Carib Scope

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  • Nieuwe RvC Telesur onder leiding van Nagisch Algoe treedt maandag aan

    Nieuwe RvC Telesur onder leiding van Nagisch Algoe treedt maandag aan

    A major leadership shakeup is set to take place at Suriname’s state-owned telecommunications provider Telesur, with the entire current supervisory board (Raad van Commissarissen, RvC) set to be officially dismissed and a new five-member board appointed during the company’s upcoming Annual General Meeting of Shareholders (Algemene Vergadering van Aandeelhouders, AVA).

    The planned reshuffle, confirmed by the meeting’s official agenda and a formal memorandum from Suriname’s Council of Ministers, will be held on May 11 at the President’s Cabinet, chaired by President Jennifer Simons. The dismissal of the sitting supervisory board and the appointment of its replacement are among the core items on the meeting’s working schedule.

    According to the Council of Ministers’ document, dated May 7, 2026, the national government has formally approved the exit of the current board, with official gratitude extended to members for their past service to the company. The outgoing supervisory board was led by president-commissaris Sanjay Raghoebarsingh, and included six additional members: Richel Apinsa, Ferrucio Hira, Paulus Abena, Sonia Bron, Ravish Isrie and Remie Oosterwolde.

    The new supervisory board will be composed entirely of five male appointees. Nagish Algoe will take on the role of president-commissaris, with the remaining board seats filled by Luciano Wijdenbosch, Frans Eersteling, Alexander Deel and André Daal.

    This leadership transition at Telesur is not an isolated change. It forms part of a broader wave of governance restructuring across multiple state-owned enterprises in Suriname, implemented following the inauguration of the country’s new ruling government.

  • Fuel consumers to receive subsidy from government

    Fuel consumers to receive subsidy from government

    Against a backdrop of skyrocketing global crude oil markets, the Commonwealth of Dominica is rolling out targeted consumer relief through a new fuel subsidy program designed to soften the blow of steep price increases for local motorists and businesses. As of May 7, 2026, unsubsidized fuel prices across the island stand at $17.98 per gallon for regular gasoline, $19.23 per gallon for high sulfur diesel, $20.53 per gallon for ultra-low sulfur diesel, and $18.23 per gallon for kerosene.

    In an official press briefing, Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit outlined the context driving the policy: global crude prices have spiked by more than 30% in recent months, creating unavoidable upward pressure on local retail fuel costs that threatened household budgets and small business viability. To counter this trend, the Dominican government will roll out per-gallon subsidies ranging between $1.50 and $2.00 starting at the next monthly fuel price review cycle, scheduled for the end of May. The subsidy will be delivered through a targeted reduction in domestic fuel taxes.

    While the relief package will come at a net cost of more than $500,000 to public funds each month, Skerrit emphasized that the support is critical for low- and middle-income households, public transportation operators, commercial fishing crews, and small and medium-sized enterprises across the island. At the same time, the Prime Minister was transparent about the significant tradeoffs the policy requires for public finances. Every dollar allocated to fuel subsidies represents forgone government revenue at a moment when public spending is already rising rapidly. Higher operating costs for core public services including public schools and hospitals, coupled with ongoing post-disaster recovery efforts in the flood-hit eastern and northeastern regions of the country, have stretched public budgets thin.

    Skerrit added that diesel prices alone have jumped 48% since the start of February 2026, and ongoing volatility in global crude markets through 2026 means these subsidies will become an increasingly heavy burden on the Dominican national treasury. This sustained pressure, in turn, limits the government’s ability to allocate funding to other core priorities, including public health initiatives, public education upgrades, infrastructure development, and long-term disaster resilience programming.

    Moving forward, the government will maintain a monthly fuel price review process to strike a balance between protecting consumers from sudden price shocks and upholding responsible fiscal management that preserves long-term public service capacity. Looking beyond short-term relief, Skerrit reaffirmed that the only sustainable path to long-term energy security for Dominica is accelerating the country’s transition from fossil fuels to domestic renewable energy sources.

  • Greene Says UPP Senate Picks Show Opposition Has “Run Out of New Faces”

    Greene Says UPP Senate Picks Show Opposition Has “Run Out of New Faces”

    A prominent political figure has leveled sharp criticism at the United Progressive Party (UPP) over its latest slate of Senate appointments, arguing that the selection of candidates exposes a critical lack of fresh talent within the opposition ranks. In comments made public this week, the critic, identified as Greene, asserted that the UPP’s recent picks demonstrate that the opposition has completely “run out of new faces” to bring into upper parliamentary chamber roles.

