HGP Nightly News – Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs Anil Nandlall, S.C., has told the International Court of Justice that Guyana’s border case with Venezuela is not simply a legal dispute, but a matter that goes directly to the country’s survival, security and future as a sovereign state.
Delivering Guyana’s final presentation before the World Court, Nandlall said it was difficult to fully express how much the case means to Guyana and its people. He reminded the Court that, for more than 60 years, Venezuela has laid claim to more than 70 per cent of Guyana’s territory.
According to the Attorney General, generations of Guyanese have grown up under the threat created by Venezuela’s claim to nearly three quarters of the country. He said that claim has affected Guyana for almost the entirety of its life as an independent state.
Nandlall said the controversy has placed a heavy burden on Guyana’s development, security, prosperity and the general well-being of its people. He added that if Guyana were to lose the territory claimed by Venezuela, the country as it is known today would effectively cease to exist.
“For Guyana and its people, the stakes could scarcely be higher,” Nandlall told the Court.
However, the Attorney General said that while the stakes are extremely high, Guyana continues to place its full confidence in international law and in the ability of the ICJ to resolve the matter fairly and finally.
He said respect for international law is deeply rooted in Guyana’s institutions and national culture, and remains a matter of national pride. According to him, Guyana views international law as the foundation for peaceful relations between states.
“As Attorney General of Guyana, I can personally attest to Guyana’s profound commitment to the rule of international law,” he said.
Nandlall recalled that when Guyana filed its application before the Court in 2018, the country was confident in the validity of the 1899 Arbitral Award, the decision of the United Nations Secretary-General to refer the controversy to the ICJ, and the Court’s independence and impartiality.
He said the proceedings over the past eight years have strengthened Guyana’s confidence in all three areas. He noted that the Court has already carefully considered and confirmed its jurisdiction to hear the matter, as well as the admissibility of Guyana’s application.
The Attorney General accused Venezuela of repeatedly trying to avoid a final ruling on the merits of Guyana’s case. He said Venezuela has continued to argue that the 1966 Geneva Agreement prevents the Court from deciding on the validity of the 1899 Award, despite the Court’s previous judgments on jurisdiction and admissibility.
Nandlall said Guyana’s legal team has shown that Venezuela’s arguments are not supported by the text or history of the Geneva Agreement. He argued that Venezuela is trying to avoid a judgment on the merits because it knows that such a ruling could bring an end to its claim to almost 160,000 square kilometres of Guyana’s territory.
The Attorney General also rejected Venezuela’s attempt to challenge the validity of the 1897 Treaty of Washington. He said Venezuela was neither deceived nor coerced into signing the treaty. Instead, he argued, the treaty achieved what Venezuela had wanted for years, which was the submission of its boundary dispute with Great Britain to international arbitration.
Nandlall also defended the 1899 Arbitral Award itself. He said neither the absence of written reasons nor the timing of the award’s delivery affects its validity. He maintained that the arbitral tribunal acted within the authority given to it by the 1897 Treaty and that there was no excess of power or impropriety by the tribunal.
He further noted that Venezuela was aware in 1899 of the issues it now claims affected the award, but still respected, asserted and affirmed the award’s validity for more than six decades.
“In short, the award was, and remains, valid and binding on the parties,” Nandlall said.
The Attorney General said the 1899 Award remains the full, perfect and final settlement of the boundary between Guyana and Venezuela.
