Guyana asked the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to issue “urgently” precautionary measures to require Caracas “not to hold elections anywhere in Guyanese territory” and “to refrain from any action that intends to annex” the territory in dispute, including the incorporation of “Guyana Esequiba” as part of Venezuela.

The ICJ explained this Friday that Guyana argued its request in Venezuela’s announcement to hold elections on May 25 in the Esequibo region, a territory in dispute between the two, which, the Guyanese Government said, would violate “its sovereignty, territorial integrity and political independence.”

Guyana maintains that the adoption of precautionary measures is “urgent” because these actions by Venezuela would cause “irreparable damage”, in addition to violating the order of this UN tribunal of December 2023, which demanded that Caracas refrain from taking “unilateral actions” that would alter the current situation, where Guyana administers the region.

In this sense, he asked to require Venezuela to “not hold elections anywhere in the Guyanese territory defined by the 1899 Arbitration Award,” including: extending the right to vote to people residing in the disputed territory; distributing ballots, voting cards or other physical or electronic electoral materials in the area; or presenting, appointing or supporting Venezuelan candidates in elections in the territory.

It also asked him to prevent Caracas from establishing polling stations, counting centers or electoral venues in that territory; to create, elect or appoint governors, legislative councils or other government officials for the area in dispute; or to communicate with residents of the territory in relation to elections organized by Venezuela.

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The second precautionary measure requested by Guyana requires Caracas to “restain from any action that intends to annex, de jure or de facto, the disputed territory, including the incorporation of ‘Guayana Esequiba’ as part of Venezuela.”

Finally, he wants the ICJ to order Venezuela to “refrain from changing the current situation in the disputed area, where Guyana administers and exercises control.”

Venezuela claims the Esequibo region, about 70% of Guyana’s territory, including offshore oil reserves, arguing that the arbitration award is null and void because it “fraudulently affected 159,500 square kilometers of the territory” of Esequiba Guayana, as the Venezuelan government calls it.

The Venezuelan government recognizes as the only legal instrument to resolve this controversy the Geneva Agreement, signed in 1966 with the United Kingdom (before Guyanese independence), and which establishes the basis for a negotiated solution, but the negotiations lasted for more than two decades without results.

In 2018, Guyana, a former British colony, filed a lawsuit against Caracas at the ICJ and in April 2023, the Court declared itself competent to rule on the case, which was in a coup to Caracas, which had tried to declare this case “inadmissible,” and stressed on numerous occasions that it does not consent to the jurisdiction of this Court over this controversy.

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