1 in 7 Santa Elena residents Oswaldo Alvarez, Tarcísio Silva and Fátima Araújo comment on the Essequibo referendum Photo: Caíque Rodrigues/g1 RR Santa Elena residents Oswaldo Alvarez, Tarcísio Silva and Fátima Araújo comment on the Essequibo referendum Photo: Caíque Rodrigues /g1RR
Residents interviewed in the report live in the Venezuelan city but travel almost daily through Pacaraima, the Brazilian city that borders Venezuela north of Roraima.
Guyana and Venezuela have been fighting over the Essequibo region for almost 200 years. The case has been pending at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) since 2018 after Guyana appealed because it did not believe it could negotiate better with Venezuela in a conciliatory manner.
2 of 7 Essequibo region, in the dispute between Venezuela and Guyana, and the Brazilian border in the state of Roraima — Photo: Arte g1 Essequibo region, in the dispute between Venezuela and Guyana, and the Brazilian border in the state of Roraima — Photo: Art g1
Now the issue is coming back into focus because Nicolas Maduro has scheduled the referendum on Essequibo for this Sunday (3) (see below). On the Brazilian side, the Defense Ministry stepped up security on the country’s northern border where the towns of Pacaraima and Bonfim, both in Roraima, are located.
In Pacaraima this Sunday, the traffic of cars and people is light on the streets and between the landmark that separates the two countries. As of 3:00 p.m. (local time), neither Brazilian nor Venezuelan military personnel were on site.
3 of 7 Venezuelan taxi driver Oswaldo Alvarez, 40 years old, in Pacaraima — Photo: Caíque Rodrigues/g1 RR Venezuelan taxi driver Oswaldo Alvarez, 40 years old, in Pacaraima — Photo: Caíque Rodrigues/g1 RR
Venezuelan taxi driver Oswaldo Alvarez, 40, lives in Santa Elena but often takes passengers to Pacaraima. He was born in the city of Upata and is the head of the municipality of Piar in the state of Bolívar. He said he got few people to vote in Santa Elena.
“Yes, there are people who vote, but they are few. What people are really saying about this referendum is why [Maduro] will do that. “Essequibo has always had this problem, but only now has he decided to survey the population,” said the taxi driver.
Alvarez is against the idea of annexing the Essequibo region to Venezuela. That’s why he said he would vote no on the five questions asked in the referendum.
“I will vote later [em Santa Elena]. I don’t think this referendum is necessary, but I’ll vote anyway. This is not logical, but I will vote there because I live in Santa Elena,” he stressed.
The Essequibo area, an area larger than that of Greece, has been under Guyana’s control since the late 19th century. The region makes up 70% of Guyana’s current territory and is home to 125,000 people.
In Venezuela the area is called Guayana Essequiba. It is a place with dense forest and in 2015, oil was discovered in the region. It is estimated that Guyana has reserves of 11 billion barrels, most of which are offshore, near Essequibo. Due to oil, Guyana is the fastest growing South American country in recent years.
“I don’t know if Essequibo would control the economic situation in Venezuela. I think we have to wait and see,” affirmed the Venezuelan taxi driver about the mineral resources in the area.
4 of 7 Tarcísio Silva, 48 years old, was born and lives in Santa Elena, but commutes daily through Brazil on the border with Pacaraima Photo: Caíque Rodrigues/g1 RR Tarcísio Silva, 48 years old, was born in Santa Elena and lives there, but commutes daily through Brazil on the border with Pacaraima — Photo: Caíque Rodrigues/g1 RR
According to driver Tarcísio Silva, 48 years old, who was born in Santa Elena and still lives in the city, the country should think about other priorities. Silva also said he would vote no on the referendum questions.
“I think it’s time for discussion, but I think we should talk about other things, like politics, and not about this situation.” [do referendo]. “Discuss what would be best for the people and the country itself by giving space to our own people,” he said.
“It worries me because the country is in pretty bad shape. If this is approved it will create many more problems. “The situation in the country is serious,” he added.
Tarcísio said he spoke to some people and they were all against the referendum. In his view, there is the idea that the annexation of Essequibo to the territory will bring prosperity to the country, which he does not agree with.
“There are a lot of people who are against it. In other words, we don’t know what will happen. Everyone expects Essequibo to change.” [a situação econômica do país]However, we don’t know what will happen, we don’t have that certainty,” he said.
5 of 7 Fátima Araújo, 53 years old, is Brazilian but has Venezuelan citizenship and wanted to vote “yes” in the referendum Photo: Caíque Rodrigues/g1 RR Fátima Araújo, 53 years old, is Brazilian but has Venezuelan citizenship and it was I will vote “yes” in the referendum Photo: Caíque Rodrigues/g1 RR
For Brazilian businesswoman Fátima Araújo, 53 years old, who has lived in Santa Elena for 36 years and has Venezuelan citizenship, participation in the referendum is crucial to the discussion about the country. She is for the annexation of Essequibo.
“I will definitely vote. I find it very interesting because it is a consultation, a way to find out what the population thinks. It’s cool that the national government is doing this to make possible decisions about Essequibo. This is important.” The consultation is public because we who live in Venezuela, I personally am Brazilian, have lived in the country for a long time. Therefore, logically, I will vote for the Essequibo annex,” he explained.
She complained that Venezuelans were not that enthusiastic about taking part in the referendum. For them, this is an “essential” moment for exercising citizenship in the country. “I have lived in Santa Elena for over 30 years, so the atmosphere in the city is very calm,” he said.
6 of 7 Campaign poster for the referendum called by Venezuela on the Essequibo region. The vote will take place on Sunday (March 12th) Photo: Portal Campaign poster for the referendum on the Essequibo region called by Venezuela. The vote will take place on Sunday (March 12) Photo: Portal
On social media, Maduro launched a massive campaign urging local residents to vote “yes” to the five questions. Called by him “5×5 yes in defense of EssequiboThe dictator spoke of a “new historical stage for the restoration of the territory.”
On the other hand, the President of Guyana, Mohamed Irfaan Ali, also took to social media to say that Essequibo belongs to Guyana. “Every square inch of this is ours,” he wrote in an Instagram post.
20.7 million Venezuelans were asked to vote out of a population of almost 30 people. Voting began at 6 a.m. local time (7 a.m. in Brasília) and will continue until 6 p.m. (7 p.m. in Brasília).
7 of 7 Brazil’s border with Venezuela this Sunday afternoon (3), the day of the referendum on Essequibo Photo: Caíque Rodrigues/g1 RR Brazil’s border with Venezuela this Sunday afternoon (3), the day of the referendum on Essequibo Photo: Caíque Rodrigues /g1 RR
The Essequibo region covers an area of 160,000 km² around 70% of Guyana’s current area and has estimated oil reserves of 11 billion barrels. The area is larger than that of nations such as England, Cuba or Greece.
Venezuela considers Essequibo, also called Guayana Esequiba in Spanish, a “claimed territory” and generally shows it crossed out on its maps. Guyana, which controls and administers the territory, now has six of its ten administrative regions there.
The countries have been fighting over the region since 1841. In 2015, the dispute intensified when the American company ExxonMobil discovered oil fields in the region.
- Guyana claims ownership of the territory because there is a report prepared in Paris in 1899 that established the current boundaries. At the time, Guyana was a territory of the United Kingdom.
- Venezuela claims the territory belongs to it because this is stipulated in an agreement signed with the United Kingdom itself in 1966, before Guyana’s independence, which annulled the arbitration award and laid the basis for a negotiated settlement.