    The observation comes amid heightened partisan tensions ahead of upcoming political proceedings, where Senate appointments carry significant weight for shaping legislative agendas and checking government policy. Greene’s assessment suggests that the opposition’s failure to elevate emerging political voices signals deeper structural weaknesses within the party, pointing to an overreliance on long-serving politicians who have already held public office. Political analysts note that the attack is part of a broader narrative from the governing side that frames the UPP as stagnant and disconnected from voter demands for new representation. The UPP has not yet issued an official response to Greene’s claims, though insiders from the party have previously defended their selection process as focused on experience rather than purely generational turnover.

  • Trump administration releases long-secret UFO files, revealing decades of military encounters

    Trump administration releases long-secret UFO files, revealing decades of military encounters

    In a move that has reignited widespread public curiosity about extraterrestrial life and decades-old questions surrounding military encounters with unexplained aerial objects, the Trump administration has published the first tranche of formerly classified U.S. government records focused on unidentified flying objects, now formally termed unidentified anomalous phenomena, or UAPs.

    The public disclosure, carried out by the Pentagon on Friday, stems from a presidential directive issued back in February, which ordered all federal agencies to comb through their archives, declassify relevant records, and release all materials connected to government UAP investigations and unexplained aerial encounters. According to senior officials, the initial batch of documents pulls together decades of collected data, ranging from written witness testimony and military surveillance footage to photographic evidence and raw source documentation gathered across multiple U.S. government departments.

    Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth framed the disclosure as a critical step toward greater government transparency with the American public. In an official statement shared on the social platform X, Hegseth noted that decades of classification around these records had given rise to fully justified public speculation, adding that it was long past time for American citizens to review the materials directly.

    One of the most high-profile testimonies included in the release comes from Buzz Aldrin, the astronaut who made history as the second person to walk on the lunar surface during NASA’s 1969 Apollo 11 mission. Reporting from The Guardian confirms that in a post-mission debrief held shortly after the Moon landing, Aldrin described observing a “sizeable” unidentified object moving near the Moon’s surface, alongside a “fairly bright light source” that the Apollo 11 crew initially hypothesized could have been a laser.

    Beyond astronaut testimony, the declassified files also include multiple pieces of military surveillance footage capturing unusual objects recorded across different regions of the globe. One sequence, captured in 2022, shows a distinct football-shaped craft traveling through airspace above the East China Sea. Other footage, collected in recent years, documents fast-moving lights and unidentifiable dots executing erratic, high-speed maneuvers in airspace above Iraq, Syria, and the United Arab Emirates.

    ABC News’ analysis of the released documents confirms that the vast majority of reported sightings included in the archives are clustered around active U.S. military operations and locations where the United States has deployed advanced, high-resolution surveillance systems. A large share of the incidents documented date back to the 1950s and 1960s at the height of the Cold War, with most of these mid-20th century encounters concentrated in Germany and territory belonging to the former Soviet Union.

    More recently documented encounters have been overwhelmingly concentrated in the Middle East, particularly near the strategically critical Strait of Hormuz. Nearly all reported sightings included in the files were submitted by active-duty military pilots and on-the-ground military personnel, though Pentagon officials have emphasized that none of the encounters documented in the released files suggest the unidentified objects posed any immediate threat to U.S. personnel or national security.

    Among the most unusual modern cases documented in the archives is a 2023 encounter reported by federal law enforcement officers operating in the western United States. Multiple officers independently reported observing glowing, spherical orbs, with one witness stating they had seen “orbs launching other orbs,” according to ABC News’ reporting. Pentagon officials have described the 2023 case as “among the most compelling” in the entire U.S. archive of UAP encounters.

    In a closing statement, the Pentagon confirmed that the full set of declassified UAP files is now available for instant public access, noting that the U.S. government is leaving it to individual members of the public to draw their own conclusions from the information contained in the released documents.

  • Men unlawfully detained for decades awarded nearly $3M

    Men unlawfully detained for decades awarded nearly $3M

    In a landmark ruling that exposes deep systemic failures within Saint Lucia’s criminal justice system, the High Court has ordered the national government to pay a total of $2.97 million in damages to two men who endured decades of unlawful imprisonment after being deemed unfit to stand trial. Justice Alvin Shiva Pariagsingh, who presided over the case, labeled the rights violations one of the gravest constitutional breaches in the island nation’s history.

