The Government of Guyana, represented by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Karen Cummings, must be congratulated for not only doing the right thing, but also doing the bright thing, by voting in the affirmative at the United Nations General Assembly, regarding the call for Britain to relinquish control over the Chagos Islands in the Indian Ocean.
From 1968-1973, Britain forcibly removed the rightful inhabitants of the islands to make way for a military base. This is the same Britain whose High Commissioners and Ambassadors are forever lecturing Guyana and other countries in the Global South on the rule of law, democracy, and human rights. Whether Britain will abide by the ruling of the International Court of Justice and the majority affirmative vote by the UN General Assembly to cede the Chagos Islands back to Mauritius is left to be seen because, in the world of so-called international law, might is right and the bully gets away with breaking international law time and time again.
As an organization committed to the struggle against colonialism and imperialism, Organization for the Victory of the People will always support any measure taken to rid the world of the domination by a small minority of humanity over the billions that inhabit this earth. We therefore applaud the APNU+AFC administration for having the courage to be, in this instance, on the right side of history.
Gerald A. Perreira
Organization for the Victory of the People (OVP)