Member states of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) have been urged to not treat Venezuelans as illegal immigrants as they try to escape the political situation in their homeland.
The Guyana Human Rights Association (GHRA), in a statement on Wednesday, called on CARICOM countries to provide legal protection for those fleeing Venezuela where opposition forces are seeking to topple the government of President Nicolas Maduro.
“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,” said the group that includes the Anglican Diocese of Guyana, Roman Catholic Bishop of Guyana, Francis Alleyne, the Guyana Society for the Blind, the Guyana Environment Initiative (GEI) and the Guyanese Organization of Indigenous peoples (GOIP).
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”.
CARICOM leaders, at their last summit, held in Grenada last month, 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 they noted that they were concerned about the “difficult political, economic and social situation in Venezuela, in particular, the increase in violence and polarization 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”.
On July 30, Venezuela staged an election to choose a 545-member constituent assembly, with the power to rewrite the constitution and dissolve state institutions.
The polls were boycotted by the opposition and criticised by many western countries, but Maduro said the assembly would help bring peace to the country, where more than 100 people have been killed and more than 2,000 wounded since the street protest began in April.