    Anthony Henry, who was wrongfully detained for roughly 24 years, received $1.25 million in compensatory damages and an additional $100,000 in vindicatory damages. Francis Noel, who spent more than 32 years in unlawful custody, was awarded $1.5 million in compensatory damages and $120,000 in vindicatory damages. The court further ruled that the Attorney General must cover all legal costs, plus an annual 6% statutory interest applied to all outstanding amounts until full payment is completed. Any interim payments already disbursed to the two men can be deducted from the final total award at the Attorney General’s discretion.

    The case reached the High Court for a final damages ruling after the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council previously confirmed that the men’s constitutional right to personal liberty had been unlawfully violated. Court documents detail that both men were held under a state-administered framework that ignored statutory and constitutional requirements for people found unfit to plead. Instead of being transferred to appropriate mental health facilities for structured treatment and regular legal reviews, the pair were confined in harsh prison conditions for decades.

    Justice Pariagsingh emphasized that the violation was no minor procedural mistake, but a prolonged, systemic failure on the part of the Saint Lucian state. “The claimants were effectively forgotten within the criminal justice system for decades,” the judge wrote, noting that this case is unprecedented in Saint Lucia and falls squarely into the most serious category of constitutional violations.

    Evidence presented to the court showed that while Henry and Noel received limited psychiatric care and medication starting around 2003, the support they received fell far short of the legal standard. For most of their detention, there was no dedicated psychiatric facility to treat them, no structured therapeutic programming to address their mental health needs, and no functional system of periodic review to reassess their status. For long stretches of their detention, they were also housed alongside the general prison population, increasing their vulnerability.

    In a balanced finding, the judge rejected the claimants’ argument that they deserved full compensation for a complete deprivation of liberty across their entire detention period. The court accepted that due to the severity and persistent nature of both men’s mental health conditions, they would likely have required detention in a secure psychiatric facility for a substantial period even if the state had followed all legal protocols. As a result, the final damage awards were calibrated to reflect the difference between the unlawful prison confinement they experienced and the lawful therapeutic detention that would have been legal under Saint Lucian law.

    The separate award of vindicatory damages was intentional: the court ruled that standard compensatory damages alone could not adequately address the profound constitutional significance of the state’s violations. Justice Pariagsingh added that the two men were uniquely vulnerable as a result of being deemed unfit to plead, meaning they depended entirely on state institutions to uphold their rights. “This was not an isolated error, but a sustained failure across the relevant institutions to give effect to fundamental rights,” the judge concluded.

  • PM announces committee to rename Nelson Island

    PM announces committee to rename Nelson Island

    On the first day of Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, India’s Minister of External Affairs, official two-day visit to Trinidad and Tobago, the two nations took a meaningful step toward honoring a shared, painful historical legacy on Nelson Island, a small Caribbean landmass etched deep into the history of Indo-Trinidadian communities.

    During a waterfront ceremony that began with an early-morning water taxi journey from Port of Spain, Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar of Trinidad and Tobago made a major announcement: a specialized oversight committee has been formed to guide the renaming of Nelson Island, a project rooted in reckoning with the island’s role in the system of East Indian indentureship. Spearheaded by Natasha Barrow, Permanent Secretary in the Office of the Prime Minister, the committee will work in close partnership with the National Trust of Trinidad and Tobago to steer the process forward. In a deliberate move to center public voice in the historical reclamation project, Persad-Bissessar emphasized that the renaming process will be open and inclusive, with all citizens invited to submit name proposals and recommendations for consideration.

    Addressing attendees alongside Jaishankar, Persad-Bissessar offered a blunt recharacterization of the 19th and early 20th century indentureship system, framing it as a deliberate form of human trafficking created to prop up the economic interests of the British Empire after the abolition of chattel slavery. She noted that the indentured laborers who arrived on these shores brought no financial wealth or formal guarantees, but carried with them unshakable religious devotion and cultural resilience that would go on to shape modern Trinidadian and Tobagonian society.

    The centerpiece of the day’s events was the unveiling of a commemorative plaque, dedicated to honoring the enduring legacy and immeasurable sacrifices of the thousands of indentured workers who passed through the island. Following the plaque unveiling, Jaishankar announced a landmark commitment: the Government of India will provide a financial grant to support conservation and infrastructure upgrades to transform Nelson Island into a fully accessible, internationally recognized heritage site.

    In comments given to the Express on the sidelines of the ceremony, Jaishankar called his first day in the country “splendid”, and highlighted the enormous untapped potential for deepening bilateral cooperation between India and Trinidad and Tobago. He noted that growing ties between the two nations will deliver shared benefits for citizens of both countries in the years ahead.

