up by the International Court of Justice, where it is still pending. This month, the court ordered Venezuela to refrain from electing officials to oversee the area. But Maduro has rejected the court’s jurisdiction over the issue.
New York Times News Service