The leaders of Guyana are relieved following a referendum that was supposed to confirm Venezuela’s claim to the majority of their land, but instead had the opposite effect.
Nicolás Maduro had aimed to use Venezuela’s longstanding claim to the disputed Essequibo region as a way to rally public backing, but on Sunday, polling stations across the nation were mostly empty as the majority of voters ignored the matter.
Many analysts have accused the Venezuelan government of manipulating the results due to the low turnout.
Guyana’s foreign secretary, Robert Presaud, stated on Monday that the people of Venezuela have delivered a powerful message to Maduro and he hopes Maduro has acknowledged their words.
Officials from Guyana declined to provide a direct response to the outcome, but individuals close to the administration informed the Guardian that they were “relieved” by the unexpectedly low participation.
Since becoming independent from Spain in 1811, Venezuela has contended that the Essequibo region, which is abundant in oil, rightfully belongs to them due to the borders being unjustly determined through international cooperation.
The disagreement is currently under examination by the international court of justice, however, Maduro has been appealing for weeks on both TikTok and national television for the Venezuelan citizens to support the government’s decision to handle the issue independently.
On Sunday, five questions were posed, including whether Venezuela should disregard the verdict of the international arbitrators at The Hague, offer Venezuelan citizenship to the English-speaking residents of Essequibo, and transform the 160,000 sq km region into a new state within Venezuela.
Recently, there has been a rise in military presence along the borders of Guyana and Venezuela due to escalating tensions between the two countries. In response, Brazil has also deployed troops to its jungle border over the weekend out of concern that the situation could lead to military conflicts.
According to national and international media sources, voting stations throughout the country were mostly unoccupied.
According to Phil Gunson, an analyst at the international crisis group, there have been no verified reports of lines forming in any part of the country. He observed that Caracas appeared to be experiencing a typical Sunday. Gunson also stated that this was a significant defeat for Maduro.
Despite this, Maduro wasted no time in celebrating the vote, which saw 95% of those who voted agree with the government’s five questions, as a triumph.
Maduro expressed his satisfaction with the “significant level of participation” and deemed it a triumph for both the country and its democracy during a rally in Caracas on Sunday evening.
According to the government of Venezuela, over 10.5 million individuals participated in the referendum. This number surpasses the amount of votes received by Maduro’s predecessor, Hugo Chávez, during his reelection in 2012.
The electoral authority of Venezuela has announced an extension of the voting period on Sunday evening as a result of significant turnout.
Although the government’s data has been heavily examined, experts argue that it does not align with the observations at polling locations.
Gunson stated that although it has not been directly acknowledged, it is clear that they manipulated the results.
A photo, allegedly posted and then removed by Venezuela’s electoral body, displayed a chart with approximately 2 million votes for each of the five questions. This implies that they counted the total number of votes rather than individual voters in an attempt to downplay the public relations debacle.
The Venezuelan government has yet to release specific or local results, raising concerns about their accuracy. According to Geoff Ramsey, a senior member of the Atlantic Council, if the government truly believes this was a huge success, they should have no problem sharing a breakdown of the votes.
Maduro is facing a huge public relations crisis. Despite their extensive propaganda efforts over the past few months, turnout has been much lower than anticipated. The speaker expressed disappointment with the results.
Information gathered by Guyana and its partners indicates that the true number of attendees was less than 1.5 million individuals, which is less than one-tenth of the total population. This was reported by a reliable source within the Guyanese government, who referred to the situation as “rigonomics”.
The source stated that Maduro made a significant error in judgment.
The foreign minister of Guyana, Hugh Todd, stated that Guyana is staying vigilant due to the uncertain actions of the Venezuelan president.
According to Todd’s statement to the Guardian, it appears that he is acting as a single individual in charge, behaving like a dictator by instructing the people on what they should want rather than listening to their needs.
The speaker stated that the majority of individuals, 95%, voted in favor, which allows him to declare it a win. However, he clarified that they are not overly excited and remain careful.
The Essequibo region, with a population of 120,000 out of Guyana’s total 800,000, contains a vast expanse of jungle that is abundant in valuable natural resources such as copper and gold.
Maduro’s language regarding the area has grown increasingly aggressive since the discovery of significant oil reserves in 2015. However, the plebiscite that took place over the weekend is primarily seen as a means of measuring the number of people he can rally for the upcoming presidential elections in the following year.
It is expected that the opposition candidate, María Corina Machado, would win against Maduro if the election is fair. The US has warned that they will impose sanctions again if the dictator does not allow a just election.
According to Gunson, the Essequibo is the sole matter that brings together Venezuelans from all political backgrounds. However, their priorities seem to lie in more pressing concerns, like the economic downfall that has led to over 7 million individuals seeking refuge outside of the country.
If Maduro fails to unite the public behind Venezuela’s claim to the Essequibo, his only remaining options may be to manipulate the competition.
“The absence of a clear strategy creates a significant void. What actions will they take moving forward? With an unpopular president and the potential for a disastrous election, the situation is concerning,” he stated.
Source: theguardian.com