    For context, Nelson Island carries unmatched historical weight for Trinidad and Tobago. Records from the National Trust of Trinidad and Tobago confirm that between 1866 and 1917, more than 114,000 indentured Indian laborers were processed through Nelson Island and the adjacent Five Islands. Upon arrival, workers had their identity documents verified, personal details including name, birthplace and religion recorded, before being dispersed to sugarcane, cocoa and coconut plantations across Trinidad to begin their contracted labor. The island also functioned as an assembly and repatriation hub until 1936, serving workers who completed their contracts and chose to return to India.

    Jaishankar’s visit to Trinidad and Tobago is part of a wider 9-day regional tour that includes stops in Jamaica, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago from May 2 to 10, where he will hold high-level discussions focused on strengthening bilateral ties and addressing regional and global issues of shared concern. On the second day of his stop in Trinidad and Tobago, Jaishankar is scheduled to lead the ribbon-cutting for a new agro-processing facility at Namdevco in Brechin Castle, Couva, followed by the official launch of a national prosthetics programme in Penal, where Prime Minister Persad-Bissessar will deliver the keynote address and unveil a second commemorative plaque.

  • Hurricane shelter residents say relocation promises fell short

    Hurricane shelter residents say relocation promises fell short

    Nearly two weeks after a major hurricane displaced hundreds of Jamaican families in Westmoreland Parish, a controversial government effort to move storm survivors out of temporary school shelters has devolved into public dispute, with displaced residents and a sitting opposition lawmaker accusing the administration of misleading the public over the readiness of new housing units.

  • Davis urges Grand Bahamians to ‘choose progress’ over FNM

    Davis urges Grand Bahamians to ‘choose progress’ over FNM

    With the Bahamas’ general election just days away, Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis made a forceful closing pitch to voters in Grand Bahama’s Pineridge community Thursday, framing the upcoming ballot as a defining choice between sustained forward momentum and a return to past stagnation, while sharply critiquing the opposition Free National Movement (FNM)’s record in office.

    Addressing a crowd of energized Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) supporters, Davis positioned the May 12 vote as one of the most consequential national decisions in modern Bahamian history. He framed the contest as a clear binary: voters can either extend the PLP’s four-and-a-half-year term to build on the progress the administration has delivered, or “hit reset” by elevating the FNM led by Opposition Leader Michael Pintard, a outcome Davis argues would reverse recent gains.

    Looking back at Grand Bahama’s history as a dynamic economic hub for the Bahamas, Davis acknowledged that repeated hurricane strikes and years of cumulative hardship had eroded the island’s economic vitality and community confidence. Under the current PLP administration, he argued, targeted large-scale infrastructure projects and policy reforms have laid the groundwork for a robust, long-term recovery.

    A centerpiece of Davis’ address was the recent government acquisition of the Grand Bahama Power Company, a move he called a historic turning point for the island. The acquisition, he explained, is designed to cut burdensome electricity costs for residential and commercial consumers while aligning Grand Bahama’s energy infrastructure with national energy reform efforts. Beyond lower costs, Davis said the restructured system will open new professional opportunities for Bahamian engineers, technicians, and other energy sector workers. He slammed the FNM for opposing the acquisition, noting the opposition failed to address the island’s long-running high energy cost crisis when it held power.

    Davis also pushed back against criticism of his administration’s handling of long-running disputes with the Grand Bahama Port Authority, accusing previous governments of allowing the entity to avoid accountability for years while Grand Bahama’s economy stagnated. Under the PLP, he said, the government has launched legal action to formalize and enforce the Port Authority’s obligations to the island and the nation, pledging that the second phase of arbitration will secure required annual payments and outstanding arrears owed to the public.

    Outlining his agenda for a second term, Davis vowed to advance the government’s signature major development projects across Grand Bahama, including the long-awaited Freeport Health Campus, full redevelopment of Grand Bahama International Airport, and the revitalization of the Grand Lucayan resort.

    Turning to national economic performance, Davis pushed back against FNM claims that the Bahamian economy is in disarray, pointing to recent consecutive credit rating upgrades from leading international agencies including Moody’s, Standard & Poor’s, and Fitch as independent proof of the country’s positive trajectory. He noted the two back-to-back upgrades in a single fiscal year mark a milestone not achieved in more than two decades, arguing that global financial analysts would not issue positive assessments if the economy were truly struggling, as the opposition claims.

