Dictator Nicolás Maduro extended voting times on Essequibo | Photo: EFE/Miguel Gutierrez
The vote on the annexation of Essequibo province, an oil and mineralrich territory that belongs to Guyana, ended uneventfully after Venezuela’s National Electoral Council (CNE) extended the deadline to 8 p.m. local time (9 p.m. Brasília) this Sunday (March 3). ). .
“We want to inform the people of Venezuela that citizens are still waiting in line even after 6 p.m [de votação] and the CNE has unanimously decided to extend the electoral process by another two hours,” said the head of the body, Elvis Amoroso.
Voting began at 6 a.m. and lasted until 6 p.m. local time. The CNE’s claim was disputed by the press and opposition parties, who accused Venezuelans of failing to comply with the consultation. The referendum is “consultative” and there is no minimum number of votes for its approval.
With approval, the government hopes to establish annexation strategies for the province, which represents 70% of Guyana’s territory. Around 20.7 million Venezuelans were called to vote.
The results are scheduled to be published this Monday (4).
Nicolás Maduro, President of Venezuela, promoted voter turnout on local television. “The first impact that Venezuela’s powerful and unified voice should have is to sit down with the President of Guyana and return to the Geneva Agreement,” Maduro said during the vote.
The 1966 Geneva Convention between Venezuela and the United Kingdom recognized the country’s claim and stipulated that the matter should be resolved within four years, but this never happened. Conflicts have intensified since 2015, when oil was discovered in the region. Thanks to oil, Guyana is the fastest growing South American country in recent years.
President Lula had previously said in Dubai that he hoped that common sense would prevail in the dispute between the two countries. “What South America doesn’t need is confusion,” Lula said.
See the referendum questions
- Do you reject the current limit?
- Do you support the 1966 Geneva Convention?
- Do you agree with Venezuela’s position of not recognizing the jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice (more on this topic below)?
- Do you disagree with Guyana using a maritime region over which there are no fixed borders?
- Do you agree with the creation of the State of Guayana Essequiba and the creation of a care plan for the population of this territory, which includes the granting of Venezuelan citizenship and the inclusion of this State on the map of Venezuelan territory?
Infographics Gazeta do Povo[Clique para ampliar]
Infographics Gazeta do Povo[Clique para ampliar]