Call for CARICOM to protect Venezuelans fleeing unrest

A human rights organisation has urged Caribbean Community nations to offer legal protection to people fleeing the political and social upheaval across Venezuela.

Those running from unrest should not be treated as illegal immigrants, said the Guyana Human Rights Association (GHRA).

Venezuela's capital, Caracas, has seen almost daily demonstrations in recent weeks, some of which have turned violent.

Critics are accusing President Nicolas Maduro of moving towards a dictatorship, and want him to resign. But Maduro says the opposition is conspiring with foreign entities, specifically the US, to destabilise the country.

On 30 July 30, Venezuelans voted for members of a new constituent assembly that will be tasked with drafting a new constitution – a vote the opposition boycotted.

“A collaborative approach to governance encompassing relevant civic, business and Government agencies might begin by ensuring registration of Venezuelan refugees arriving at our borders, thereby both providing them with legal protection and discouraging illegal entry through porous borders and beaches,” the GHRA said in a statement.

The organisation is made up of other groups, among them the Guyanese Organisation of Indigenous Peoples, the Guyana Society for the Blind and the Anglican Diocese of Guyana.

They said that the registration of Venezuelan refugees “would also strengthen the possibility of more orderly reintegration of the refugees into their own country when circumstances permit a safe and minimally decent life”.

United effort

At their most recent summit, held in Grenada last month, CARICOM leaders issued a statement reaffirming their guiding principles of adherence to the rule of law, respect for human rights and democracy, as well as for the fundamental principles of non-intervention and non-interference in the internal affairs of states.

But it was noted that the region was concerned about the “difficult political, economic and social situation in Venezuela, in particular, the increase in violence and polarisation between the government and the opposition, and its effect on the people of Venezuela.”

As a result, the regional leaders “called for all parties to commit to engaging in renewed dialogue and negotiation, leading to a comprehensive political agreement, with established time tables, concrete actions, and guarantees to ensure its implementation for the well-being of the nation”.