    Davis also addressed public criticism of the administration’s immigration policies and government travel spending, asserting that the PLP has strengthened border enforcement while forging global investment partnerships that have brought billions of dollars in new capital to the Bahamas.

    Warned against voter complacency despite high turnout for PLP campaign events, Davis urged every supporter to turn out at the polls on election day, stressing that the progress the administration has delivered can only continue if voters actively choose to protect it at the ballot box.

    Other top PLP figures joined Davis in hitting the campaign trail in Grand Bahama, echoing his call for voters to choose continuity and progress. Kingsley Smith, the PLP candidate for West Grand Bahama, delivered a fiery defense of the Davis administration’s record, contrasting the PLP’s delivery of major projects with the FNM’s term between 2017 and 2021, when the opposition held all five Grand Bahama parliamentary seats – all of which earned cabinet positions – including that of current Opposition Leader Pintard.

    “Five cabinet seats, zero deliveries. That is the FNM record on Grand Bahama,” Smith told the crowd, arguing that even with full cabinet representation, the FNM failed to advance any of the island’s top priorities: no new airport development, no upgraded healthcare facilities, no resort revitalization, and no action to acquire the power company and lower energy costs. Smith credited the Davis administration with moving forward on every one of these stalled priorities in less than a full term, framing the PLP as the only party with a clear vision for Grand Bahama’s future. He called Davis the strongest advocate for Grand Bahama of any modern prime minister, urging supporters to stand united behind the government and vote for progress.

    Pineridge MP Ginger Moxey echoed that framing, attributing Grand Bahama’s ongoing economic recovery and redevelopment momentum directly to the Davis administration’s policies. She highlighted the Grand Bahama Power Company acquisition as a transformative step that will cut energy costs for residents, businesses, churches, and schools across the island, while also pointing to other new projects already underway including the MSC cruise port, a major new development at Xanadu Beach, and the upcoming Afro-Caribbean Marketplace. Moxey framed the election as a clear choice: “forward with progress and strength or backwards” with the FNM.

    Deputy Prime Minister Chester Cooper closed out the rally’s messaging, stressing that continued progress depends on PLP re-election. He called the May 12 vote a “generational milestone,” noting that the PLP has delivered tangible economic gains including the historic credit rating upgrades, record tourism growth, billions in new investment across Grand Bahama, and a pipeline of infrastructure and redevelopment projects. Cooper emphasized that the Davis administration has shown unprecedented political courage in confronting long-unresolved issues with the Grand Bahama Port Authority and high energy costs, issues previous administrations avoided for decades. He repeatedly urged voters, especially young voters, not to derail Grand Bahama’s growing economic momentum by voting out the incumbent government, warning that an FNM victory would put all ongoing progress and planned investments at risk, and urging voters to “protect their progress” at the polls.

  • Hongarije: Peter Magyar beëdigd als nieuwe premier

    Hongarije: Peter Magyar beëdigd als nieuwe premier

    On a historic Saturday in Budapest, Peter Magyar, leader of Hungary’s center-right Tisza Party, took the official oath of office as the country’s new prime minister, bringing an end to Viktor Orbán’s 16-year incumbency. Magyar’s decisive victory in the April 12 parliamentary elections secured his party a constitutional supermajority in the 199-seat National Assembly, where Tisza now holds 141 seats, clearing a path for sweeping political and institutional change after years of national stagnation.

    The 45-year-old new leader used his inaugural address to call on Hungarian citizens to step through “the gate to regime change,” promising Hungarians not just a new cabinet, but an entirely transformed governing system. “The Hungarian people have given us a mandate to put an end to decades of aimless drifting,” Magyar told lawmakers and assembled guests during the ceremony in Budapest’s parliament building.

    Magyar’s election win has been met with broad positive reaction both from domestic voters and international business communities. In immediate response to the transfer of power, the Hungarian forint climbed to its highest level against the euro in four years, while domestic bond yields dropped in a show of market confidence. Post-election public opinion polls have also recorded growing public support for the Tisza Party as the new administration takes office.

    Despite the early wave of optimism, Magyar inherits a set of pressing economic and geopolitical challenges that will test his new government from its first days in office. While Hungary has barely pulled out of a prolonged period of economic stagnation, it now faces new headwinds driven by soaring energy costs spurred by the ongoing Middle East conflict. As a heavily import-dependent Central European economy, these price pressures pose a significant risk to growth. Orbán’s pre-election spending spree has also left public finances in a fragile state: recent data shows that by April, Hungary’s budget deficit had already hit 71% of the full-year target, with Magyar warning that the deficit could reach 7% of gross domestic product by the end of the calendar year.

    One of the new prime minister’s top policy priorities is resetting Hungary’s Western alignment, a sharp reversal from Orbán’s administration, which increasingly tilted toward the Kremlin and openly opposed key EU initiatives supporting Ukraine amid its ongoing war with Russia. Magyar has made clear that restoring productive relations with Brussels is a core goal of his government.

    Domestically, Magyar has laid out plans for sweeping reform of Hungary’s public media sector, already announcing a temporary suspension of state media news broadcasts. He justified the move by noting that state outlets under Orbán consistently favored the former prime minister and effectively shut out critical political voices. He has also launched an ambitious nationwide anti-corruption program, and has set an aggressive deadline of May 25 to reach a deal with EU leaders to unlock billions of euros in frozen bloc funding, resources that Magyar calls critical to rebooting economic growth and stabilizing Hungary’s public finances.

  • PNCR says refused to give up part of Essequibo to Venezuela

    PNCR says refused to give up part of Essequibo to Venezuela

    GEORGETOWN, Guyana – In a press conference held Friday, Aubrey Norton, leader of Guyana’s main opposition party People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR), issued a forceful rebuttal of recent claims raised before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) that his party’s 1970s government considered ceding a portion of the disputed Essequibo Region to Venezuela to resolve the long-running border conflict between the two nations.

    Norton stressed that the allegation carried by Venezuela’s legal team at the ICJ is entirely unfounded. “This is untrue. When Venezuela made the proposal, it was rejected out of hand by the then PNC government,” Norton told reporters. The border dispute centers on the validity of the 1899 Arbitral Tribunal Award, which established the current boundary between Guyana and Venezuela and grants Guyana sovereignty over the 159,000-square-kilometer Essequibo Region, rich in offshore oil and mineral resources. Venezuela has for decades rejected the 1899 ruling and claims full sovereignty over the territory.

    Venezuela’s lead legal representative before the ICJ, international law professor Andreas Zimmermann, told the UN court last week that during 1977 bilateral negotiations, then-Guyanese foreign minister proposed a border adjustment at Punta Playa that would shift the existing borderline from its northwest orientation to a northeast route – a change that would cede territory to Venezuela. Zimmermann also told the court that during 1995 talks, both parties explored creative settlement options that included returning partial control of the disputed territory to Venezuela, including a potential lease arrangement that would leave Guyana administering some portions. He added that former Guyanese President Janet Jagan reaffirmed in an August 1998 letter that the UN Good Officer Process established under the 1966 Geneva Agreement was intended to explore all possible pathways to a negotiated settlement.

    Beyond refuting the 1970s concession claim, Norton pushed back against the Guyanese government’s current approach to the dispute, saying while he welcomes U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s recent pledge to defend Guyana from Venezuelan aggression, Guyana should have pursued a far more robust, proactive independent diplomatic strategy long before now. The comment comes amid Venezuela’s continued refusal to recognize the ICJ’s jurisdiction to rule on the validity of the 1899 award, a stance that has raised regional and international concerns over potential escalation.

    Norton outlined that a comprehensive Guyanese strategy should combine public education, targeted political influence, and proactive economic diplomacy that leverages the country’s valuable natural resources to build global support for its sovereignty claim, rather than relying on shallow transactional engagement with international partners. He also called for long-overdue formal recognition of Rashleigh Jackson, Guyana’s foreign minister during the 1970s talks, who Norton says was critical to securing resources for foundational research that underpins Guyana’s legal case. “It is unfair, and it should be rectified,” Norton said of the lack of public recognition for Jackson’s work.

    Joining the call for a more proactive public outreach strategy was Dr. David Hinds, co-leader of the Working People’s Alliance (WPA), who urged the Guyanese government to launch a large-scale, structured public education campaign to reinforce national awareness that Essequibo is an integral part of Guyana. Hinds noted that even at this late stage, an aggressive social media-focused campaign could not only educate Guyanese citizens about their country’s sovereign claim, but also reach audiences in Venezuela and across the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) to build broader regional and international understanding of Guyana’s position.

    Hinds added that such public outreach would also create grassroots pressure on the Guyanese government to prioritize protecting the country’s territorial integrity and embed a clear national understanding of the dispute across all segments of society, as tensions over the resource-rich region remain at a decades-long high.